Before the game, the Red Claws added Brock Gillespie, waiving Terrel Harris. A college teammate of Morris Almond’s while at Rice University, he had been playing in Lebanon and Europe, but joined the Claws and filled their need for a backup point guard. While he only played sixteen minutes last night and didn’t score, he managed five assists and looked like a good addition. Hopefully he will be helpful to the second unit heading towards the playoffs.

Despite the final score, this was a hard-fought game for much of the first half. After coming out flat early on Wednesday, Albuquerque was clearly motivated, keeping the game close early on. They were narrowly ahead with three minutes left in the first when Maine manufactured a beautiful 11-0 run to end the first with a ten-point lead. Although Albuquerque would make it close again several times in the second quarter, they never regained the lead, and Maine finished the first half up 67-62.

Albuqeurque never looked as good the rest of the game as they did in the first. Every time they came remotely close, Maine would start trading baskets or manufacture another run. With 5:33 left in the third, the T-Birds got within six, then Looby and Almond led a 22-7 run to finish the third. The T-Birds would never approach single digits again, despite excellent efforts from Keith McLeod (34 points, 5 boards, 3 assists) and good contributions from Chad Toppert and Trey Gilder. They couldn’t overcome Morris Almond’s excellent 26-point performance, however, or the double-digit points knocked in by every Red Claw starter.

Celtics fans will be pleased to know that Marcus Landry continued to improve, adding 14 points and 7 rebounds off the bench in 26 minutes. He seems to have settled in here now, and not only played well, but was an enthusiastic teammate. Indeed, the Claws bench played a major role in last night’s win, adding 45 points collectively, and Gillespie being the only Red Claw without any points. Although the bench let the T-Birds get close several times, it never got out of hand. The second unit seems to be working together better of late, which will be key in the home stretch.

Maine made some good strides against Albuquerque, but the T-Birds are a team they should have dominated. The real test will be next week: they are just 6-8 against their next three opponents, two of whom are fellow contenders. Next week will be a good indication of their chances in the playoffs.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Morris Almond

NEXT THREE: Sunday, March 21, 1:00PM, vs. Springfield Armor….Monday, March 22, 8:00PM @ Dakota Wizards….Wednesday, March 24, @ Sioux Falls SkyForce.

                          

I think the James Posey-Jerry Stackhouse matchup could be pivotal tonight. Uhhh, you mean this picture is old?

I’m not yet comfortable with my optimism, but it’s suddenly there.  As well as the Celtics have played lately, and as nice as last night’s wire-to-wire win was, I can’t shake the image of the last three months: Boston taking lump… after lump… after lump.  With that putridity still in mind, it’s hard to believe that the Celtics are back to being a bona fide contender.  Still, they’ve been doing their best to convince me that their recent surge of championship-caliber play is The Truth.

Paul Pierce, in a self-imposed boycott of the media for the past two weeks, has hopped in the Hot Tub Time Machine and morphed back into his former self. After months of shying away from isolations, unable to beat his defender one-on-one, Pierce is back to scoring and scoring in bunches.  Last night, with the Rockets threatening to come back and steal a victory from Boston’s grasp, Pierce opened up a can of Truth.  15 fourth-quarter points for Pierce later, he had willed the Celtics to their most impressive win of 2010 with 26 total points.  He has now scored 25 or more points in two straight games, doubling in only two games his total of 25+ point performances since Dec. 22.

Still, the fact that beating Houston — only the 9th-best team in the Western Conference — represents such a good victory shows how much the Celtics have left to prove.  Luckily for them, they’ll have plenty of chances to prove themselves during a schedule filled for the next couple weeks with above-.500 opponents.

Tonight’s game in Dallas is Boston’s next test, and a better one than Houston.  The C’s are on the road, on the second night of a back-to-back, and playing against a Mavericks team that has won 14 of its last 15 games and harbors legitimate championship aspirations.  Tough game, no doubt.

But I’m starting to feel a little confidence. Optimism is creeping back in, and it feels so good.  After 90 or so days of bleak outlook and fading hopes, breathe the optimism through your nostrils.  Keep it in your lungs.  Savor it.

Hope is abound.  And who knows?

