Celtics (47-27) vs Rockets (37-37)
Game time: 7:30pm, TD Garden. TV - CSN. Radio - WEEI-AM (850).
Team Leaders
Scoring
Bos: Pierce - 18.1 Rockets: Kevin Martin -
21.8
Rebounding
Bos: Perkins - 7.6
Rockets: Luis Scola - 8.8
Assists
Bos: Rondo - 9.8 Rockets: Aaron Brooks - 5.3
Who'll go off: Ray Allen. He's overdue for a hot shooting night. With Kevin Martin and Shane Battier banged up, Ray might find more open looks than usual.
Who needs to be stopped: Aaron Brooks. The Celtics did a tremendous job defending Brooks (4-12 FG) the last time these teams met (94-87 Celtics victory on March 19).
The C's will lose if... For an undersized team, Houston can rebound. It will take a team effort to keep Houston's scrappy trio of Luis Scola, Chuck Hayes and Jordan Hill off the boards.
Miscellany: Shane Battier (knee) and Jared Jeffries (achilles) are out, Kevin Martin (shoulder) is questionable. Ray Allen is 0-for-6 on 3-point attempts in the last two games. The Rockets have dropped five of six.
Prediction: Celtics 104 - Rockets 92
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