The In-Season Tournament seemed to inspire and energize a Celtics bench that wasn't exactly bringing back memories of Bill Walton, Scott Wedman and Jerry Sichting from the mid-80's.
It started with the somewhat-maligned Luke Kornet. He was aggressive while scoring seven points and hauling in nine rebounds - six of which were off the offensive glass. Payton Pritchard had a solid outing that fans were waiting for, with 13 points, five boards (4 offensive) and three assists. He and Luke were fierce on the offensive glass.
Then there was Sam Hauser. "The Mauser" was on target, hitting five of his ten 3-point attempts for 15 points. His ability to get his shot off so quickly and hit the trey so consistently really opens up the floor.
In all, Boston got 91 minutes, 37 points, 21 rebounds (13 offensive) and five assists from their bench. Not enough can be said for the ability of Pritchard and Kornet to take down offensive rebounds, setting things up for easy hoops. Luke does it with size, while Pritchard gets it done with guile and hustle.
NBA TV analyst Kendrick Perkins commented that the Celtics still need to strengthen their bench, and I can't disagree - not yet. But the "Pine Platoon" did a fine job in this one.
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