Boston Celtics

Brooklyn faces Boston in conference showdown

Published Mar. 30, 2019 3:13 a.m. ET

Boston Celtics (45-31, fourth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Brooklyn Nets (38-38, seventh in the Eastern Conference)

Brooklyn; Saturday, 6 p.m. EDT

BOTTOM LINE: Eastern Conference foes Brooklyn and Boston square off at the Barclays Center.

The Nets have gone 21-16 at home. Brooklyn is fourth in the Eastern Conference with 10.8 offensive rebounds per game, led by Ed Davis averaging 2.7.

The Celtics are 10-5 against Atlantic Division opponents. Boston averages 12.9 turnovers per game and is 15-9 when turning the ball over more than opponents. The Celtics defeated the Nets 112-104 in their last meeting on Jan. 28. Marcus Smart led Boston with 21 points and D'Angelo Russell paced Brooklyn scoring 25 points.

TOP PERFORMERS: Russell leads the Nets scoring 20.8 points per game and averaging 3.7 rebounds and 7.0 assists. Spencer Dinwiddie has averaged 19.4 points and collected 2.9 rebounds while shooting 40.2 percent over the last 10 games for Brooklyn.

Kyrie Irving leads the Celtics averaging 2.6 made 3-pointers while scoring 23.9 points per game and shooting 39.8 percent from beyond the arc. Smart has averaged 4.6 assists and scored 10.7 points over the last 10 games for Boston.

LAST 10 GAMES: Celtics: 5-5, averaging 115.3 points, 42.9 rebounds, 27 assists, 7.3 steals and 4.4 blocks per game while shooting 47.6 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 117.6 points on 48.1 percent shooting.

Nets: 5-5, averaging 112.8 points, 48.6 rebounds, 22.7 assists, 7.4 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 43.6 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 113.3 points on 41.8 percent shooting.

Nets Injuries: Allen Crabbe: day to day (knee).

Celtics Injuries: None listed.