The lineups

Posted by Extra Bases May 31, 2008 at 4:57 pm

BALTIMORE - Raining off and on here. But have the lineups:

Boston
RF Ellsbury
2B Pedroia
DH Ortiz
LF Ramirez
3B Lowell
1B Youkilis
C Varitek
CF Crisp
SS Lugo
SP Lester

Baltimore

2B Roberts
RF Markakis
3B Mora
1B Millar
DH Huff
C Hernandez
LF Payton
CF Jones
SS Cintron
SP Olson

Francona will miss Sunday game

Posted by Extra Bases May 31, 2008 at 4:09 pm

BALTIMORE - Terry Francona will miss tomorrow's game to attend daughter Leah's graduation at Brookline High.

Celts Tickets on Sale

Posted by Mike Giardi May 31, 2008 at 3:36 pm

The Boston Celtics announced today that a limited amount of playoff tickets for the NBA Finals (Round 4, Home Games 1 and 2) vs. the Los Angeles Lakers will go on sale Monday, June 2 at 2 p.m.  There is a two (2) ticket limit per customer and seats start at just $30 in the Rite-Aid Family Section.

Home Game 1 and Home Game 2 of the NBA Finals are scheduled to be played at the TD Banknorth Garden on Thursday, June 5 at 9 p.m. and Sunday, June 8 at 9 p.m.  Further schedule details will be announced on Celtics.com.

 

Celtics fans will be able to purchase Monday by visiting Celtics.com, by calling 1-800-4NBA-TIX or by visiting the TD Banknorth Garden Box Office or Ticketmaster Outlet. Random number distribution will begin at approximately 1 p.m. at the TD Banknorth Garden Box Office for fans choosing to purchase there. Acceptable forms of payment for tickets are American Express and all other major credit cards and customers may also pay by cash at the TD Banknorth Garden Box Office or Ticketmaster Outlet.

Bikes Provided Days’ Stiffest Test

Posted by NHL.com May 31, 2008 at 11:41 am The bikes. That’s all anyone who witnessed the fitness testing at the NHL Scouting Combine could talk about. But more went on yesterday, including a bench press benchmark, and...

Celtics Return To Finals

Posted by Bruce May 31, 2008 at 11:12 am

The Celtics got the job done on the road last night, closing out the Detroit Pistons 89-81 in Auburn Hills Michigan. They now are in the NBA finals, where they will play their great rivals of the 1960’s and 1980’s, the Los Angeles Lakers.

I got chills just writing that.

In the early returns, I can already tell that the focus on this series from a national perspective is going to be much more on Kobe Bryant and the Lakers rather than on the Celtics. I think I’m ok with that. Just keep Bennett Salvatore away from the series, please.

Over on the BSMW Full Court Press, Matt Richardson has a look back at last night.

Though Bill Simmons doesn’t think the Celtics have a chance against the Lakers (HAS to be a reverse jinx attempt), the series should feature a less physical style of play than the six games Boston just went through with the Pistons. Ignoring Shaughnessy’s front page story in the Globe, I went to Bob Ryan first this morning. Steve Bulpett looks at Paul Pierce getting his chance to write his own chapter in Celtics championship history.

Globe columnist Kevin Cullen has an online-only piece on Boston.com about the Celtics getting back to the finals, and takes a look back at how the Celtics were the most progressive team in the 1960’s with regards to race.

Jeff Jacobs has the Celtics riding their defense to the finals. Jim Fenton credits the stirring fourth quarter rally by the Celtics. Rob Duca says that the Celtics earned this one.

Get the rest of your Celtics fix at CelticsLinks.com.

The Red Sox won in extra innings in Baltimore last night, check the coverage at RedSoxLinks.com.

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They’re Learning

Posted by Randolph Charlotin May 31, 2008 at 10:11 am

Do you remember Doc Rivers saying it could be a good thing that the Celtics played in two series that were extended to game sevens? His words were, “Going through this thing twice has to be a positive to our team. It Just has to be.”

How many thought it was a load of bull? It sounded like a coach trying to spin a positive out of disappointment.