It might even be here to stay.

*****

Three things to look for in tonight’s game:

1. All-Star vs. All-Star – How will Kevin Garnett defend Dirk Nowitzki?  When KG missed last game, Dirk ran wild with 37 points.  Can KG do a better job?
2. Matchup problems? – After a midseason trade allowed them to acquire both Brendan Haywood and Caron Butler, the Mavs now present serious matchup difficulties for a lot of teams, including the Celtics.  The only matchup I’m truly comfortable with tonight is Rondo vs. Kidd… and Kidd had 13 points and 17 assists last time the two teams met.
3. Turnovers – Jason Kidd has always been a good point guard in transition, but is now downright lethal with the amount of weapons this Mavericks team has.  He has Butler and Marion running the wings, Dirk spotting up, and Haywood… well, let’s just forget we brought up Haywood. If the Celtics turn the ball over, it could mean easy buckets for Dallas and a long night.  I know this isn’t the way the saying normally goes, but the C’s have to turn good offense into good defense.

                          

Anybody else of the opinion that this is an odd picture?

As Zach Lowe pointed out in his Saturday Notebook, Doc Rivers was quoted in a story about David Lee to have lobbied for drafting Lee rather than Gerald Green.  (Sports Illustrated)

Rivers was a fan of Lee’s and begged the Celtics to acquire him in the 2005 draft. “It’s the one I stuck my chest out about because I was in the minority in the draft room that night,” said Rivers. “But I had the advantage of being in Florida and I’d seen him, and my oldest son had played in a ton of pickup games with him and he said, ‘All I know about David Lee is every time I play a pickup game, his team wins.’

“But he’s even better than I thought he could be because he has a high basketball IQ, and his quickness is so much better than you thought it could be.”

For those of you who don’t remember, the Celtics drafted Green with the 18th pick that year, and the Knicks scooped Lee with the 30th pick.

Lee is a nice player.  He rebounds like an animal, works hard at all times, and is relentless around the rim.  He’s also added a midrange game that’s made him — along with his work around the hoop — very tough to defend.  To be honest, he’s a lot, lot, lot, lot better than Gerald Green.

But I wonder if Doc’s son now says, “All I know about David Lee is every time I see him play an NBA game, his team loses.”

                          

Watch out, Dirk. Sheed's looking for a little retribution.

Back in January, when the Mavericks and Celtics met for the first time — a game that ended with a 99-90 Mavericks win — Dirk Nowitzki scored 37 points and Rasheed Wallace picked up a bunch of ticky-tack fouls trying — unsuccessfully — to defend him. (Kevin Garnett missed the game due to injury.)

Wallace said there would be retribution when the two teams met again.  (Dallas News)

The referees “don’t like no tough defense on [Nowitzki],” Wallace said that night. “So of course I get a lot of [expletive] calls, but that’s how the story goes.

“I ain’t worried about it. We’ll see them again. There will be retribution.”

Tonight is the night for retribution, the teams’ first meeting since that January game.  So how will Rasheed’s retribution come?  Hopefully with a win over the surging Mavericks.  Hopefully NOT by Sheed trying to match Dirk shot for shot.

(Note: There was another quote from the Dallas News Article, spoken by Jason Terry, that had me dying laughing:  ”Rasheed’s playing well this year.”)

                          

After Robinson’s Washington Huskies defeated Rivers’ Marquette Golden Eagles in the NCAA Tournament, Robinson led his teammates in cheer on the bus.  (Boston Herald)

“He had the whole bus chanting, ‘Marquette (expletive), Marquette (expletive),’ ” Rivers said. “I just had to sit and take it. To the victors go the spoils.”

Rivers, who yesterday denied making any bet on the game with Robinson, joked that Robinson “wants more playing time” after his Huskies won.

Now we know why D’Antoni never took a liking to Robinson:

The  ”Marshall sucks” chant was simply too much for him to handle.

                          

“Damn it, Doc! Put Marquis Daniels in at point guard with Pierce and Ray-Ray. No point guard would be able to stop them from posting up.”

“Doc, you son of a bitch! Put Pierce at the four with Daniels, Rondo, Ray-Ray and KG. Let’s just run this damn team off the floor.”

