Free-throw shooting ... Boston Celtics style

Thanks to channelsurfing.net I watched the final minutes of the Celtics - Magic game today. I followed the game for the first few quarters via the Yahoo boxscore and despite the Celtics having home-court advantage, they were down most of the way.

This was an important game in the series with it being tied at 2 games each. The next game is in Orlando so if Boston had lost they would have to win game 6 on the road which is no easy feat.

Despite struggling from the field for much of the game, it was a clutch triple from our boy Ray Allen that gave Boston the lead for the first time at 86 - 85 (I think?). From there, they had a few big offensive boards and took care of business at the free-throw line.

With the game and series on the line, firstly it was Eddie House knocking down two, then Ray showed his prowess and finally even Glen Davis made his two when it counted.For the record, the Celtics were a perfect 21 of 21 from the free-throw line. With the game being so close, any miss could've cost them dearly.

So next time your coach is on your back about making your free-throws, remember how important they were for Boston today. You know Ray Allen and Eddie House (and probably Glen Davis too) have certainly spent plenty of time practicing their free-throws for occasions just like this.

Eddie House, doing what he does best

And what he does best is shoot ...

With Paul Pierce playing limited minutes due to foul trouble, Eddie House stepped up off the bench and delivered some much needed offensive help to Ray Allen and the Boston Celtics.

I've mentioned him a couple of times before on this blog, Eddie House lives and dies on his shooting. When he's on ... look out! Last night was definitely one of those nights.

The only surprise to me from his stat line is that he didn't take more from downtown. Only 4 attempts from deep, I didn't know he ever stepped inside the arc!

Bench		Min	FG	3Pt	FT	+/-	Off	Reb	Ast	TO	Stl	BS	BA	PF	Pts
E. House		27:35	11-14	4-4	5-6	+9	0	4	2	2	1	0	1	4	31

NBA highlights

After my post last week about NZ basketball day, today I actually found a Sean Marks highlight!!



Following on from all the love that Eddie House from the Boston Celtics has been getting over the last few weeks, here is the recap of the game including a few of his career-high 8 triples.

Eddie House at it again ...

Last week I highlighted a basketball shooting display put on by two Boston Celtics, Ray Allen and his less well-known back-up Eddie House. Two games later and Eddie House is at it again, this time destroying the Sacramento Kings.

Eddie top scored for the Celtics with:
28 points, 10 of 13 from the field, 8 (a career high) of 9 from downtown in just 20 minutes of court-time

Every team needs a role player and Eddie House definitely knows his role on this Celtics team. He's your spot-up shooter that provides a scoring punch off the bench (when Ray Allen needs a rest). I watched a bit of footage of Eddie in action this morning and basically all he does is get himself open on offence and plants himself just behind the three-point arc. No creating off the dribble, just get open and wait for a kick-out pass from a teammate.

Knowing his strengths, Eddie House has carved out an 11 year NBA career basically being a great basketball shooter that can knock down the three-ball.

Basketball shooting - Celtics style

Each week I like to point out a great basketball shooting display and thanks to the crew at Dime for pointing out this one (below). Yesterday in the NBA, Eddie House from the Boston Celtics exploded for 20 points in a quarter against the Miami Heat. He finished with 7 of 11 from downtown, 9 of 15 from the field for 25 points in just 26 minutes of court-time. Eddie House is one of those shooters that can just catch fire at any moment. He's also one of those players with no fear (and no conscience), he's never seen a shot he didn't like it and provides an offensive spark off the bench for the defending champs.

Side note: not to be out-shone by his back-up, our boy Ray Allen also put on a basketball shooting display of his own. Ray was 9 of 12 from the field, 5 of 6 from downtown and 4 of 4 from the line. Quality!

Bringing Down the House | Dime Magazine (www.dimemag.com) : Daily NBA News, NBA Trades, NBA Rumors, Basketball Videos, Sneakers

… Where the Celtics couldn’t miss, however, was from the perimeter. Ray (27 pts, 5 threes) and Paul Pierce knocked down a few to give them the early lead, and in the second quarter it turned into The Eddie House Show on the way to a Boston blowout. House dropped 20 points in the quarter, hitting six threes and shooting pretty much every time he touched the ball (and within 0.4 seconds of touching the ball). He ended up with 27 points on 7-of-11 beyond the arc