Celtics' Second-Half Schedule Released
BOSTON (CBS) -- If you can stomach more Celtics basketball, we finally have the team's schedule for the second half of the 2021 NBA season. And things are not getting any easier for a team that is barely hanging on to a playoff spot at the moment.
Boston's first game back from the All-Star break will feature a rematch with the Nets in Brooklyn on March 11. Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant embarrassed the Celtics in Boston on Christmas Day to the tune of 123-95, and that was before Brooklyn acquired James Harden. The two teams will also play in Brooklyn on Friday, April 23.
The Celtics have a rematch with the Utah Jazz (March 16 in Boston) and two games against the Bucks (March 24 and 26) in Milwaukee on their March schedule. The two games in Milwaukee are part of a four-game road swing for the Celtics that begins with a trip to Memphis and ends with a visit to Oklahoma City. Boston will play 12 games in 21 days in March, including three back-to-backs.
The Celtics will play 16 games in April, a month that also includes a trio of back-to-backs. Highlights include a back-to-back against the Philadelphia 76ers (April 6) and New York Knicks (April 7) at TD Garden, and a three game road trip against the Denver Nuggets (April 11), the Portland Trail Blazers (April 13), and the L.A. Lakers (April 15). Boston finishes the month with three straight home games, with another home tilt to start May.
Of Boston's 16 games in April, 11 of them will be played on the Celtics' home floor.
But that home cooking won't last, as five of Boston's eight games in May will be played on the road, including the C's final three games of the regular season -- May 12 against the Cleveland Cavaliers, May 15 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, and May 16 against the New York Knicks. A pair of home games against the Miami Heat -- May 9 and 11 -- precede that season-ending road trip.
The Celtics have seven back-to-backs in the second half of their schedule, and will have two days off just twice over the final three months of the season.
Boston has been wholly unimpressive during the first half of the season, currently sitting at 15-16 and barely hanging on to a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. It's the latest the team has been under .500 in a season in six years.
But the Celtics will still be on national TV quite a bit in the second half of the season. Five games are currently slated to air on TNT, another seven will air on ESPN, and April 17 against the Golden State Warriors will be featured in ABC's Saturday night primetime slot.
Click here for a complete look at Boston's second-half schedule.