bruce@godot.UUCP (Bruce Nemnich) (05/28/84)
The Lakers went one up on the Celtics by beating them 115-109 at the Garden today. The Celtics had an dreadful first quarter, during which they fell behind by 15. They came within 8 in the 2nd quarter, but after Cooper hit a 3-ptr at the buzzer, the Lakers lead by 13 at the half. A Bird 3-ptr at the 3rd qtr buzzer brought the Celtics to within four, but they never got closer. Kareem was wonderful. He had 32 points, 23 in the first half. He was hitting everything, even when Parish moved him away from the basket. Magic was very important in building the early Laker lead by hitting the outside shot, which he does in streaks. He finished with 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 10 assists. Worthy kept the Lakers in front in the 3rd quarter (he seemed to be most of the offense then, with Magic and Kareem) both on the bench. As a Celtic fan, with relatively few chances to see the Lakers, I can only offer analysis on the Celtics. I hope someone who knows the Lakers better can supply us with the other side. Bird had a bad game. He had 24 points, 13 rebounds, and 6 assists, which doesn't sound too bad, but he simply didn't have his game. He, like Magic for LA, is the creator of rhythm for the team, and he didn't have his rythm. He was 2 for 9 from the field in the first half, missing shots which are normally 80-90% for him (open 16-18'). His passing was way off. Defensively, he had a pretty good game, though: I don't know how many steals he got credited for, but he created at least 6, and he hit the boards well. Most of his points were scored underneath and at the line. (I only remember his making one outside shot, the 3-ptr.) Kevin McHale and Dennis Johnson had good games, but the Celtics never got their offensive timing together. Even when they made runs at the Lakers in the 2nd half, they were very haphazard and tentative. They got *lots* of points on offensive rebounds. They need to get something out of Parish. Robert fouled out early (on an absurd call), but that was no big deal, since McHale was doing a better job at center. To this point in the playoffs, the Celtics have used Parish to muscle underneath with the likes of Ruland and Lanier for rebounds and defense. He has not shot poorly; he just has not shot much at all. This is a departure from the regular-season gameplan, and it seems to have made him cold. They tried to go to him early, but he just didn't have it. He also must be more aggressive on the offensive boards against Kareem, who is not that great of a rebounder. Bird's inability to hit the outside shot resulted in his getting the down lower, where Kareem was coming over to double with Cooper. That was very effective (for the Lakers). Look for him to pop out more to take the pass. Also, he was very sluggish today: usually, he is in constant motion, getting opponents in the air with fakes, moving well without the ball, etc. He had a headcold earlier in the week; I don't know how he is now; he looked terribly pale Tuesday against Milwaukee. I was surprised to see so little of Danny Ainge today. He has a good outside shot and drive and has the speed to keep up with the Lakers. His game is well suited to this series. Instead, we saw Scott Wedman at guard (good shot, no speed). After the final Milwaukee game, I was afraid this would happen. Their offense was not at all together then, but they still won pretty easily. They were very sluggish and didn't move *at all* without the ball, with the exception of 2 1/2 minutes in the 3rd when the ran off 13 straight. See ya at the Garden Thursday! -- --Bruce Nemnich, Thinking Machines Corporation, Waltham, MA