The AP reports: Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavs awoke from their early-game slumber with rally after rally, getting close or even tied yet unable to get ahead until the former MVP made a tough, high-arching shot with 1:05 left. Having worked so hard for the lead, they weren’t about to give it back, pulling out a 119-117 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Monday night to avoing being swept… Carmelo Anthony scored a career playoff-best 41 points and snagged five steals. He was the one turning away most Dallas rallies and made a 3-pointer with 3.1 seconds left that got Denver within a point. Yet when Mavericks guard Jason Terry intentionally missed a free throw with 1.1 ticks left, Anthony was out of answers. He got the rebound, but couldn’t stop the clock and didn’t even have time to try a 90-foot heave… “We’ve been fighting and fighting this whole series,” said Mavs forward Josh Howard, who had 21 points and 11 rebounds on two bad ankles… “They’re allowed to be fans, but when it gets personal, it goes over the top,” said Denver’s Chauncey Billups, who had 24 points and seven assists.
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James scores 27 as Cavs win 84-74, sweep Hawks
The AP reports: LeBron James went with his Magic impression in the deciding game of another playoff sweep. While failing to match his offensive explosion in Game 3, the league’s MVP scored 27 points and got his teammates involved as the Cleveland Cavaliers finished off the Atlanta Hawks 84-74 Monday night to win the second-round series in four straight. Delonte West and Mo Williams showed Cleveland isn’t just a one-man squad, hitting huge shots down the stretch as the Cavaliers extended their NBA-record streak of double-digit playoff wins to eight in a row. Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Anderson Varejao pounded the boards, leading the Cavaliers to another big rebounding edge… West scored 21 points, while Williams made four 3-pointers to account for his 12 points. Ilgauskas had 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Varejao seemed to get his hand on every miss, picking up seven of his 11 rebounds at the offensive end… Josh Smith led Atlanta with 26 points, but the Hawks were doomed by a miserable shooting night—23 of 73 from the field to finish at 31.5 percent. Joe Johnson added 18 points but made just 7 of 18 shots. Mike Bibby scored his only points on a 3-pointer in the final quarter. Flip Murray kept putting it up, but made only 4 of 15 for 14 points.
Big Baby buzzer beater lifts Celtics over Magic
The AP reports: Glen Davis made a 21-foot jumper as time expired to help the Celtics hold off a furious rally and defeat the Orlando Magic 95-94 on Sunday night to even their Eastern Conference semifinal at two games apiece. A spot he never expected to be in until Garnett went down with a season-ending knee injury, Davis relished his newfound celebrity… Davis also hit a 15-foot jumper in the final minute and finished with 21 points. Dwight Howard had 23 points and 17 rebounds, and Lewis scored 22 for the Magic. Game 5 is Tuesday in Boston… An ugly, first-half foul fest with 29 personals called saw 13 lead changes… Pierce was finally able to get off to a quick start by attacking the basket and drawing fouls. He went 6 of 7 on free throws on his way to 18 points in the opening half to help the Celtics take a 48-46 lead at the break.
Rockets beat Lakers without Yao, even series
The AP reports: With Yao Ming out, the Houston Rockets had no chance to beat the Los Angeles Lakers. Right? Wrong. Aaron Brooks scored a career-high 34, Shane Battier sank five 3-pointers and added 23 and the Rockets beat the Lakers 99-87 on Sunday to even their Western Conference semifinal at two games apiece… Luis Scola had 11 points and 14 rebounds as the Rockets got exactly the team effort they needed after Yao broke his left foot in the Lakers’ win in Game 3… Pau Gasol scored 30 points and Kobe Bryant had a quiet 15 for Los Angeles… Houston led 54-36 at the break. The Lakers grabbed only two offensive rebounds and generated only four fast-break points in their lowest-scoring half of the season… The Rockets outscored Los Angeles 29-18 in the decisive third quarter, led by Brooks’ 17 points.
James scores 47, Cavaliers beat Hawks 97-82
The AP reports: LeBron James scored 47 points in his best game yet of these playoffs, leading the Cavaliers to the brink of their second straight postseason sweep with a 97-82 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night. Back home after two blowout losses in Cleveland, the Hawks put up their best fight of the series. It didn’t matter… The Hawks were only down 47-46 at the halftime, and they surged back into their first second-half lead of the series with a 13-0 run in the third quarter. But Zaza Pachulia foolishly got ejected for arguing a foul call—acting as though he might attack the officials—and Atlanta faded away down the stretch… Indeed, while James was a virtual one-man show, he kept his teammates involved by dishing out eight assists. If that wasn’t enough, he led Cleveland to a dominant performance on the boards, 46-23, with 12 rebounds—more than anyone else on the court… Joe Johnson, who didn’t decide until game time that he was healthy enough to play, led the Hawks with 21 points. Josh Smith added 18 and Flip Murray 17.