“Doc, you [bleeping] [bleep], what the [bleep] are you [bleeping] doing? Put KG, Sheed Scal, Ray, Pierce, and Nate in the [bleeping] game! Let’s shoot these bastards out of the gym.”

Now, I know why he hasn’t heeded my advice. (Boston Herald)

The coaches spent extra time during yesterday morning’s shootaround adding plays for the second unit.

It’s one sign that the reserves, with Nate Robinson and Michael Finley now part of the mix, are ready for the plan to get a little more complex.

“We’re trying to add stuff half the time,” Rivers said. “But the more we can put in, the more we can keep Paul (Pierce) and Kevin (Garnett) out there with (the second unit). We haven’t been able to keep them in with those guys as much because of it.

“So we’re trying to put in all of Paul’s plays and all of Kevin’s, and that way we can combine these guys more.”

One of my biggest criticisms of Doc Rivers this season has been his inability to mix the two lineups. Now, I know there’s a method to his madness.

But don’t you think they’ve had enough time to learn a few sets already? Nate’s been on the team almost a whole month. I don’t care how little of that month has been on the practice court, he should know the plays after a month. Am I wrong?

                          

Houston couldn't handle the Truth.

Julian Benbow, Boston Globe – “It could have been worse. They could have called him Ricky Davis. Glen Davis pulled down seven boards, five on the offensive glass, and his teammates were waiting in the locker room with yet another new nickname for ‘Big Baby’/'Uno-Uno’/'The Eleventh Hour’/'Just Call Me Glen.’ ‘They’re in there calling him Moses Malone because he got five offensive rebounds, four of them were his own misses,’ Rivers said.”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “The Celtics captain, coming off a 29-point performance in Wednesday’s win against the Knicks that essentially filled two quarters of work, is now certifiably hot. He’s had double-digit quarters of 15, 16 and 13 points in the last two games. Like the Celtics’ overall ball movement – they won for the second straight game with Rajon Rondo taking a negligible amount of shots (five) – Pierce’s game may be close to his November form. He hasn’t talked to the media since the Celtics’ March 12 win against Indiana, but again his associates were more than willing to supply the words. ‘He’s getting there,’ coach Doc Rivers said. ‘There are still things that he’s working on. His endurance and his timing still have to get better. But he’s starting to get his step back down. He’s starting to get more out of his isolations.’”

Jonathan Feigen, Houston Chronicle – “Aaron Brooks darted around the half court, unencumbered by the ball or other responsibilities. He needed only to get free of the Boston defense. But at every turn, another Celtics defender popped out to impede him or cut off the passing lane, until Brooks covered a lot of ground, but he and the Rockets’ offense could go nowhere. With that, the Rockets’ offensive roll and winning streak were over, with the Celtics taking a 94-87 win Friday night at Toyota Center. The Celtics so thoroughly bottled up Brooks, he could take just one 3-pointer, missing to end his streak of games with at least one 3-pointer made at 39, holding him to 10 points, as few as he has scored in a game since Dec. 22.”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “The C’s have two more wins on the road than they do at home, where they’ve gone 21-12. Doc Rivers doesn’t want to question the numbers, at least not too much. ‘We expected to be good on the road,’ the coach said. ‘We didn’t expect to be that bad at home. But nothing means nothing. It’s good that we have a veteran group. With all of that crowd noise, maybe they’re so old they can’t hear it.’”

A. Sherrod Blakely, CSNNE – “Boston finished with 25 assists on 37 field goals, and Allen said the smooth offense fed into the stingy defense on Friday. ‘Executing offensively, that’s been our Achilles’ heel, when we’ve been bad,’ Allen said. ‘With bad offense, you put teams in transition, and we don’t give our defense a chance.’”

Mark Murphy, Boston Herald – “He has struggled at both ends of the floor, though Perkins believes he knows the reason for his slippage. Defense may be his calling card, but Perkins has spent too much time ruminating about offense. He entered last night narrowly behind Orlando’s Dwight Howard for the league lead in field goal percentage. ‘I was playing pretty well after the All-Star break, but then I kind of got beat down,’ said Perkins, who had eight points (3-of-6 from the floor) last night, along with five rebounds and two blocks. ‘Then I got back to thinking about blocking shots and not thinking about the offensive end. Sometimes I let the offensive end dictate my defense, and that’s not a good thing.’”

