Event of the Day: Los Angeles Clippers versus Boston Celtics
Our event of the day is the cross-conference clash in the NBA between the LA Clippers and the Boston Celtics at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Both sides go into this tie in a rich vein of form, with the Clippers winning their last four whilst the Celtics are enjoying a three-game winning streak. The home side have already beaten tonight’s opponents once already this season as they ran out 123-112 winners at the TD Garden a month ago and they’ll be looking to secure a regular season double over the Celtics tonight. The Clippers will be buoyed by their derby win over the Lakers last week, which all but confirmed LeBron’s side would miss out on playoff basketball this term. Though Doc Rivers’ side are yet to secure a playoff berth themselves, they currently reside seventh in the Western Conference and look in good stead to feature in the post season after narrowly missing out last year. The experienced Lou Williams has excelled in what is now the business end of the season and dropped 40 points last time out against the Oklahoma City Thunder to help his side secure a crucial win as the race for playoff spots heats up.
The Boston Celtics have also beaten the Lakers on their recent winning run, but more impressively overcame the reigning champions Golden State Warriors last week, handing their playoff seeding a huge boost. Kyrie Irving has led the Massachusetts-based outfit to some tune this term, averaging 23.5 points per game along with 6.9 assists to boot, leading the franchise in both categories. Even though the Celtics have reached the Conference finals in the past two campaigns, they haven’t played in an NBA Finals series since the 2009/10 season, where they lost out to the Lakers. You would have to go back even further for their last championship win, which came in 2008 and they will be looking to amend that record this year. It should be a great game between two form sides.
Honourable mentions around the globe go to the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells where Day 5 of the men’s tournament and Day 6 of the women’s will take place today. The round of 32 will continue in both events today, with Novak Djokovic headlining the action as he faces the German Philipp Kohlschreiber whilst Venus Williams will do battle with compatriot Christina McHale. Elsewhere, there is footballing action across Europe as Roma host Empoli in Serie A whilst Fortuna Dusseldorf face Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga. In the cricket, Day 4 of the 2nd test between New Zealand and Bangladesh takes places today with the Black Caps currently leading the series 1-0. In the NHL, the Minnesota Wild host Pacific Division leaders San Jose Sharks at the Xcel Energy Center where the visitors will be looking to notch their fifth straight win. Finally, back in the NBA, the Oklahoma City Thunder will be desperate to regain some form before entering the post season as they travel to Utah to face the Jazz having won just three of their last ten fixtures.
Whatever you’re watching, enjoy!
Photos by NBA