Post by Admin on Mar 18, 2022 17:59:20 GMT -5
(Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)
3 keys to victory over the Sacramento Kings
by Austin DeCouta
by Austin DeCouta
For the Boston Celtics, Wednesday night served up an outcome that not many predicted. With Stephen Curry going down with a foot injury late in the second quarter, the C’s were able to capitalize and pull away where, in the end, they would come out on top110-88, outscoring Golden State 31-19 in the 4th quarter.
Now, Friday night we’ll be seeing the green and white continue on their west coast journey as they get ready to battle the 25-46 Sacramento Kings.
Boston is 24-7 in their last 31 games, continuing to climb the Eastern Conference rankings. The shamrocks have started out the month of March to the tune of a 6-1 record.
The Kings, on the other hand, have not been as lucky, sporting a lowly 2-6 record.
For the Celtics, it’s a relatively clean injury report again, as just Aaron Nesmith is expected to once again be out.
Sacramento will be without Terrence Davis and Jeremy Lamb, while star point guard, De’Aaron Fox, is listed as questionable with a hand injury (at the time of this writing).
These two teams have met once prior to this outing. At the TD Garden, it was the home team who came out victorious by a wide margin, winning by a final score of 128-75.
Boston will bring their league-leading defense to Sacramento to battle the league’s 28th ranked defense.
On paper, this looks like a cakewalk for the shamrocks as they enter as -9.5 and -360 on the money line. 95 percent of the public bet is on the C’s to cover the spread according to numbers from CBS Sports.
Looking to continue their solid second half, and month of March, it’s important for Boston to focus on 3 key things to come out with a win:
Boston Celtics key to victory No.1) Smother the Kings early
As evident by the last time these two teams met, Boston’s defense can overwhelm the opposition. This typically leads to a victory for them, especially against teams with poor records like Sacramento.
The Kings do score more points per game than the C’s on the season, so there’s at least one positive to focus on if you’re a black and purple fan.
Teams like Sacramento struggle to get back in games when they fall behind early, thanks to their lack of depth and star power. Of course, the last time these two teams met, Domantas Sabonis was a member of the Pacers.
The addition of Sabonis helps Sac town matchup better with Boston this time around, but it’s not a huge difference-maker.
Expect the Kings to play through Sabonis early on, especially if De’Aaron Fox cannot suit up.
The big man posted a triple-double last time he met the C’s when he was still a member of the Pacers. Al Horford will likely spend most of his night guarding Sabonis or Trey Lyles, depending on the lineup interim head coach, Alvin Gentry, decides to deploy.
If the C’s pressure the Kings early and get ahead, they should have no problem holding on in the second half against this rebuilding franchise.
As evident by the last time these two teams met, Boston’s defense can overwhelm the opposition. This typically leads to a victory for them, especially against teams with poor records like Sacramento.
The Kings do score more points per game than the C’s on the season, so there’s at least one positive to focus on if you’re a black and purple fan.
Teams like Sacramento struggle to get back in games when they fall behind early, thanks to their lack of depth and star power. Of course, the last time these two teams met, Domantas Sabonis was a member of the Pacers.
The addition of Sabonis helps Sac town matchup better with Boston this time around, but it’s not a huge difference-maker.
Expect the Kings to play through Sabonis early on, especially if De’Aaron Fox cannot suit up.
The big man posted a triple-double last time he met the C’s when he was still a member of the Pacers. Al Horford will likely spend most of his night guarding Sabonis or Trey Lyles, depending on the lineup interim head coach, Alvin Gentry, decides to deploy.
If the C’s pressure the Kings early and get ahead, they should have no problem holding on in the second half against this rebuilding franchise.
Boston Celtics key to victory No. 2) Play through Jaylen Brown
The last couple of weeks have not been Jaylen Brown’s sharpest by any means–with some inconsistent shooting performances and some inefficient stat lines, Brown has not been at his best.
Wednesday night against Golden State was a different story as JB posted 26 points, seven rebounds, and three assists.
It’s important to build off of this performance and continue to let Jaylen run the offense at times. As Jayson Tatum continues to see double teams down the stretch, it’s going to be Jaylen Brown who the C’s lean on to make big shots.
