The AP reports: Hours after owner James Dolan introduced Donnie Walsh as New York’s new president of basketball operations, rookie Javaris Crittenton scored a season-high 23 points, Rudy Gay added 21, and the Memphis Grizzlies had their best offensive performance this season in a 130-114 victory Wednesday night over the Knicks… Michael Conley added 18 points, Juan Carlos Navarro had 16 and Mike Miller 15 as eight Grizzlies reached double figures… Zach Randolph led New York with 27 points, and Crawford added 24. David Lee had 19 points and 10 rebounds, and Renaldo Balkman had 11.
Day: April 3, 2008
Apr. 2: Hornets 106, Heat 77
The AP reports: Tyson Chandler was 10-for-10 from the floor, and his 20-point, 10-rebound effort helped the Hornets remain atop the Western Conference standings with a 106-77 victory over the Miami Heat on Wednesday night. David West scored 22 points and Chris Paul added 14 points and 10 assists for the Hornets, who finished 5-1 on their six-game road trip through the East. It was also the 25th road win for the Hornets, topping what was the franchise record set 11 seasons ago… Chris Quinn finished with 18 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for Miami, which lost its fifth straight… Blake Ahearn scored 15 points and Daequan Cook added 12 for Miami. Joel Anthony added a career-best 12 rebounds for the Heat.
Apr. 2: Bucks 110, Wizards 109
The AP reports: With Gilbert Arenas back on the floor, the Washington Wizards fell apart in too many ways to count in the fourth quarter. Forget all his dramatics: Agent Zero had the show stolen by a rookie making his first NBA game-winner. Ramon Sessions hit a 19-foot jumper at the buzzer Wednesday night to give the Milwaukee Bucks a 110-109 victory over the Wizards, who left the game with severely bruised egos and new injuries to Antawn Jamison and DeShawn Stevenson… Charlie Villanueva had 24 points and 12 rebounds for the Bucks, whose celebration took some of the sting from the news that they were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs by Atlanta’s win over Toronto… Butler and Jamison scored 18 points apiece for the Wizards, who missed a chance to clinch their fourth consecutive playoff berth.
Apr. 2: Celtics 92, Pacers 77
The AP reports: The Boston Celtics reached two milestones—matching the NBA record for best single-season turnaround and winning 60 games for the first time in 22 years… The Celtics also added a dominant player in the offseason, Kevin Garnett, who had 20 points and 12 rebounds Wednesday… The Pacers were led by Danny Granger with 14 points, and Mike Dunleavy and Jermaine O’Neal with 12 each. O’Neal came off the bench for the second game since missing 33 straight with a bone bruise on his left knee. Ray Allen had 15 points and Leon Powe had 14 with nine rebounds for the Celtics… Troy Murphy had 11 points and 10 rebounds for Indiana.
Apr. 2: Hawks 127, Raptors 120
The AP reports: Mike Bibby hit a tying 3-pointer in regulation, Smith made two in overtime, and the Hawks beat the Toronto Raptors 127-120 on Wednesday night for their fifth straight victory… Chris Bosh had 24 points for Toronto, and T.J. Ford finished with 23 points and 13 assists. Rasho Nesterovic scored 21 points and reserve guard Jose Calderon handed out 10 assists for the Raptors. Joe Johnson led the Hawks with 28 points. Bibby had 26 and Josh Smith finished with 24. Bibby and Johnson combined for 23 assists. Al Horford pulled down 11 rebounds.
Apr. 2: Cavs 118, Bobcats 114
The AP reports: Entering the night, LeBron James had been disqualified twice in 417 games in his five-year career. But after scoring 29 points, James was called for his sixth foul when he reached in on Charlotte’s Jason Richardson at the top of his drive to the basket with Cleveland leading 104-101 with 3:56 left… Devin Brown finished with 20 points, Anderson Varejao made eight of nine shots and added 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Cleveland… Jason Richardson had 31 points, Emeka Okafor matched a season high with 25 and Gerald Wallace scored 21 for the Bobcats, who lost their second straight game amid questions of coach Sam Vincent’s future.