76ers-Celtics Preview

By JIMMY GOLEN
Posted May 21 2012 11:12AM

WALTHAM, Mass. (AP) - The Celtics player who needs a break the most this postseason isn't 34-year-old Paul Pierce, who's nursing a knee injury. Or 36-year old Ray Allen, who's got bone spurs in his ankle. Or even Kevin Garnett, who turned 36 on Saturday but is playing like he did a decade ago.

It's Avery Bradley, 21, who is determined to stay on the court despite a left shoulder that has popped out of its socket four times so far during the season.

"He is a guy who wants to be out there; a guy that wants to win and do anything he can to help," Pierce said. "A lot of young players would probably sit down and worry about their futures or careers or contract situations. ... Hopefully he doesn't have any long-term injuries due to the fact that he's playing."

A first-round draft pick who did not appear in the playoffs as a rookie last year, Bradley moved into the starting lineup when Allen was injured and remained there even after the former All-Star returned. Bradley dislocated his shoulder in Game 3 of Boston's first-round series against Atlanta, but has not missed a game because of it.

"He's dealing with stuff and it's tough," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said on Sunday before practice, which Bradley sat out. "A lot of people would not be playing, and the only reason he is is because he wants to. I am concerned at some point that he may not be able to anymore. We don't know what game that is. ... Tomorrow could be his last game."

The Celtics resume the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Philadelphia 76ers with Game 5 on Monday night. The series is tied 2-2 thanks to the Sixers' comeback from an 18-point, third-quarter deficit to win Game 4 92-83.

"It's a swing game, but it's a swing game for both teams," Rivers said. "Game 5s and Game 7s are pretty much the same."

Game 6 is Wednesday in Philadelphia, with a seventh game back in Boston on Saturday, if necessary.

With two days off between the fourth and fifth games, Rivers gave his aging team the day off on Saturday before returning to practice on Sunday. Bradley did not participate in the workout, but Allen was on the court shooting jumpers 30 minutes early and Garnett joined him soon after.

"It probably benefits them," coach Doug Collins said, noting the number of minutes - more than 50,000 - Garnett has played in the regular season and playoffs in his career. "Pierce, Allen, ton of minutes . I'm sure they're probably a little disappointed in themselves that they gave us some life."

Sixers forward Andre Iguodala said having the extra day probably helps the Celtics "because they have a lot more miles on their bodies."

"One game, day off, one game, that was to our advantage," forward Elton Brand agreed. "They have a lot of veterans on their team that can use the rest. Helps us but going to help them too."

Rivers said Bradley's shoulder has popped out at least four times during this season. On Friday night, it popped out but popped right back in.

"It's crazy," Rivers said, adding that the injury is keeping Bradley from driving to the basket. "Listen: It's a tough thing that he's going through. A lot of players would not be playing."

Bass erupts for Celtics in 101-85 win over Sixers

By JIMMY GOLEN
Posted May 21 2012 10:40PM

BOSTON (AP) They started as a Big Three and grew to a Big Four when Rajon Rondo earned the right to be mentioned along with the other Boston Celtics All-Stars.

At no point, however, did Brandon Bass merit marquee billing in his first season in Boston.

The fifth, newest and least-heralded member of the Celtics' starting lineup, Bass erupted for a career playoff-high 27 points on Monday night, scoring 18 in the third quarter as Boston pulled away from the Philadelphia 76ers to win 101-85 and take a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

"We've got a few good players on the team that they had to focus on," said Bass, who left the game to a standing ovation with 2 minutes left and Boston leading by 18. "That left me open, and I was able to take advantage of my opportunity."

The 27 points matched Bass' regular-season career high, and the 18 points in the third was one off his career playoff high for an entire game. It was also more than the Sixers scored in the quarter as a team.

"It was one of those games we needed something to ignite us together," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "I thought the biggest difference was his energy. He played with a force. I thought he just let himself go."

Kevin Garnett added 20 points and Rajon Rondo had 13 points and 14 assists for the Celtics, who can advance to the East finals with a victory in Philadelphia in Game 6 on Wednesday. The Sixers would need a win at home to force the series back to Boston for a decisive seventh game.

As he walked to his postgame interview, Elton Brand told the Celtics' ball boys in the hallway outside the locker rooms: "See you on Saturday."

No team has won consecutive games yet this series.

"It would just be nice to win two in a row. That would be terrific," Rivers said. "It's not going to be easy. This series has been hard. Every minute, you think we're leaking oil physically."

Brand scored 19 and Evan Turner had 11 points and 10 rebounds for Philadelphia, which led by six points early in the third quarter before Boston scored 14 of the next 16 points. Bass had eight of them, including back-to-back dunks followed by a steal that set up Ray Allen's fast-break layup to give the Celtics a 63-57 lead with five minutes left in the quarter.

Boston closed out the third with a 10-2 run over the final 3 minutes and outscored the Sixers 28-16 in the period. The Celtics also scored 16 of the first 22 points in the fourth quarter - seven from Rondo - to put away the game.

"We had too many turnovers and that just got those guys going," 76ers center Spencer Hawes said. "They got a couple of easy baskets in transition off our mistakes. It got them going, they took advantage of it and held home court. Now we have to go home and take care of ours."

