Cs Win over Pistons News in Philippines

Business World (Philippines)
Copyright 2008 Business World Publishing Corporation, Source: The Financial Times Limited
March 7, 2008
COURTSIDE
Anthony L. Cuaycong

For Boston fans, it was probably fitting that their favorite team managed to formalize its entry to the National Basketball Association play- offs with a victory over its biggest rival in the East. Emerging with the long end of the stick after an arduous match with perennial powerhouse Detroit is invariably cause for celebration, but its triumph yesterday nonetheless had added significance; it wound up claiming the season series 2-1 and, as a result, homecourt advantage against the Motor City franchise.

Notably, Boston prevailed on the strength of the extraordinary shutdown defense it played in the crunch. Until then, the match was still up for grabs, and the 18,624 hopefuls at the TD Banknorth Garden were beginning to feel restless in light of the visiting team's resiliency. Once their squad buckled down to work, however, all Detroit could muster in 11 possessions through the last five and a half minutes of the final quarter was a single point; in between were six missed field goal attempts, one technical foul, three personals and two turnovers.

In addition, those looking for telltale signs of Boston's competitiveness would, no doubt, be pleased with Kevin Garnett's aggressive outlook from the opening tip. Often content to play decoy and set up teammates for forays to the basket, he saw fit to skin his smokewagons with more frequency yesterday, winding up with 22 shot tries, a full third higher than his season average. Clearly, he was motivated to win his battle of oneupmanship with Detroit power forward Rasheed Wallace. And, to his credit, he did, closing with a stat line of 31 points, six rebounds, three assists, and one block in 41 minutes on the floor, all better than his counterpart's numbers.

At this point, Boston would do well to keep its foot on the throttle. It has 23 outings left in its schedule, and a loss of focus could make its four-game lead disappear fast. The good news is that it has Sam Cassell and P.J. Brown adding veteran poise to the mix. And with Garnett intent on going deep in the postseason for only the second time in his career, and Paul Pierce and Ray Allen motivated to help him, it's a safe a bet as any to keep on forging ahead.