Boston Celtics put the disappointment of Friday’s loss to Fenerbahce behind them as they thrashed Italian side EA7 Milano 105-75 in the fashion capital of Milan.
Rajon Rondo and Jeff Green led the C’s with 17 points with Paul Pierce contributing 14 as Doc Rivers’ side showed no mercy on the Euroleague side.
Rondo’s 17 points all came in the first period where he shot a perfect 7/7 from the field, including a three-pointer.
“We have a lot of talented guys – the most talent we’ve had since I’ve been with the Celtics,” Rondo stated afterwards.
A 34-31 first quarter was the perfect start for the fans in Milan as the Italian team pretty much matched what their illustrious opponents were throwing at them. But the Celtics responded in the second, busting out the blocks with a 17-2 run that effectively ended the game as a contest.
Milano, led by Greek star Ioannis Bourousis’ double-double of 15 points and 14 rebounds tried to stay competitive but the Celtics were simply too powerful for them.
Rivers, using a second unit in that second quarter that threw Milan off guard got his tactics right and the C’s led 55-42 at half-time.
Unfortunately for the Euroleague side, the Celtics’ domination continued in the second half as they led 81-59 with one quarter to play and despite cooling off in the fourth, they finished strong for a 40-point victory.
“We had to establish our defensive identity,” Rivers said at the post-game press conference.
“I thought in the first game there was no guard pressure at all. We showed them the film, went over it and talked about it over and over again and the guards saw that and took it personally and they went out and did something about it. And that was nice.”
This game ends Boston’s week-long spell in Europe. They fly back to the States tomorrow with no injury concerns ahead of Saturday’s pre-season game against the New York Knicks on Saturday.
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