The Celtics acquired Bass in December in a trade with Orlando for Glen "Big Baby" Davis, and he worked his way into the starting lineup after the All-Star break. Although he solidified the power forward position after Garnett moved to center, he hadn't done anything spectacular - until Monday.

Bass hadn't scored more than 22 points in a game this season. His playoff high was 19 points, in 2008.

Paul Pierce had 16 points - a perfect 9 for 9 from the free throw line - and Allen, back in the starting lineup because of an injury to Avery Bradley, had five points.

Boston tied it 57-all when Bass stole the ball from Thaddeus Young and got to the free throw line, making both foul shots. After a Sixers miss, Rondo found Bass underneath for the dunk. Bass added another crowd-pleasing dunk before knocking loose a ball to start Rondo on a fast break he finished by finding Allen for the layup.

Notes: Actor Will Smith, a 76ers co-owner, was at the game, as were comedians Chris Rock and David Spade. ... Bradley did not play because of problems in both shoulders, Rivers said. ... Rondo had seven assists in the third quarter. He picked up one of his most spectacular when he slipped at the free throw line but left-handed the ball to Greg Stiemsma for the dunk.

Notebook: Celtics 101, Sixers 85

Posted Monday May 21, 2012 11:15PM

Brian Robb, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Brandon Bass had 18 of his 27 points in the third quarter, keying a second half comeback for the hosts as the Boston Celtics defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 101-85. With the win, Boston takes a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. Bass matched his career high with the 27 points, and Kevin Garnett added 20 points and six rebounds as the Celts' cooled off a hot-shooting Sixers team in the second half, limiting them to just 35 points after the break. Rajon Rondo (13 points, 14 rebounds) added a double-double as Boston broke open the game in the fourth quarter, leading by as many as 20 points before coasting to the win. Elton Brand had a team-high 19 points for the Sixers in the defeat.

QUOTABLE: "I thought the biggest difference was his energy. I thought he went after rebounds, he played with a force, and I just thought he let himself go."
-- Doc Rivers on Bass.

THE STAT: The 18 points Bass scored in the third quarter was the highest total a player has scored in a quarter during this postseason. LeBron James had the previous-high of 17 points in the fourth quarter of Game 3 against the New York Knicks during that first round series.

TURNING POINT: The 76ers turned the ball over five times in a period of just six possessions midway through the third quarter. The miscues proved costly, as Boston surged to a 10-0 run in the stretch taking the lead for the first time in the second half.

QUOTABLE II: "You can't play like that, you can't play one-handed against this team. You can't make careless, one-handed passes against this team. They're too good. We did not meet the tenacity that they played with from the middle of the third quarter on."
-- Sixers head coach Doug Collins on his team's sloppy second half play.

HOT: Brand -- The power forward has been suffering from a sore neck all series, but still came out scorching hot in the first half of Game 5, hitting six of his first eight shots. The veteran finished with 19 points, two more than his total point output over the first four games of the series combined.

NOT: Lou Williams -- The Sixers' leading scorer in the regular season couldn't find his rhythm against a swarming Celtics defense Monday night. The point guard managed just seven points on 2-of-9 shooting over 27 minutes of action.

QUOTABLE III: "We know how tough the playoffs are. We know they're not going to go away, so we got to have our hard hats on for the next game, Game 6, to try to put them away!"
-- Paul Pierce on trying to close out series

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Garnett -- The 36-year-old shook off a tough Game 4 to bounce back with another tremendous all-around effort for the Celts' with 20 points, six rebounds and two steals over an efficent 32 minutes. Over the series, Garnett is still averaging a double-double with 20.0 ppg and 10.6 rpg.

INSIDE THE ARENA: Actor Will Smith, who also is a co-owner of the Sixers watched his team from courtside with wife Jada. Comedians Chris Rock and David Spade also took in Game 5 at TD Garden.

ROOKIE WATCH: Two rookie big men, one on each roster, were perfect on the offensive end in Game 5 for their respective team. Greg Stiemsma did not get off the bench in Game 4 for Boston, but responded with his best offensive effort of the postseason in Game 5, finishing with 10 points on 5-of-5 shooting. For Philadelphia, Lavoy Allen continued his excellent play this series on both ends of the floor. The former Temple star finished with 12 points, making all six of his shots. Allen is now averaging 9.2 ppg in five games against Boston.

BAD MOVE: Despite his hot shooting, Collins played Allen for just 18 minutes in the contest.

NOTABLE: Avery Bradley did not play due to soreness in both shoulders. Rivers called him day-to-day before the game for the remainder of the series. Ray Allen started at shooting guard in Bradley's place and finished with five points in 33 minutes. The sharpshooter also left the game in the third quarter after aggravating his right ankle, but returned to the floor in the fourth quarter. Rondo had seven assists in the third quarter. The Sixers shot just two free throws in the first half. The Celtics had 20 free throws in the second half alone, and finished with 36 attempts from the charity stripe, nearly doubling their total from Game 4 (19). Sean Williams was active for Boston in place of Bradley.

UP NEXT: Game 6: Wednesday May 23 Boston @ Philadelphia. Time TBA

• 76ers: Brackins
• Celtics: Bradley, Johnson

• 76ers: Collins
• Celtics: --

• Lead Changes: 10
• Times Tied: 4

• Arena: TD Garden, Boston, MA
• Officials: #41 Ken Mauer, #71 Rodney Mott, #14 Ed Malloy
• Attendance: 18624
• Duration: 2:21