I did. I saw no good out of the best team in the East being extended to a seventh game by two teams clearly inferior to the Celtics. For goodness sakes, Atlanta barely made it to the playoffs. And Cleveland is a one-man team. And it took the Celts seven games to beat both of them? And Doc is calling it a positive? Come on!

Looks like Rivers was right. This team wasn’t playoff tested over the years. They are basically picking things up along the way when the expectations for this club are sky high. Finishing with the league’s best record and being rated as the top defense can do that, even for a unproven playoff team.

It hasn’t been an efficient playoff run, but the results are as desired. How they did it shows that Boston is learning from their playoff experiences. What they learned so far:

Resiliency: Rivers showed Muhammad Ali fights to the players to get across the message of always moving forward even when absorbing a lot of punishment. They took the best punches from the Hawks, Cavaliers and Pistons, but in the end Boston fought back and put them away.

Road worries: Boston was win-less on the road in the first two rounds of the playoffs, a 0-6 record in Atlanta and Cleveland. Whether it was not having equal intensity or failures to secure wins in crunch time, the Celtics played like a different team away from home and allowed leads to slip through their fingers.

They put an end to that problem against Detroit. When Boston had to win on the road after losing game two at home, they took it to the Pistons and won convincingly. It was a skill they displayed again in game six at the Palace. The 10-point fourth quarter hole meant nothing as they executed offensively and locked down the Pistons. In the Conference Finals Boston reversed their road trend and won two out of three.

Finishing touch: Because the Celts couldn’t win on the road in the first two series, they couldn’t finish off their opponents, even when they were on the ropes. Against Atlanta and Cleveland, Boston was up 3-2 with a chance to take them out of their misery on the road. Both times Boston came up short.

It looked like it would be the same story against Detroit, but the Celtics re-wrote the ending. A second half lead became a fourth quarter deficit. But instead of folding up the tent, the Celtics rallied a final time and put away the Pistons in six games.

Boston gets high grades for showing rapid application of the hard lessons learned from the playoffs. It’s easy to think they are prepared for the Los Angeles Lakers because the Celts already beat L.A. both times during the regular season.

Not quite. This isn’t the same Lakers team. They raised their level of play during the playoffs. The Lakers hadn’t traded for Pau Gasol yet. He’s not the same player as Andrew Bynum.

Boston will have to do their research for the Lakers, but will learn the most about their opponent by playing them. Based on the first three rounds, the Celtics are ready for the Finals exam.

Red Wings-Penguins Game 4 could swing the series

Posted by Bruins & NHL - BostonHerald.com May 31, 2008 at 9:03 am PITTSBURGH - The Detroit Red Wings can win the Stanley Cup tonight, even if they may not realize it. Not in actuality, of course. At last check, the NHL still requires...

Penguins enjoy fine whine

Posted by Bruins & NHL - BostonHerald.com May 31, 2008 at 8:58 am PITTSBURGH - The Pittsburgh Penguins knew the Detroit Red Wings would block their path to winning the Stanley Cup finals. Maybe just not this much. Penguins coach Michel...

Pierce-led Big 3 lifts Celtics to 89-81 win over Pistons

Posted by Larry Lage, AP Sports Writer May 31, 2008 at 8:19 am Like Kobe Bryant, Paul Pierce is glad he stuck around with the only team he's played for in his NBA career.

Watson & TEs in focus

Posted by Reiss' Pieces May 31, 2008 at 7:34 am

ESPN.com's Hashmarks blog looks at one key player from each NFL team who is coming back from injury. The player under the spotlight for the Patriots is TE Benjamin Watson.

Watson, the team's top tight end, enters his fifth NFL season in 2008 and is coming off left ankle surgery.

The Patriots, who would presumably like to open the season with three tight ends on the roster, did not address the position in the draft. And with veteran Kyle Brady having been released, the club appears to be a bit thin at the spot.

Watson and David Thomas (coming back from a broken foot) top the depth chart, followed by Stephen Spach and Marcus Pollard. Rookie free agents Jonathan Stupar and Tyson DeVree are longer shots.

Given the personnel at the position, it's a strong case that Watson is the Patriots' most crucial player coming back from an injury.

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