The Celtics were coming into this semi-final series after a three day rest following their tough round one match-up with the Chicago Bulls that went all the way to game seven. However, just like in the opener of round one Boston was not able to defend their home court and lost 90-95 versus the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night. Thus, there is a lot of pressure on the Celtics to bounce back in game two and avoid going down 0-2 on Thursday at 1 a.m. GMT.

Coming back from his one game suspension, Dwight Howard looked a bit rusty in the opening quarter but became more and more dominant as the game went on. He finished with a huge double-double, scoring 16 points and grabbing 22 rebounds. Even though Stan van Gundy will be happy that his team is up 1-0 against the Celtics, there is one thing that will have to be addressed. Half-way through the third quarter the Magic were already up 28 points when suddenly the energy on the defensive end of the floor started fading away and jump shots were not falling anymore. Boston rallied back into the game and made it a one possession game at 90-93 with less than ten seconds on the clock. But it was not meant to be and J.J. Reddick ended all Celtics hopes with two clutch free throws at the end of regulation.

Paul Pierce led the Celtics with 23 points and 5 rebounds while the rest of Boston’s starters were not able to knock down shots. Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo combined for only 4-of-24 shooting from the field which made things very difficult for the shorthanded Celtics team.

There is no question about Boston’s abilities to perform in the playoffs, even without Kevin Garnett. Nonetheless, they will have to raise their energy level in game two and come out of the locker room ready to play. As remarkable as their comeback was, Doc Rivers was rightfully upset with his team’s no-show in the first half. Likewise, the Boston Celtics can be expected to put in more effort to keep Dwight Howard off the glass and out of the low-post area.

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