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Scanning the blogs and beats following the Cavaliers’ 88-77 win over the Celtics in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals …
Cavalier Attitude: "I’m going to lay some bold knowledge on you: there’s no better perimeter defender than LeBron James when he’s committed to that end. I’m serious. Watch this series. Paul Pierce: 18-52. That’s Boston’s best scorer, and he hasn’t had a scrap of room to work the entire series. He’s been completely taken out of the game. And lest you think he’s in some sort of funk, every single time Sasha Pavlovic, a good on-ball defender, was sent to check him, he absolutely destroyed him and got an easy bucket."
Patrick McManamon, Akron Beacon Journal: "It happened with 1:45 remaining in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. That’s when LeBron James provided that moment for the highlight films, YouTube and the coffee-pot discussions at work today. Whether it’s a moment that energizes the Cavs through this series that is now tied depends on how they fare the final three games. But it most definitely was a moment to savor, and to remember."
Steve Bulpett, Boston Herald: "Yes, the Celtics still are capable of losing a close game in the playoffs, but they shouldn’t be scoring just two points in the last 2:55. They shouldn’t be dozing to a dozen in the last 12 minutes. C’s coach Doc Rivers didn’t seem too pleased with his troops as he called a pair of fourth-quarter timeouts essentially to reel his people in. He opened the fourth quarter with an odd lineup of Paul Pierce [stats], James Posey, Sam Cassell, P.J. Brown and Glen Davis. That’s the same Glen Davis who hadn’t played a minute in the first three quarters." 
Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer: "Before the game, Boston’s Doc Rivers said he wanted to keep Wally Szczerbiak from scoring early. The veteran scored five points in the first quarter, and then he scored nine points in the third quarter. Szczerbiak delivered 14 points, his average in this series. You look at the trade bringing Joe Smith, Ben Wallace, West and Szczerbiak and these veterans are supporting James as Danny Ferry had hoped. The savvy Smith had eight points and six rebounds in 24 minutes. The big man makes open medium-range jumpers, rarely is out of position on defense (although he sometimes is overpowered by Garnett). He knows the shot clock, he rarely makes turnovers."
The Shamrock Headband (PG-13): "To quote the immortal Pogo, we have met the enemy, and he is us. Specifically, he’s Glenn Rivers, the very coach we’ve been giving an amiably free pass to for much of the 2007-2008 season thus far. I’m not sure what Coach Rivers is up to, but the Celtics were outscored 20-12 in the fourth quarter tonight, and nothing seemed more apparent than a need for some sort of offensive strategy. The defense, for its part, was outstanding; we did NOT lose this game because of anything the Cavs did. We lost this game because of things that we didn’t do, namely score baskets when it counted. We ran pick-and-rolls around Rondo and P.J. Brown; we saw Sam Cassell miss basket after basket; we saw Kevin Garnett look increasingly bewildered and helpless due to the incredibly unfair offensive burden that was casually strapped to his back. AND NOTHING WAS DONE ABOUT IT."
WaitingForNextYear: "Varejao has been rather abused for his ‘offense’ throughout the blogosphere, and deservedly so. Nobody expects him to go toe to toe with Garnett for a whole series or even game, but the energy and presence he brought tonight was enough to pester Boston’s MVP into a bad night, and gave the Cavaliers the opportunity to get the win. That’s the Andy Varejao we saw last year in the playoffs, and that’s the Varejao we need if we’re going to get a game in Boston!"
CelticsBlog.com: "Through the first four games against Cleveland, Pierce has taken 16 threes compared to just 14 foul shots. That isn’t a formula for success, and it isn’t about the officiating. It’s about Pierce’s decision-making and his choice to settle with far too much regularity. In fairness to PP, The Guru offers up the possibility that it may be an issue of energy conservation for Pierce. He has spent much of his time on the floor this series guarding and being guarded by one of the best players in the league, a player who happens to be bigger, stronger and faster than Pierce is. There is no shame for Pierce in not being LeBron James, and the truth remains that The Truth has done a fantastic job on LBJ on the defensive end thus far this series. It’s hard to ask any more of him on than what he has given on that end."
RedsArmy.com: "Sam Cassell was awful and Doc Rivers is a moron for not recognizing it. Would it be a crime to give Eddie House some minutes? I realize you need offense when Rondo is struggling, but Sam was not the answer tonight. Everyone but Doc Rivers knew that."
Dan Shaughnessy, Boston Globe: "If you are a glass-half-full person, you can look at this and conclude that the Celtics can win the title simply by holding serve throughout the playoffs. Theoretically, Boston can go 16-0 at home and 0-12 on the road and raise banner No. 17. But does any card-carrying Celtic fan feel good about this team? Going a combined 0-5 in Atlanta and Cleveland does little to inspire confidence. And a glass-half-empty person might say that, sooner or later, somebody is going to crash the Garden party and walk out of the Causeway Street gym with a win. You don’t think the Pistons can do it? Or maybe, just maybe, the Cavaliers?"
Brian Windhorst, Akron Beacon Journal: "It was a flashback to five years ago late in the first half when Gloria James jumped in from her courtside seat to defend LeBron after Pierce’s hard foul on a breakaway sent him into the seats. When LeBron was a senior in high school he was undercut on a dunk by Roy Hall and Gloria went out on the floor after Hall. She’s been pretty tame since, until this moment. She ran right up to Garnett and got in his face. KG was cool about it, he was telling her to settle down. Then LeBron got up, saw her and he yelled: "Sit your a– down." Classic. Here’s what he said about it after the game: "Even though that is my mother, you can’t have fans going after players like that. The Commissioner doesn’t care if it is your mother, I can’t afford her not to be at every last one of my games. I told her to sit down in language I shouldn’t have used. Thank God today wasn’t Mother’s Day."
