Trail Blazers-Celtics Preview

By TAYLOR BECHTOLD
Posted Nov 30 2012 12:10AM

While they've had success in previous years, the Boston Celtics haven't been the same team this season without their All-Star point guard.

That's the challenge facing the Celtics in the next two games, starting on Friday night when they host the scuffling Portland Trail Blazers without Rajon Rondo.

Rondo was suspended for two games after starting a skirmish that sent players sprawling into the seats in a 95-83 loss to Brooklyn on Wednesday night.

Rondo, averaging 12.9 points and a league-leading 12.9 assists, will miss both Friday's game and Sunday's contest at Milwaukee.

The ban, though, might be coming at a good time. The Celtics (8-7) have won five in a row against the Blazers, including eight straight in Boston dating back to Portland's last win there in 2003-04.

Still, Rondo's second-quarter ejection ended his streak of 37 consecutive games with double-digit assists, which ties him with John Stockton for the second-longest in NBA history.

"I play the game the right way. I'm not a dirty player. Sometimes I let my emotions get the best of me, but I have no intention of hurting anybody," Rondo said after practice Thursday. "I go out there and compete every night, and that's how I play the game. I play the game hard; I play the game with an edge. I'm not a trash-talker. I don't play the game dirty. I play hard and when one of my guys are disrespected, I retaliated."

He was suspended twice last season, once for throwing a ball at a referee, and again during the playoffs when he chest-bumped an official while disputing a foul call.

While the Celtics were 10-5 without Rondo last season, they haven't fared as well without their star playmaker in 2012-13.

Boston lost 102-97 to the Nets on Nov. 15 when Rondo sat out with a sprained ankle and lost again Wednesday with Rondo missing most of the contest.

The Celtics, however, held on for a 98-93 win over Utah on Nov. 14 after Rondo left with the ankle injury late in the third quarter.

Veteran guard Leandro Barbosa, who started the Nov. 15 game against Brooklyn, is expected to fill in for the Celtics. He scored 17 points in his start against the Nets, but finished with two points on 1 of 5 shooting on Wednesday.

Boston will continue to rely on Garnett and Paul Pierce, the team's leading scorers. Garnett had 16 points and 10 rebounds while Pierce had 14 points for Boston, which fell into fourth place in the Atlantic Division.

While the Celtics are trying to pick up their third win in four games, the Blazers (6-9) are looking for their first win on their tough seven-game road trip.

Portland suffered perhaps its worst defeat of the season on Wednesday night, an 84-82 loss at Washington that let the Wizards end their franchise-worst 0-12 start.

"You don't want to be the first team, that's very embarrassing," forward Nicolas Batum said.

Batum and Damian Lillard finished with 20 points each for Portland, which fell to 0-3 on its road swing.

Lillard has been a bright spot for Portland, leading all rookies with 19.1 points and 6.1 assists per game. He's also provided the Blazers with a long-distance threat, making 11 3-pointers over his last four games.

LaMarcus Aldridge added 17 points on Wednesday, while J.J. Hickson had 15 and 19 rebounds for his third double-double in four games.

The Blazers, though, have struggled to get production off the bench.

Portland's reserves, who were outscored 46-4 by the Wizards on Wednesday, have managed an NBA-low 12.3 points per game.

Celts cruise without Rondo, top Blazers 96-78

By HOWARD ULMAN
Posted Nov 30 2012 11:38PM

BOSTON (AP) Two young fans held up a sign that said, "We Miss RONDO."

The Celtics looked just fine without him.

While star point guard Rajon Rondo began a two-game suspension, Boston got 19 points from Jeff Green and 17 from Jason Terry while cruising to a 96-78 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night.

Rondo's "our leader, so it's tough when he's not here," Green said. "So everybody as a group has to pull together as a team and try and take his place."

Rondo was suspended for his role in a scuffle during a 95-83 loss to the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night. Afterward, Celtics coach Doc Rivers called his team "soft."

That motivated Courtney Lee, who started in Rondo's place and finished with 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals.

"Nobody wants to be called soft," Lee said. "I took that personal because I know that I'm far from being soft and I think our team took it personal, too."

The Celtics never trailed. They carried a 56-33 advantage into the break and took their biggest lead on a 22-foot jumper by Kevin Garnett that made it 65-38 with 8:26 left in the third quarter.

The Trail Blazers lost their fourth straight game and had just three scorers in double figures - LaMarcus Aldridge with 23 points and J.J. Hickson and Meyers Leonard with 11 each.

"We came out passive and they came out really aggressive," Aldridge said. "After the last game (with) everything they had going on, they had to set the tone early and they did."

The Celtics led 25-18 after one quarter and pulled away in the second when they held the Trail Blazers to just two field goals, both by Aldridge, and outscored them 31-15.

"We went into the third quarter, we played a little better, made some adjustments," Portland coach Terry Stotts said, "but we were on our heels from the beginning."

Aldridge provided more than half of the Trail Blazers' points in the first half, scoring 17 while collecting five of their seven field goals. Hickson and Damian Lillard scored the others.

"When we come out and set the tone defensively, like we did tonight, that's the type of team we are," said Paul Pierce, who had 12 points, eight rebounds and five assists. "That's the Celtics that I know."

The Trail Blazers cut the lead to 58-38 before the Celtics scored the next seven on two free throws by Lee, a 3-pointer by Terry and Garnett's jumper.

Boston led 75-59 heading into the fourth quarter and was never threatened in the final period.

