Celtics vs. Sixers: Why Boston Is Still a Lock to Win the Series

Despite losing home court advantage in Game 2, the Boston Celtics will advance to the Eastern Conference Finals over the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Sixers should be commended for their great effort in the playoffs thus far—they have exceeded everyone's expectations in beating the top-seeded Chicago Bulls and stealing game two in Boston. However, their magical run will ultimately be ended by the more experienced Celtics.

The Sixers have a great young nucleus that fans should be excited about. They play with passion and toughness and seem to win some games just out of sheer will. They aren't selfish and don't have a flashy offensive game, but they come out and get the job done.

However, in the playoffs that can only get you so far.

Eventually Boston's wealth of experience will come through as a deciding advantage in the series. The quartet of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo have been here too many times to be beaten by a team that doesn't have near the experience they have.

Pierce will especially need to step up after a dismal performance in the second game of the series in which he went 2-for-9 from the floor and finished with a disappointing nine points. Given that this could be the last year for the aging Celtics to compete for a title with their current nucleus, expect Pierce to be way more aggressive going forward.

Oftentimes in the playoffs, whichever team has the best player on the court will ultimately win the series. In Rajon Rondo, the Celtics have far and away the best player in this series. In a game where almost no one had anything going offensively and the Celtics just played flat, Rondo carried the team offensively setting up baskets with 13 assists.

In the first game of the series, a win for Boston, Rondo had 17 assists. At this point he sees the floor better than anyone in the NBA and that is huge in a series short on offense.

Losing Game 2 was a shocker for the Celtics; they may have underestimated their youthful opponent. They weren't supposed to win in Boston, but they are too young to know that and it showed. The Celtics now know that they are in a tough series and nothing but the best effort will win them games.

Unfortunately for the Sixers, the Celtics know that and will do just that from here on out and ultimately win the series.