Inside Hoops – Page 2591 – NBA Blog

Mar. 30: Cavs 91, Sixers 88

The AP reports: LeBron James made a twisting bank shot with 19.3 seconds left to put Cleveland ahead to stay and the Cavaliers defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 91-88 on Sunday night. James, who finished with 26 points, took the ball at the top of the key, drove through the lane and put Cleveland up 90-88. After a Philadelphia miss, Cleveland forward Joe Smith was fouled and made one free throw. Andre Iguodala, who led the 76ers with 19 points, missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. Trailing 86-82, Cavaliers guard Delonte West hit two 3-pointers to tie the game at 88 with 1:13 to play. West finished with 18 points. James, who made 4-of-17 shots in Saturday’s loss to Detroit, was 11-of-18 from the field with nine rebounds and nine assists.

Mar. 30: Hornets 118, Raptors 111

The AP reports: David West scored 32 points and Chris Paul had 20 points and 16 assists to lead the New Orleans Hornets to a 118-111 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night. Peja Stojakovic scored 25 and Tyson Chandler had 17 points and 10 rebounds as the Hornets bounced back from a 20-point loss in Boston on Friday night to win for the sixth time in seven games. The Hornets reached 50 wins for the first time since the 1997-98 season. Chris Bosh scored 21 points and Carlos Delfino added 18 as Toronto’s modest two-game winning streak came to an end. Rasho Nesterovic had 14 and Jamario Moon added 13 for the Raptors, who have lost seven of 10.

Mar. 30: Hawks 114, Knicks 109

The AP reports: Marvin Williams scored 27 points and Joe Johnson had 23 to help the Atlanta Hawks win their third straight, 114-109 over the New York Knicks on Sunday… Jamal Crawford led the Knicks with 39 points—19 coming in the third quarter—but he was just 2-for-5 from the field in the fourth before his meaningless layup ended the scoring… Johnson, who had a season-high 13 assists, caught Al Horford’s pass from the right wing and laid in a short turnaround for a 105-94 lead with 3:42 remaining… David Lee finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Mar. 30: Wolves 110, Jazz 103

The AP reports: Al Jefferson had 22 points and eight rebounds and Rashad McCants scored 13 of his 16 points in the second half of Minnesota’s 110-103 victory Sunday over a Utah team that just can’t seem to win on the road. Corey Brewer tied a career high with 16 points and had seven rebounds for the Timberwolves, who have now beaten the Jazz at home twice this season, losses that are inexcusable for a team that hopes to contend for the Western Conference crown. Carlos Boozer had 25 points and 10 rebounds for the short-handed Jazz, who are nearly unbeatable at home but just 16-22 on the road this year… Deron Williams had 15 points and 13 assists, but was pretty quiet from a scoring standpoint after getting seven points in the first 5 minutes.

Mar. 30: Spurs 109, Rockets 88

The AP reports: Michael Finley scored 22 points on Sunday and the Spurs picked up their seventh straight win with an easy 109-88 victory over the Houston Rockets… Tony Parker added another 22 points and Tim Duncan had 13 for the Spurs, who have 51 wins—the most in the tightly packed Western Conference. The Rockets aren’t far behind… Luis Scola scored a season-high 24 points for the Rockets. Tracy McGrady— most often matched up against Spurs top defender Bruce Bowen—and Rafer Alston each had 13 points after shooting a combined 9-for-38… Luther Head scored 10 points for the Rockets. Manu Ginobili scored 14 for the Spurs and Kurt Thomas added 10.

Mike D`Antoni praises Manu Ginobili

The Boston Globe (Peter May) reports: Phoenix coach Mike D’Antoni often wonders why the name Manu Ginobili doesn’t surface when the topic concerns today’s great swingmen. “If you were picking a small forward or a big guard for your team, he’s got to be one of the top five that you’d be talking about,” D’Antoni said. “I mean, look at what he’s done. Three [NBA] championships. An Olympic gold medal. And yet he doesn’t even make the All-Star team. I don’t know if you mention him in the same sentence with the real greats, but if this is about winning, then what he has done is unbelievable. I don’t think we put enough of a premium on that. I think he’s one of the best players in the league.”