"We just basically played through" the big men, Boston coach Doc Rivers said. "We took all the pressure off the guards. All they had to do is bring (the ball) up and then throw it to Kevin at the elbow or Jared (Sullinger) at the elbow and then cut and move. That way there's no dribbling."

Rondo leads the NBA with 12.9 assists per game but was suspended after shoving Brooklyn's Kris Humphries. He'll also miss Saturday night's game at the Milwaukee Bucks.

"We all know Rondo's capabilities," Lee said. "He's a great playmaker. He's going to rack up assists. Today we just came out there and played together."

Without Rondo, the Celtics scored seven of the first eight points and led by seven after one quarter, making 57.1 percent of their shots to 31.3 percent for the Trail Blazers.

It got worse for Portland in the second quarter when Boston scored the first nine points, the first two on free throws by Leandro Barbosa and the last seven by fellow reserve Green.

"Of course, we're frustrated," said Portland's Nicholas Batum, who missed nine of 11 shots. "The start of the season we played great, so we have to show some pride and (not) play ridiculous like we did tonight."

The loss came two days after the Trail Blazers became the first team to fall to Washington, which had lost its first 12 games. The Wizards won 84-82.

Before the game, Rivers provided a glimpse of his strategy with Rondo being suspended.

"Everyone's going to be the point guard," he said. "I told our guys the entire team has to be ready for ballhandling duties. It left us in a pretty tough spot, but we should be able to play through this and win games still."

NOTES: The Trail Blazers had just 12 assists. ... Boston's reserves outscored Portland's 41-22. ... Kris Joseph, recalled from Maine of the NBA Development League, played four minutes, 55 seconds and scored two points for Boston. ... Portland has three more games left in a season-high, seven-game road trip: Cleveland, Charlotte and Indiana.

Notebook: Celtics 96, Trail Blazers 78

Brian Robb, for NBA.com
Posted Fri Nov 30, 2012 11:11 PM - Updated Fri Nov 30, 2012 11:11 PM

THE FACTS: Jeff Green had a season-high 19 points off the bench, as the Boston Celtics cruised to a 96-78 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers. Jason Terry added 17 points for the hosts who played without Rajon Rondo, as he sat out the first game of a two-game suspension. With their star point guard out of the lineup, Boston stepped up their defensive intensity, limiting Portland to just 33 first half points as they surged a 23-point halftime lead. LaMarcus Aldridge had a game-high 23 points for the Blazers, who have now dropped the first four games on their seven-game road trip.

QUOTABLE: "We wanted to come out and just focus on the defensive end to make sure we got stops. We didn't give up any easy buckets and so I think we started off and threw the first punch." -- Courtney Lee.

THE STAT: Portland shot a mere 14.2 percent (2-of-14) in the second quarter. Outside of Aldridge, the Blazers shot a dismal 0-for-12 from the field during the frame.

TURNING POINT: Green provided a spark for the second unit in the opening moments of the second quarter, scoring seven of the first nine points in the quarter during a 9-0 run. The outburst enabled Boston to open up a double-digit lead, which they never relinquished.

QUOTABLE II: "Boston came out really aggressive. Doc [Rivers] called them a soft team [after Wednesday's game] and they came out aggressive. They had us on our heels for the first two quarters and it took us awhile to regroup." -- Portland coach Terry Stotts.

HOT: Terry -- The crafty veteran scored 12 of his 17 points in the first half on 5-of-7 shooting, which helped push the Boston lead to as many as 25 points before intermission.

NOT: Damian Lillard -- The rookie's offensive struggles have coincided with Portland's four-game losing streak on the road trip. Lillard finished with just eight points Friday, 11 below his season average and has shot just 27 percent from the field (16-of-59) over his last four games.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Courtney Lee -- The shooting guard had been off to a slow start this season for his new team, but excelled while filling in for Rondo in the starting five Friday night. Lee stuffed the box score across multiple categories, as the fifth-year guard finished with 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals in a game-high 37 minutes.

GOOD MOVE: Rivers adjusted his team's pick-and-roll defense, trapping the ball-handler during pick-and-rolls. The move paid off, as Portland could not get anything going offensively in the first half, turning the ball over 10 times over the first 24 minutes.

ROOKIE WATCH: Jared Sullinger -- The former Ohio State star stood out for his work on the defensive glass, tying a team-high with eight rebounds to go along with nine points over a career-high 31 minutes.

QUOTABLE III: "I don't know any man that likes to be called soft." -- Kevin Garnett on the Celtics responding to Rivers calling Boston "soft" after Wednesday's loss vs. Brooklyn.

NOTABLE: Jason Collins appeared for the first time this season against a team other than the Brooklyn Nets...Garnett moved into 18th place all-time for NBA games played with 1,271...Nolan Smith played five minutes for Portland despite sitting out the past two games...The Blazers are now 0-4 on their seven-game road trip. Kris Joseph was recalled from the Maine Red Claws before the game and scored two points in five minutes of action...Portland had a season-low 12 assists...The Celtics never trailed in the contest.

UP NEXT: For Portland, Saturday @ Cleveland, Monday @ Charlotte, Wednesday @ Indiana. For Boston, Saturday @ Milwaukee, Wednesday vs. Minnesota, Friday @ Philadelphia

• Trail Blazers: Claver, Williams
• Celtics: Melo

• Trail Blazers: Matthews
• Celtics: Terry

• Lead Changes: 0
• Times Tied: 0

• Arena: TD Garden, Boston, MA
• Officials: #15 Bennett Salvatore, #20 Leroy Richardson, #26 Pat Fraher
• Attendance: 18624
• Duration: 2:15