Celtics at Pacers
THE STORY: The Boston Celtics' offense isn't exactly firing on all cylinders - and Saturday's game against the Indiana Pacers may not offer much chance for improvement. Considered one of the top contenders in the Eastern Conference prior to the start of the season, Boston's offense has managed to surpass 100 points just three times in its first 10 games - and lost two of those contests. It saved its most putrid effort for a Jan. 6 game against the Pacers, shooting just 39.4 percent on the way to an ugly 87-74 home defeat. The Celtics are just 1-3 away from Boston so far, and is facing an Indiana club that is unbeaten in four home games. The Pacers are coming off an impressive come-from-behind win in Toronto, rallying in the second half after seeing star forward Danny Granger ejected for picking up two technical fouls. Indiana has been one of the best teams in the conference, riding an elite defense and balanced scoring to eight wins in its first 11 games.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Comcast SportsNet New England, Fox Sports Indiana
ABOUT THE CELTICS (4-6): Boston continues to deal with a major deficiency up front. With starting center Jermaine O'Neal a shell of his former self and little help coming from the bench, the Celtics rank 29th in the league in rebounding at 37 per game. They've been beaten on the boards by a 136-105 margin during their three-game losing skid, and will be in tough to compete with a Pacers team led by 7-foot-2 behemoth Roy Hibbert and skilled power forward David West.
ABOUT THE PACERS (8-3): Indiana's depth made up for the absence of Granger, who was given a second technical foul and subsequently ejected after staring down Toronto's Ed Davis following a second-half block. Granger was 1-for-8 at the time of the ejection and finished with a season-low four points. "We know that we’ve got enough depth on this team that if somebody is struggling, there’s another guy there who can get it going," West said after the game.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Boston is averaging fewer than 80 points during its three-game losing skid.
2. The Celtics have dropped consecutive games in the series after winning the previous five contests.
3. The Pacers are a perfect 6-0 when they outrebound the opposition.