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05/07/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The scene shifts to Beantown tonight as the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics get ready for the pivotal Game 3 of their Eastern Conference semifinals series.
The Celtics wrestled away homecourt advantage in the set on Monday when Rajon Rondo had 13 points and 19 assists, and Boston outscored Cleveland by 19 during a big third quarter to earn a 104-86 victory over the Cavaliers and even the series.
Rondo equaled a franchise-record for assists in a playoff game, set by the legendary Bob Cousy on two occasions.
"I was just trying to take advantage of the opportunities in front of me," Rondo said. "In transition, that's where I think I have my advantage, getting rebounds and getting stops. I'm able to use my speed and able to use my ability to get to the hole and create mismatches in the lane."
Ray Allen scored 10 of his team-high 22 points in the third quarter in Game 2 for the Celtics, who bounced back from a 101-93 loss in the opener. Kevin Garnett added 18 points and 10 rebounds, while Rasheed Wallace went 7-of-8 from the field for 17 points off the bench. Paul Pierce scored 14 in the win.
"The third quarter in Game 1 we were passive," Garnett said after the win. "Tonight we were very aggressive on both ends. We rebounded collectively. There were a lot of positive things tonight."
LeBron James, fighting through an injured right elbow, was presented his second straight MVP trophy by commissioner David Stern in a ceremony prior to the game and ended with 24 points, 12 of them coming in the last quarter.
"I'll never use the injury as an excuse," James said. "If I'm on the court I'll try to be as productive as possible. I feel like I was okay, but as a team all of us were just okay, that's why we lost."
Antawn Jamison had 16 points for the Cavaliers, who fell behind by 25 points before scoring 15 in a row in the fourth quarter. They never got within single digits in the final period and dropped only their second playoff home game in the last 15 tries.
The Cleveland backcourt starting tandem of Anthony Parker and Mo Williams combined for just 10 points on 3-of-16 shooting.
"We did not play with a sense of urgency," Cavs coach Mike Brown said. "We tried the last few minutes of the game. They kicked our behind from the beginning. We did not fight back until late. We have to decide we're going to take the fight to them and take these games. Nothing's going to be given to us."
Last week, an initial examination revealed that James has a strained elbow and bone bruise, an injury that has been bothering him for several weeks. The superstar was originally scheduled to undergo another MRI on Thursday but doctors felt it wasn't necessary and James will be ready to go tonight.
"It's been good for us," James said of the rest between Games 2 and 3. "It's been good for me, and it's been good for both teams. We all know this is going to be one of the most physical series that this league has to offer."
For the Celtics, Garnett sat out practice on Thursday to rest a strained right foot suffered when teammate Kendrick Perkins landed on him with about three minutes left in Monday's game.
"I just banged my foot," Garnett said. "I'm definitely ready to go."
Off the floor, Boston general manager Danny Ainge was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Thursday for tossing a towel in an attempt to distract Cavaliers forward J.J. Hickson as he attempted a free throw in the third quarter of Game 2.
Ainge flipped a white towel over his head as Hickson was lining up for his second free throw, which he made.
NBA executive vice president of basketball operations Stu Jackson said the fine was issued for "creating an unauthorized distraction and for conduct detrimental to the game". Ainge said on Wednesday that he regretted his behavior and called it "unprofessional."
The Cavs and Celtics split four games in the regular season while both clubs finished off their opening round opponents this year in just five games, as Cleveland dispensed of Central Division rival Chicago, and the Celtics sent the Miami Heat back to South Beach.
The teams have met four times in the postseason dating back to the 1975-76 season when Boston won the Eastern Conference finals over the Cavs in six games. The C's also won a first round series over Cleveland in 1984-85, and in the East semis in 2007-08. The Cavs only win in the postseason over Boston came in the East semifinals during the 1991-92 season, also a seven-game set.
The best-of-seven series continues in Boston for Game 4 on Sunday.
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The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.
New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).
The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.
Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. online football betting Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.
Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.
Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.
The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.
Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.
The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.
Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.
However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).
The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.
Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.
In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.
Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.
Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.
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