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MIAMI —The Boston Celtics have bigger issues than being upset about a
perceived slight. John Riggins Jersey . Yes, LeBron James
dribbled behind his back. Then between his legs, five times. Then threw a
behind-the-back pass. And after grabbing an offensive rebound while getting
fouled by Kevin Garnett, he smiled and shouted “Yeah” three times while holding
the ball out for referee Jason Phillips to collect. All that came on one
possession in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. The Celtics called it
showboating. Theyre probably right. But thats not the problem. The Heat got 19
layups and dunks in Game 1 on Monday night, with James and Dwyane Wade fueling
what became a 93-79 win. And if Bostons defensive issues werent enough cause to
concern the Celtics, Ray Allen said his ailing right ankle is getting to be even
more problematic—something thats bound to be a factor again when the matchup
resumes in Miami on Wednesday night. “You can tell they believe by their anger
after the game,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said Tuesday, asked how his team is
handling the emotions of a Game 1 loss. “There wasnt a lot of happy guys in our
locker room yesterday or in film today when we start out by showing 19 straight
layups. Who wants to watch that? I didnt. I watched it four or five times.”
Along the same lines, the Heat said there were elements of the game film that
they didnt like either. James and Wade did their part in Game 1, combining for
54 points. The rest of the Heat added 39 points, 32 rebounds, seven assists and
six blocked shots, but there were a slew of missed shots and one second-quarter
defensive lull that had Miami addressing some issues on the practice court
Tuesday. “I think we all felt that we could have played better,” Heat coach Erik
Spoelstra said. “We werent as sharp as we had been, particularly in the three
games before that. But thats the playoffs. You have to find a way to survive and
win, even if you have to do it when youre not playing your best, like last
night.” There are some predictable elements that seem to pop up after the
opening game of a playoff series, with the team that lost Game 1 saying it had
to get more physical and the winning team saying that a 1-0 lead doesnt mean
anything. And both apply in this case as well, with Boston guard Rajon Rondo
among the Celtics voices saying things had to be made tougher for Miami. James
and Wade responded to that with shrugs, insisting thats typical for any series.
“I already think thats going to happen in every game,” James said. “So I dont
have to prepare for it.” Talking points like that can be dismissed. The Allen
situation, however, doesnt seem like its going away. Allen has been dealing with
pain in his right ankle for several weeks, and missed all but one of his seven
field-goal attempts in Bostons Game 1 loss. He even missed four free throws,
just the third time in his career that hes done that. Hes shooting only 39 per
cent in the post-season, 27 per cent from 3-point range and 60 per cent from the
foul line—way off his usual career numbers in all those departments. “I dont
even like talking about it,” Allen said. “Its just part of what Im dealing
with.” Allen said he did not work out Tuesday, which is a rarity. “In my
predicament, Im only going to do myself further damage,” Allen said. Rivers said
the Celtics will stick with Allen, making it sound like the decision was made
partly out of respect to the veteran guard—who made it clear that he wants to
play—and made partly because Boston simply doesnt have many more options. The
Celtics put Allen back in the starting lineup midway through the second round
against Philadelphia because Avery Bradley went down for the season with a
shoulder injury. “Ray is Ray, and were going to keep rolling him out there and
see what we can get,” Rivers said. “If we feel he cant give it to us, well go
with someone else. But I think right now you have to give Ray a fighting chance
every time.” Miami was in trouble against Indiana about a week ago, trailing 2-1
in the series and losing at halftime of Game 4 in Indianapolis. Since then, Wade
and James have been brilliant, and the trend continued in Game 1 against the
Celtics. “For us, were playing great team ball, especially in the fourth
quarter,” Wade said. “Were not playing as much hero ball that we played last
year. Were getting off the ball. Were penetrating. Were trusting each other a
lot more. It comes with time. In the fourth quarter we believe in each other,
and thats been a success for us.” Said James: “Everything were getting has been
coming out of the offence. Were not forcing.” The Celtics sounded like they want
to make the Heat start forcing things soon, getting Miami out of its current
rhythm. Otherwise, the Heat could find themselves halfway to another East title
banner by the close of business on Wednesday night. “Its got to get more
physical from our part,” Celtics forward Paul Pierce said. “Weve got to show
better resistance. We thought it was way too easy for them in Game 1. They got
very comfortable. Hopefully in Game 2, we can make it a little bit more
uncomfortable for them.” London Fletcher Youth Jersey . In the last
five minutes of the first period of Monday nights Game 3 Stanley Cup Final, the
New Jersey Devils had a chance to really get something going on the power play
but they were not able to accomplish it. Brian Orakpo Jersey . – Gambian winger Sanna
Nyassi scored in the 61st minute to help the Montreal Impact beat the New
England Revolution 1-0 on Sunday in Major League Soccer. http://www.shopwashingtonredskinsgear.com/ .
