Final: Celtics 113, Hornets 107 - Not a pretty finish, but C's make the right plays to hold on

GAME 53
Boston Celtics (27-25, 17-10 home, 9th East) vs. Charlotte Hornets (28-23, 14-15 road, 7th East)
TD Garden
7:30 PM - NBC Sports Boston 

PROBABLE STARTING LINEUPS

Boston: Marcus Smart, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, Robert Williams

Charlotte: LaMelo Ball, Terry Rozier, Miles Bridges, Cody Martin, Mason Plumlee

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

- Dennis Schröder is still dealing with a sore Achilles tendon. Robert Williams was added to the injury report with right big toe soreness. Both are available tonight.

- Gordon Hayward (return to competition reconditioning) is out. Jaylen McDaniels (ankle) is also out. Kelly Oubre, Jr. (ankle) is probable

- Boston is favored by 6. 

GOING A LITTLE DEEPER

The Celtics were not only missing Robert Williams, Marcus Smart, and Aaron Nesmith the last game against Charlotte a few weeks ago, Jayson Tatum and Grant Williams got into foul trouble early on. 

“Marcus and Rob being out that game, against a team that's small and fast, plays with the No. 1 pace in the league and so those are some tougher losses, for a specific team like that,” Ime Udoka said. “It was a combination of a little bit everything. Bridges, specifically, making tough shots, Rozier got hot, but we missed a lot of open shots, only shot 30 percent from 3. And, to your point, didn't guard them well in transition. So lot of things we can correct, I went back and looked at it but it's also fresh on everybody's mind and that should be a benefit.”

The Celtics shot 14-46 on 3-pointers, just 30.4%, taking two more 3-pointers than 2’s on a night they couldn't hit a thing in that game. They also turned the ball over 14 team times, leading to 20 Charlotte points in a nine point win.

“I think they just out-toughed us last game,” Josh Richardson said at the team’s morning shootaround. “I think that they played well in transition. We let them get out and I think we kind of left our teammates on an island too much on defense. They had a lot of space to work with. Getting our strengths down, getting back to our gameplan, I think that will give us a better chance to win.”

The Celtics have been playing better since that loss to Charlotte. Some consistency with the lineups has helped, but Richardson believes they still have more progress to make.

“I still think that we're kind of a little in and out with our shot consistency, with sticking to our game plan consistency, continuing to move the ball and not trying to go ISO so much,” he said. “Just sticking to what we're supposed to be doing. I think we're still working on that consistency. And then -- yeah I’ll probably that's the biggest thing, honestly. Just sticking to our game plan, stay with what’s working. I think we could do a better job of that.” 

THREE THINGS TO WATCH FOR

1. Attack the middle: We tried this the last time but Boston was too undermanned to actually pull it off. Tonight, once again, we will test Robert Williams’ gravity down the middle as the Celtics test Charlotte’s soft pick and roll defense. They will give up points at the rim if Boston is attacking and moving like they have in the past. I can see another early set to get Rob and alley oop on the first possession.

2. Protect the ball: The Hornets want to RUUUUUUUN. They thrive in the chaos. Ball is a magician in the open floor. The Celtics have something to prove here after a very tough loss last month. If they come out lazy in this one and play loose with the ball, they deserve to get blown out. My expectation is that they actually come out a bit focused. Crisp passing and cutting will lead to an easy win. 

3. Defend the 3-point line: The Hornets love to bomb away. The Celtics need to run Charlotte off the 3-point line and force them into mid-range shots. If Charlotte gets hot from deep, this can turn into a shootout in a hurry. 

GAME THREAD

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