Tatum has continued to make the right passes out of these situations, but his teammates have not always converted on the open looks.
Now’s the time to let the 6-6 wing take over the game and run the offense.
The Kings struggle defensively, especially out on the perimeter, so tonight could be a massive outing for the former Cal Bear.
It’ll be intriguing to see if coach Ime Udoka runs sets for Brown early in the game to exploit the matchup, much like he did against the Hawks a couple of weeks ago.
When Brown was matched up against Kevin Huerter, the first handful of possessions went in his direction.
Expect a big night from number seven, as the shamrocks look to pick up the victory.
The last couple of weeks have not been Jaylen Brown’s sharpest by any means–with some inconsistent shooting performances and some inefficient stat lines, Brown has not been at his best.
Wednesday night against Golden State was a different story as JB posted 26 points, seven rebounds, and three assists.
It’s important to build off of this performance and continue to let Jaylen run the offense at times. As Jayson Tatum continues to see double teams down the stretch, it’s going to be Jaylen Brown who the C’s lean on to make big shots.
Tatum has continued to make the right passes out of these situations, but his teammates have not always converted on the open looks.
Now’s the time to let the 6-6 wing take over the game and run the offense.
The Kings struggle defensively, especially out on the perimeter, so tonight could be a massive outing for the former Cal Bear.
It’ll be intriguing to see if coach Ime Udoka runs sets for Brown early in the game to exploit the matchup, much like he did against the Hawks a couple of weeks ago.
When Brown was matched up against Kevin Huerter, the first handful of possessions went in his direction.
Expect a big night from number seven, as the shamrocks look to pick up the victory.
Boston Celtics key to victory No. 3) Win the turnover battle
This one may seem a bit obvious, but for some reason, good teams play sloppy at times against conference bottom feeders.
The C’s average 13.1 turnovers per game, while the Kings are just ahead at 13.5.
If the Celtics get sloppy on both sides of the floor, Sacramento’s speed in transition could be on full display. With Fox, Davion Mitchell, and Donte DiVincenzo able to run and space the floor, the shamrocks have to limit the mistakes and not allow the Kings to play to one of their few strengths.
Against Golden State, the C’s turned the ball over three more times than their opponent and won. But against Dallas, they turned the ball over six fewer times and still lost.
A team like SAC who has nothing to lose oftentimes plays hard down the stretch as they look to play spoiler. Fox, Mitchell, and Sabonis are all likely back in the black and purple next season, so these three will continue to work on their game together.
Playing the cleanest possible basketball will undoubtedly best prepare the Celtics for the playoffs and their championship quest.
While turnovers are not the end all be all, it’s something to focus on down the stretch. Once the playoffs come around, winning the turnover battle is a must as the competition gets stiffer.
Boston has continued to prove themselves and win the “must-win games”, with tonight serving as another opportunity to start a new win streak.
Although it’s a W on paper, the Boston Celtics cannot look past accomplishing these three keys if they want the win.
This one may seem a bit obvious, but for some reason, good teams play sloppy at times against conference bottom feeders.
The C’s average 13.1 turnovers per game, while the Kings are just ahead at 13.5.
If the Celtics get sloppy on both sides of the floor, Sacramento’s speed in transition could be on full display. With Fox, Davion Mitchell, and Donte DiVincenzo able to run and space the floor, the shamrocks have to limit the mistakes and not allow the Kings to play to one of their few strengths.
Against Golden State, the C’s turned the ball over three more times than their opponent and won. But against Dallas, they turned the ball over six fewer times and still lost.
A team like SAC who has nothing to lose oftentimes plays hard down the stretch as they look to play spoiler. Fox, Mitchell, and Sabonis are all likely back in the black and purple next season, so these three will continue to work on their game together.
Playing the cleanest possible basketball will undoubtedly best prepare the Celtics for the playoffs and their championship quest.
While turnovers are not the end all be all, it’s something to focus on down the stretch. Once the playoffs come around, winning the turnover battle is a must as the competition gets stiffer.
Boston has continued to prove themselves and win the “must-win games”, with tonight serving as another opportunity to start a new win streak.
Although it’s a W on paper, the Boston Celtics cannot look past accomplishing these three keys if they want the win.