In fact, the Toronto FC captain seems amazed that he has it. “I love Toronto,”
the former German international said Friday in what may have been his first
English-only sit-down with local reporters. Kirk Cousins Red Jersey . MacDonald, a native
of Kelowna, B.C., who now fights out of Montreal, was slated to fight at UFC 129
on Saturday night but was forced to withdraw due to injury. He announced the
Montreal fight during Saturdays telecast. Darrell Green Jersey . The UFC once again
stages its latest big show off-Broadway—six miles away across the river at
the Izod Center in New Jersey.(Sports Network) – Its hard to believe the Maple
Leafs were the seventh seed in the East just over a month ago, but Torontos
dreadful 2-13-2 mark currently has the club 10 points out of a playoff spot with
just 12 games left. Now the team heads into Tampa Bay for a date with 50-goal
man Steven Stamkos and the Lightning at the Tampa Bay Times Forum. Toronto lost
its fifth straight game (0-4-1) and fell to 0-2 on a five-game road trip after
getting slammed 5-2 by the Florida Panthers on Tuesday. The Maple Leafs at least
scored twice after getting shut out in its previous two contests. Tyler Bozak
and Mikhail Grabovski had the goals for Toronto, while James Reimer stopped 22
shots in the loss. The Maple Leafs are just 14-19-2 as the guest this year and
will visit Ottawa and Boston to close their current swing. Toronto has had the
Lightnings number this season, as the Leafs scored seven goals in each of their
two wins over Tampa Bay this season. They posted a 7-1 win in Tampa on Nov. 22
and notched a 7-3 home victory on Jan. 3. The Lightning ended a three-game slide
(0-2-1) with Tuesdays 6-1 thrashing of the Boston Bruins. It was the fifth
victory in eight games for Tampa Bay, which enters today sevven points out of a
playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Robert
Griffin III Authentic Jersey. Stamkos became the first player to
reach 50 goals this season, picking up a pair of scores in the rout of the
visiting Bruins. The 22-year-old Stamkos also made his mark as the sixth player
in league history to score at least 50 goals in a season twice before turning
23, joining Mike Bossy, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Joe Nieuwendyk and
Alex Ovechkin. “It was definitely in the back of my mind. It was a special
night,” said Stamkos, who set a career-high with 51 goals in 2009-10. Stamkos
will likely win the Rocket Richard Trophy for a second time this year, as he is
currently 12 goals ahead of Pittsburghs Evgeni Malkin for the league lead with
less than a month left in the regular season. Tom Pyatt, Nate Thompson and
Ryan Shannon all tallied in the first five minutes for the Lightning.
Dustin Tokarski earned his first NHL victory, stopping a career-best 33 shots
for Tampa. Tonight marks the third test of a seven-game homestand for the
Lightning, who are 21-11-2 in Tampa this year compared to an 11-19-5 road
record. The clubs will cap the season series on April 5 in Toronto. ’ ’ ’