Rockets sign Mike Harris for remainder of season

Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that the team has signed forward Mike Harris for the remainder of the 2007-08 season. As per team policy, terms of the contract were not disclosed. Harris originally signed a 10-day contract with the Rockets on March 8 and was re-signed to a second 10-day contract on March 18. In eight games with the Rockets, Harris has averaged 5.0 points and 4.0 rebounds.

Harris (6-6, 240, Rice), who signed with the Rockets as a rookie free agent on July 13, 2007, averaged 5.0 points and 6.0 rebounds while playing in Houston’s first two preseason games this season. Released by the Rockets on Oct. 22, Harris averaged 24.3 points and 11.6 rebounds in just 28 minutes per game in 25 outings with DongGuan (2007-08) of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). Harris’ season highs in the CBA included a 46-point, 26-rebound game. The former standout at Rice University also averaged 12.6 points and 7.0 rebounds in five games with Houston in the 2007 NBA Summer League presented by adidas.

In 2006-07, Harris averaged 6.0 points and 2.4 rebounds in five preseason games with the Milwaukee Bucks. Selected third overall in the 2006 D-League Draft by Colorado, Harris also averaged 11.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.54 blocks in 48 games (16 starts) with the 14ers in 2006-07.

Mar. 29: Clippers 110, Grizzlies 97

The AP reports: Rookie Al Thornton scored 20 of his career-high 39 points in the fourth quarter, Corey Maggette added 26, and the Los Angeles Clippers snapped a season-worst 10-game losing streak with a 110-97 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night. Chris Kaman had 10 points and 15 rebounds for the Clippers, who won for only the third time in 19 games after consecutive home victories over Memphis and Utah. Among the numerous Clippers sidelined by injuries were Tim Thomas (sore Achilles’) and Quinton Ross (sore left foot). Brevin Knight had 14 points and 11 assists. It was only the second double-digit assist game by the Clippers, who have used seven players at the point guard spot this season because of Shaun Livingston’s yearlong rehab from knee surgery. Knight had 12 assists on Feb. 29 in a 110-104 loss at Denver. Rudy Gay had 23 points and Kyle Lowry added 20 off the bench for the Grizzlies, who are 6-23 since beating the Clippers in overtime at home on Jan. 26.

Mar. 29: Bobcats 93, Blazers 85

The AP reports: Emeka Okafor scored 21 points and Jason Richardson added 20 for the Bobcats in a 93-85 victory over the Blazers on Saturday night. The Bobcats broke open the back-and-forth game in the final 2 minutes, and won despite being outrebounded 57-32 by the Blazers. “We got out rebounded and we still won so that shows a lot for our team,” said Raymond Felton, who added 18 points. Travis Outlaw tied a season-high with 26 points to lead Portland, and LaMarcus Aldridge had 21 points and 13 rebounds for his team-leading 15th double-double of the season.

Mar. 29: Nuggets 119, Warriors 112

The AP reports: Allen Iverson’s 4-for-20 performance hardly mattered thanks to Kenyon Martin, who scored a season-high 30 points, leading the Denver Nuggets past the Warriors in the wild, wild Western Conference playoff race with a 119-112 win Saturday night… So did Carmelo Anthony, who hit 11-of-16 shots for 25 points, and a trio of reserves whose third-quarter play keyed the victory: J.R. Smith (20 points, seven assists), Eduardo Najera (11 points, 7 rebounds) and Linas Kleiza (8 points)… Martin’s biggest bucket was a buzzer beater from the left corner that made it 115-110 with 1:11 remaining, and Baron Davis, who led the Warriors with 28 points, misfired twice on 3-pointers in the final minute. Stephen Jackson added 25 points for Golden State, Monta Ellis had 22 and Andris Biedrins 17 points and 17 rebounds.