RALLYING POINT

The C's may be winless on the road this post-season, but they've turned the Garden into a fortress. And if they do figure out how to win outside of Suffolk County, the rest of the NBA has no chance.

Cleveland busted out to a 14 point lead in the 2nd quarter, but the Celtics went on a tear to make it a 46-43 game and a 3 point deficit at the break. A dominating 3rd quarter, and a solid 4th sealed the deal, and a 96-89 Celtics victory.

Paul Pierce exploded for 29 points and 7 rebounds. Kevin "A-Rod" Garnett had 26 points, 16 rebounds, and 4 assists. Rajon Rondo had the game of his life with 20 points and 13 assists. He was finally given an overwhelming majority of playing time at point guard.



My favorite stat of the night: 5, as in the number of minutes Sam Cassell played.

Game 6 is Friday night in Cleveland. If there is a game 7, it will be on Sunday, time to be determined. Let's hope that they don't have to determine it. Otherwise, we'll all have to suffer through another evening of hearing about how amazing LeBron is.

Source:
ESPN.com

Photo Credits:
AFP/Getty Images/File/Elsa
Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images

BUCHHOLZ ON 15 DAY DL

The Red Sox placed Clay Buchholz on the 15 day DL with a torn fingernail on his pitching hand. But if JD Drew and Coco Crisp hadn't left the Sox lineup Tuesday night, this move would not have happened. Buchholz will be fine, and could use the off time to let his finger heel. And replacing him on the 25 man roster is outfielder Jonathan van Every. Van Every was hitting .287 in AAA Pawtucket and made his Major League debut (after 7+ minor league seasons) last night in Baltimore, going 1 for 3.

Sources:
Boston.com
MiLB.com

SOX FIND ANOTHER WAY TO LOSE

Despite Manny Ramirez's impressive and funny catch, a couple of homers by Mike Lowell and Jason Varitek, and a solid start from Lester; the Red Sox found themselves on the wrong side of a 6-3 score. The inconsistent Sox have now lost 4 in a row, and 5 of their last 6.

Once again, the Orioles did their damage with 2 outs. Lester was pulled after 6, and Javier Lopez got the first 2 men he faced in the 7th. After an infield single, Craig Hansen came in and sucked, giving up a walk and a basehit to load the bases. Then Okajima was brought in. Okajima must hate every other Red Sox pitcher, because he seems to love inflating his teammate's ERAs by allowing inherited runners to score. He gave up the Grand Slam that put Baltimore on top 6-3. Hideki has inherited 11 runners this season, and 8 of them have scored. He only let 4 inherited runners score on him in 2007.

The Sox have a 10-14 record on the road, and an 8-11 record against divisional opponents. This is the third series that an AL East team has swept from the Red Sox.

But the club has a much needed day off, and will begin Interleague Play on Friday. Daisuke Matsuzaka goes against old friend Jeff Suppan of the Brewers.

Source:
ESPN.com

Photo Credits:
AP Photo/Nick Wass

BOSTON HERALD APOLOGIZES

The Boston Herald first "broke" the story about the Patriots taping the St. Louis Rams' walkthrough before Super Bowl XXXVI. And now, they're admitting that they were wrong. They based their report on a "credible" source, that has proven to be incredibly NOT credible. This is the latest example of a sensationalist newspaper hearing a juicy piece of gossip (one that cannot be confirmed), and deciding to run with the story. This is what blogs are accused of doing.

Here is the apology. Unfortunately, like most media retractions and apologies, it won't get nearly as much attention as the initial story.