The AP reports: The Charlotte Bobcats finally lost, but are still in the playoff hunt. The San Antonio Spurs won again and now await what might be a playoff preview. Tim Duncan had 18 points and 11 rebounds, and the Spurs halted Charlotte’s franchise-record winning streak at six with a 100-86 victory Tuesday night. Roger Mason and Tony Parker added 21 points apiece for the Spurs, who will take a three-game winning streak into Thursday’s home game against the Los Angeles Lakers, a marquee meeting of the Western Conference’s top two teams… Raymond Felton had 15 points and Gerald Wallace 14 for Charlotte.
Month: March 2009
Knicks beat Bucks 120-112 for rare road win
The AP reports: Nate Robinson scored 10 of his 32 points in the final five minutes and Larry Hughes added a season-high 39 as the Knicks beat the Milwaukee Bucks 120-112 on Tuesday for only their eighth road win of the season… David Lee added 19 points and 18 rebounds for the Knicks, who were becoming frustrated by recent close losses… Charlie Villanueva scored 32 for the Bucks, who came into Tuesday’s game clinging to the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference despite a season filled with significant injuries… Ramon Sessions finished with 22 points.
Streaking Jazz beat Pacers for 12th straight win
The AP reports: The Utah Jazz prefer not to think about their longest winning streak since 1999. Mehmet Okur’s 24 points helped the Jazz beat the Indiana Pacers 112-100 on Tuesday night for their 12th straight victory, moving them one game closer to the franchise record of 15 consecutive set twice during the 1996-97 season. “Don’t jinx us,” Utah forward Carlos Boozer said… Paul Millsap had 22 points and nine rebounds, Ronnie Brewer scored 18 and Deron Williams added 12 assists for the Jazz (41-23), who haven’t lost since falling 116-96 at Golden State on Feb. 8… Jarrett Jack and Ford each had 21 points for Indiana (28-38), which continues to battle for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Pacers finished with 22 turnovers, resulting in 26 Utah points.
NBA suspends Lamar Odom one game
Lamar Odom of the Los Angeles Lakers has been suspended one game without pay for leaving the immediate vicinity of the bench during an altercation, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
The incident occurred with two seconds remaining in the third quarter of the Portland Trail Blazers’ 111-94 victory over the Lakers at Rose Garden in Portland last night.
Odom will serve his suspension tomorrow night when the Lakers face the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center.
NBA rules state that players who are benched at the time of an altercation must stay there.
A Lakers-Rockets matchup is always worth watching. Houston has done very well despite not having aging star shooting guard Tracy McGrady, and Los Angeles has looked terrific despite not having young-and-upcoming, starting center Andrew Bynum.
Without Odom, some responsibility to step up falls on the shoulders of Ariza, Josh Powell and DJ Mbenga.
Indiana Pacers have financial problems
The Indianapolis Star (Brendan O’Shaughnessy) reports: The Indiana Pacers are losing about $30 million this season and cannot continue to shoulder the millions of dollars it costs to operate Conseco Fieldhouse. That was the announcement Monday to the Capital Improvement Board from CIB Vice President Pat Early, who has been in discussions with team officials about the financial problems both organizations face. Operating Conseco Fieldhouse costs the Pacers roughly $15 million a year. If the team can’t make those payments, it would fall to the CIB, which already is struggling with a budget shortfall of $20 million this year.
InsideHoops.com editor says: Pacers fans don’t go see their team play. Indiana gets under 14,000 fans per home game. If I owned the team, I’d probably be looking to move or sell right about now. Though, with the current rough economy it’s hard to pull off any of that.
Eduardo Najera done for season
The New York Daily News (Julian Garcia) reports: The Nets found out Monday that they’ll have to go the rest of the season without Eduardo Najera. The veteran forward, who signed with the Nets in the offseason, has a sports hernia and will have surgery sometime over the next week or so. Frank said Najera would not be ready for at least six to 10 weeks, meaning the Nets would have to advance deep into the postseason for him to have a chance to play again. In 27 games, Najera averaged 2.9 points and 2.5 rebounds. He hadn’t played since Jan.31.
Roy scores 27, Blazers beat Lakers 111-94
The AP reports: Rudy Fernandez was injured when he was fouled hard late in the third quarter of Portland’s 111-94 victory Monday night. He was taken from the court strapped to a stretcher, his neck in a brace. “Just the way it played out—it’s hard to watch your teammate over there laying down and they’re bringing out stretchers. That was a tough moment for all of us,” said Brandon Roy, who led the Blazers with 27 points… Travis Outlaw had 22 points for the Blazers, who have won 12 straight at the Rose Garden. Joel Przybilla added 12 points and 18 rebounds, while LaMarcus Aldridge had 16 points and 13 rebounds. Kobe Bryant had 26 points, while Pau Gasol had 18 for the Lakers, who haven’t won at the Rose Garden in their last seven tries, with their last victory on Feb. 23, 2005.
Artest scores 22, Rockets beat Nuggets 97-95
The AP reports: The Denver Nuggets are starting to see the storm clouds closing in on them. Even the brief return of Kenyon Martin from a bad back couldn’t snap them out of their funk as the Nuggets lost for the eighth time in 11 games Monday night, this time 97-95 to the Houston Rockets… Denver had a chance to tie idle Utah atop the Northwest Division after losing their grip on first place 24 hours earlier with a disheartening loss at Sacramento. But they fell behind by 19 points in the third quarter and couldn’t overcome big games by Ron Artest (22 points) and Aaron Brooks (19)… Nene shot 4-for-15, falling behind Shaquille O’Neal for the league lead in shooting percentage.
Butler scores 27, Wizards beat Wolves 110-99
The AP reports: Caron Butler had 27 points, 10 rebounds and six assists to lead the Wizards to a 110-99 victory over the Timberwolves on Monday night in a matchup of teams that had lost 14 straight combined. Antawn Jamison added 26 points for the Wizards, who had lost five in a row and seven of their last eight… Kevin Love had 16 points and 11 rebounds and Ryan Gomes scored 18 for the Timberwolves, who have lost 10 in a row and 15 of their last 16… Guard Randy Foye had to be carried to the locker room in the fourth quarter with a sprained right ankle. He went up to grab a high lob pass from Mike Miller, but crumpled to the court in pain.
Hamilton 29 and 14, Pistons beat Magic 98-94
The AP reports: Kwame Brown, who has struggled since being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2001 draft, had 10 points and played 26 minutes of tough defense against Dwight Howard as Detroit beat the Orlando Magic 98-94. He stepped up after Rasheed Wallace left with a first-quarter injury… Richard Hamilton led Detroit with 29 points and a career-high 14 assists, while Antonio McDyess had a season-high 18 rebounds… Howard had 27 points and 14 rebounds for Orlando, which has lost 19 of its last 24 regular-season meetings with the Pistons, and been eliminated by Detroit in each of the last two postseasons.