Have a link I might want to look at? Send it my way by email (jayking@celticstown.com) or Twitter.

                          

For the third night in a row, Pierce was vintage.

Paul Pierce came alive in the fourth quarter, leading the Boston Celtics to a 94-87 victoy against the Houston Rockets.  The Rockets turned a 50-41 deficit into a 52-all tie, but three Ray Allen three-pointers gave the Celtics cushion, and Pierce’s 15-point fourth quarter took Boston home.

Playing on the road, against a solid team boasting a four-game winning streak, the Celtics — set on beating a legitimate team for the first time in months — took it to the Rockets.

It was a win to be proud of, but one the Celtics can hardly afford time to brag about.  They will be back in action Saturday night against the Mavericks.

                          

Tonight's the night, Celtics. (Photo by Bill Baptist/NBAE via Getty Images)

15 games left. The playoffs await the Boston Celtics after only 15 more games.

As Kendrick Perkins says, every team is 0-0 when the playoffs roll around. That’s true. But you know what else is true? Teams that can’t beat other good teams don’t fare well in the playoffs.

Tonight, it’s time. Time for a big win. Time to start a winning streak against opponents that actually deserve to be playing in the NBA. Time for the return of the team the Celtics were supposed to be.

The Houston Rockets may not seem like a great measuring stick. If the season were to end today, they wouldn’t even be in the playoffs. But do you want to hear a startling fact? If you discount wins against the Lakers (Kobe was hurt) and the Blazers (everybody was hurt), a win tonight against the Rockets would mark Boston’s best since Christmas.

Coupled with three dominant home performances in a row, a “W” tonight would provide the Celtics a springboard to the toughest portion of their schedule. Tonight begins a string of nine games, eight against the Western Conference, eight against winning teams, capped by a home tilt against the league-leading Cavaliers on April 4.

The Celtics play in Houston tonight, Dallas tomorrow, and Utah two days after that. (From Dallas to Utah? Doc Rivers says, “I don’t think I’ve ever done that. Not since I’ve been here. That’s a strange one.”) Two days after Utah, they’re at home against the Denver Nuggets. They take a breather against Sacramento, then continue a home stand with San Antonio, Oklahoma City, Houston (again), and finally finish the brutal string of games with the aforementioned clash against the Cavs. For a team used to beating elite opponents, that’s the schedule from hell. For the Celtics? It’s nothing but a test.

Are they worthy of being considered a contender? Can they make a late run to regain their status among the NBA’s elite? Or is the season all but over, as it seemed when Boston was beaten into submission by the Cleveland Cavaliers, less than a week ago?

If you have doubts about this Celtics team, you are part of a list as wide and ever-growing as Tiger Woods’ detractors. Some nights, they’ve looked every bit the team expected to challenge the NBA record of 72 wins, and others they’ve looked like a team that should be challenging the New Jersey Nets for NBA wretchedness. They win on the road, lose at home, and confound everybody who watches them from one night to the next. Through it all, one constant has remained, as steady as Ray Allen at the line: The Celtics can’t beat good teams. Not on the road, not at home, not on weekdays, or weekends, or on outside courts with chain nets. The C’s haven’t beaten a contender since Christmas, and there is no denying that fact.

Yet they look like they’re rounding into shape. Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce look better than they have all season. Ray Allen has found his shooting touch. Rajon Rondo is learning how to balance keeping the Big Three happy and continuing to be aggressive himself. They haven’t yet done it against the Big Boys, but the Celtics are starting to resemble the team we believed we’d see all season long.

Now, they need to make us believe. To make themselves believe. They’ve got an opportunity to put it all together, to enter the playoffs with momentum, confidence and a couple wins they can take pride in.

The schedule is daunting, and it’s going to be a challenge. But with the Celtics looking to peak heading into the postseason, and desperately needing to prove themselves against teams that have a chance to be playing into June, perhaps the schedule from hell couldn’t have come at a better time.

Only the next nine games will tell.