December 22, 1982
76ERS SMOKE OUT CELTICS, 122-105
This isn't exactly what everybody had in mind when the Celtics acquired Quinn Buckner in the offseason and dreamed up the slogan "Let's Get It Back."
It's been a tough six days for the Green team. First there was the Empire State Embarrassment (Knicks 113, Celtics 105), then came the Detroit Demolition (Pistons 131, Celtics 114), and last night we witnessed the Spectrum Smokeout (76ers 122, Celtics 105). That's three Boston losses in four games, accompanied by the usual elements of a slump - bad defense, poor rebounding and dubious shot selection.
On the bright side, one could say "better now than in May." With a 20-7 record and a badly needed Christmas cease-fire ahead (five days off after tonight's Garden Party wth the Bulls), the Celtics aren't about to panic.
"The best thing for us to say is let's forget it,' " Kevin McHale said after the burnout/blowout in Philadelphia last night. "They outplayed us in every phase of the game tonight, but there's a lot more games left and it's a little early to sell the farm yet. We had a slump like this last year and the year before that. Hey, if it never happened, what would you do if it happened in the playoffs? Now is the time for everybody to pick each other up. Tonight we just showed that we can't continue to play the way we've been playing."
Tired, injured and on the road again, the Celtics were in no condition to beat the Sixers on the Spectrum floor. It didn't help much that Philly was playing for its honor (Boston decimated the Sixers, 123-97, Dec. 10) and the greater glory of coach Billy Cunningham, who needed one victory for his 300th career win. But the real crusher was a fellow named Moses Malone. Playing a whopping 46 minutes, Mr. Glass Plus came through with a 33-point, 19-rebound performance. The Celtics never had a chance.
We were misled for a while. When Andrew Toney (bruised right shoulder) showed up in street clothes, and the Celtics led for most of the first quarter, it appeared Boston might give the Sixers a battle. Then Malone and the Philly guards took over. The 76ers outscored Boston, 35-26, in the second period to take a 67-54 halftime lead. It was 91-77 after three and 106-85 with 7:30 left in the game.
Maurice Cheeks (22 points, 9 assists, 6 steals) hurt the Celtics at both ends and Clint Richardson, starting in place of Toney, was more than adequate with 18 points, 15 in the telltale first half. Darren Tillis' college teammate, Franklin Edwards, contributed 13 points and four assists in 27 productive minutes.
The first period featured eight ties and five lead changes. Buckner scored nine quick points as the Celts ran to a 23-18 lead with 2:48 left in the quarter. Over the next five minutes, the 76ers outscored Boston, 23-7. They beat Boston down the floor, forced turnovers and dominated the backboards. In the Boston massacre 11 days ago, the Celtics outrebounded Philadelphia, 64-33. Last night, Malone & Co. enjoyed a 52-44 rebounding advantage.
A 10-2 run midway through the third period pushed Philadelphia's lead to 79-62. By then, Robert Parish (10 points, four rebounds in 20 minutes) was strapped with five fouls, and they were putting the frosting on Billy C's 300th victory cake. Bill Fitch didn't use Parish, Larry Bird (4 for 11, 13 points) or Buckner in the fourth quarter. "We have another game tomorrow," Fitch explained.
Julius Erving (a routinely impressive 19 points and 10 rebounds), who had riled both sides with a Namathesque "We'll beat them," prediction on Monday, observed, "We established the tempo. We caught them at a time when they're a little flat, tired, and disoriented. I haven't seen them throw the ball away like that. There were miscues that are not trademarks of that team. They're struggling and we caught them at a good time for us."
Unfortunately, they won't catch each other again until March 4.
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