Of course, with the defensive strength of the Green Army, it is no problem to defend the Warriors' three-pointer, but then the inside will be lost.
Because he selectively let go of Lopez's outside three-pointer, Perkins was able to guard the inside and not give the Warriors a chance to attack the inside.
I have to say that Rivers' changes were timely and the effect was very good.
Curry was restricted, and the three-pointers from Laga Bell and the other three were gone. It was not easy to get inside.
Only Lopez has a three-point chance.
What is very depressing is that Lopez has no touch today and can't make any shots.
After five consecutive open opportunities, Lopez failed to make a single shot.
Fortunately, due to a lot of energy invested in defense, the Celtics' offense also stagnated and did not increase points quickly.
Five minutes later, the score became 67:78!
The Warriors trailed by 11 points.
Deng Fang had no choice but to call a timeout.
After the timeout, Deng Fang replaced Curry and Belinelli and replaced him with DeAndre Jordan, Turiaf and Livingston.
Since offense can't work, then it's better to defend!
The Celtics have two big men, and so do the Warriors.
Although Azubuike is missing and their mobility is somewhat inferior, the defense of these five Warriors is also quite good.
DeAndre Jordan and Turiaf are both very strong in the paint and have good mobility. Prince and Laga Bell have height and experience and are the best glue.
Livingston had a height advantage against Rondo.
Once these five players come on board, it will be even more difficult for the Green Army, whose offense is already mediocre, to score.
Of course, it's not easy for the five Warriors to score.
The game turned into a meat-and-blood battle, which was extremely brutal.
Finally, the long third quarter ended, and the two teams combined for 21 points.
As soon as the fourth quarter started, Deng Fang replaced Curry.
The beginning of the fourth quarter was originally substitute time.
The Celtics' bench strength is average. The Warriors already have an advantage. Now that Curry is on the team, the advantage is even greater.
The Celtics' defense is good, but that's mainly reflected in the starting lineup.
Whether it is tacit understanding, physical fitness, defensive experience, or the ratio between substitutes and starters, they are all far behind.
Even with double teams, the Celtics' substitutes didn't do a good job.
In the third quarter, the big lock that had always made Curry uncomfortable finally opened. Curry behaved like a tiger and kept scoring.
Within a few minutes, Curry's score had risen to 35 points!
Fortunately, Eddie House of the Celtics also played well today, hitting three three-pointers in four minutes.
But Eddie House alone couldn't do it, and the score quickly got closer.
Rivers was forced to call a timeout.
This game is still very important for the Green Army, they are bound to win.
The Warriors have won ten consecutive games and are the hottest team in the league.
Judging from the Warriors' momentum, it is likely to become a roadblock on their way to the championship.
The two teams only play each other twice in a season, and the outcome of this game will greatly improve their morale.
Besides, just cutting off the Warriors' winning streak is enough to cheer up the Celtics soldiers.
You know, the entire league is watching to see who can stop the Warriors' winning streak.
This is also an important reason why it is difficult to continue a winning streak.
Anyone who encounters your opponent will be like a chicken.
Every game you play is playoff intensity!
Your opponents have fully researched you and are very targeted.
After the timeout, the Celtics changed into the starting lineup.
At this time, you basically have to play until the end of the game.
This is rare for them.
The starting lineup played several minutes more than usual!
This is a huge challenge for the veterans of the Green Army.
But the veterans did not complain, and everyone was in high spirits and full of fighting spirit.
Although they do not have an advantage in terms of physical fitness, everyone in the Green Army did a very good job on the defensive end.
The box-1 strategy is online again.
Curry suddenly had no chance to make a shot.
Once Curry was locked up, the Warriors' offense came to a standstill.
I have to say that Rivers responded very quickly.
After several consecutive attacks failed, Deng Fang had to call a timeout.
The score on the court became 88:91!
After the timeout, the Warriors changed to the starting lineup, and Curry continued to stay on the court.
The starter's shooting ability is stronger and the threat is greater.
However, the Celtics' defensive strategy has not changed at all, they just want to strangle Curry!
The Celtics' ability to do this has a lot to do with Garnett's presence.
Garnett has no problem defending the inside, but he can also come out to defend the outside. He has a very good sense of position on the court and can fill in and help defend at any time.
Except for Lopez who had an open three-point opportunity, no one else had any good shooting opportunities.
The Warriors' offense became very difficult.
Fortunately, Lopez no longer felt as bad as in the first half. He still made two of the five shots from beyond the three-point line.
Other than that, you can only rely on Curry's strong burst to cause fouls.
However, the Celtics were very smart. The fouls on Curry were not shooting fouls, and the Warriors did not gain much benefit from this.
On the other hand, the Celtics' offense was not going well either.
Deng Fang also let go of one person, and that was Rondo.
If you guard five of me against four, and bet that Lopez won't score a three-pointer, I'll give it back to you with the same tactics!
The others are strictly guarding, Rondo can shoot three-pointers whenever he wants!
Pierce and Gane particularly wanted to fight one-on-one, so they would double-team when they got the ball!
The same goes for Ray Allen's movement without the ball. Curry is two meters away from Rondo, ready to help defend at any time.
But what gives Deng Fang a headache is that Rondo felt very good today and made several three-pointers.
After struggling for a long time, the score could not be caught up.
Soon the game entered the countdown phase.
The score between the two teams became 101:110!
If there were no accidents, it would be difficult to recover this score.
Curry caught the ball and quickly moved forward, with Rondo following Curry closely.
Curry dribbled the ball to near the midline, suddenly lowered his head and rushed forward.
Rondo quickly took a step back.
Unexpectedly, this was a fake move by Curry. Seeing Rondo take a step back, he immediately pulled the ball back, raised his hand and shot!
The basketball drew a beautiful arc in the air and hit the net!
Rondo stood there in a daze, gritting his teeth bitterly as he watched the basketball fall into the net bag!
He knows to focus on guarding Curry's three-pointers.
But this is the center line!
You call this a blind attack on Batu!
What's annoying is that they really put in the effort!
What can you do?
Humph, even if he made the shot, he would still be scolded by the coach when he came down!
Rondo curled his lips and snorted.
The score became 104:110!
There are 45 seconds left.
The game became a little more suspenseful.
Of course, this is only theoretical suspense.
Next it's Celtic's possession.
Rondo didn't catch the ball, but Ray Allen did.
The Warriors are definitely going to foul.
If there is no foul, the Green Army will run out of time and take any shot. Even if it doesn't go in, there will only be more than 20 seconds left.
An offensive opportunity was missed by 6 points and it was impossible to recover it.
Sure enough, the Warriors chose to foul.
Ray Allen made two free throws and the score became 104:112!