Melo clutch as Nuggets beat Mavericks 106-105
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The Denver Nuggets Saturday evening got 32 points from Chauncey Billups and 31 from Carmelo Anthony, beating the Mavericks in Dallas to take a 3-0 lead in their second round NBA playoffs series.
The final and biggest shot of the night came with one second left from Nuggets star small forward Carmelo Anthony, who nailed a big three-pointer from the left side of the court.
There was controversy, as just before Melo took that shot, Mavericks swingman Antoine Wright bumped Anthony, intentionally trying to foul him. The bump wasn’t very hard, though, and no call was made. Melo didn’t stop and nailed the shot anyway.
Wright’s bump on Melo was close. It was a “touch-bump,” if you will. It probably should have been called, but it was not a clear “must-call.” It wasn’t a particularly hard bump and it didn’t really affect Melo. Wright probably should have just grabbed him or something.
As for the game, it was close most of the way through. The Nuggets led 48-45 at halftime. The Mavericks led 80-79 after three-quarters.
STAT BREAKDOWN
In the win, Billups (9-of-16) had 32, but just 3 assists. Anthony (just 9-of-24, but 11-of-14 free throws) had 31, plus 8 rebounds and a pair of steals. Kenyon Martin (5-of-6) had 12, but just 4 rebounds. J.R. Smith (just 3-of-10) had 10 with 6 rebounds off the bench.
In the loss, Dirk Nowitzki (9-of-19, 13-of-15 free throws) scored 33, with 16 rebounds and 2 blocks. Jason Terry (5-of-12) had 17 with 4 rebounds off the bench. Brandon Bass (2-of-5) fought hard and earned 14 free throw attempts for 16 points and 5 rebounds. Josh Howard (just 5-of-15) had 14 points, 7 rebounds and more turnovers than assists. Jason Kidd scored 13 with 5 rebounds, 5 assists.
Both teams shot badly (though the Nuggets were slightly better from three-point range), and spent much of the night on the free throw line, with Dallas connecting on 40-of-49, and Denver hitting 32-of-40.
Denver controlled the ball, committing only 7 turnovers. The Mavericks had just one steal (Josh Howard).
THE AFTERMATH
The Mavericks boiled over with frustation after the loss, with several players yelling at anyone nearby who would listen. Passionate team owner Mark Cuban stormed down the sideline of the court and shoved aside the off-arm of a cameraman who was nearly in his way. I didn’t see if any Mavs players did anything crazy after the game, aside from letting off a lot of steam.
Fan discussion of the game took place in this forum topic.
-Jeff
Lakers beat Rockets 108-94 to take 2-1 series lead
The AP reports: Kobe Bryant scored 33 points in the Lakers’ 108-94 victory in Game 3 on Friday night that gave them a 2-1 lead in the series… Lamar Odom had 16 points and 13 rebounds and reserve point guard Jordan Farmar had 12 points and seven assists in place of the suspended Derek Fisher, who was ejected from Game 2 for a hard hit on Luis Scola when he set a pick. Artest, who scored 25 points, was ejected for a flagrant foul on Pau Gasol in the final minute, the only carryover of the rough play that turned testy in Game 2.. Yao Ming added 19 points and 14 rebounds for the Rockets but he was bothered by a sore left foot in the final minutes and was limping as he left the court… The Rockets had a 56-43 edge in rebounding.
Howard powers Magic to 117-96 win over Boston
The AP reports: Into the stands. Off the backboard or in another player’s face, Dwight Howard sent Boston Celtics’ shots everywhere. Howard had 17 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks to lift the Orlando Magic to a 117-96 victory over the Celtics on Friday night and a 2-1 series lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal… Rashard Lewis had 28 points, and Hedo Turkoglu scored 24 for Orlando, which played without starting point guard Rafer Alston. He was suspended by the NBA for slapping Eddie House in the back of the head in Game 2. Paul Pierce broke out of his series slump to score 27 points, and Rajon Rondo added 15 for the defending champion Celtics, who trimmed a 20-point deficit to seven before the Magic regained control… Anthony Johnson had 13 points in place of Alston.
LeBron, Cavs coast past Hawks 105-85
The AP reports: LeBron James scored 27 points, ending the first and second quarters with last-second baskets, and Mo Williams added 15 points as the untested Cavs overpowered the Atlanta Hawks 105-85 on Thursday night to open a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal. Now a perfect 6-0 in the postseason, the Cavaliers tied a league record by winning their sixth consecutive playoff game by double digits. The only other team to do it was the 2004 Indiana Pacers. Maurice Evans scored 16 points and Mike Bibby had 11 for the Hawks, who were missing center Al Horford and forward Marvin Williams because of injuries. If that wasn’t bad enough, leading scorer Joe Johnson rolled his right ankle in the third quarter and did not return… In his second game since being named MVP, James dropped a long 3-pointer in the final second of the first half as the Cavaliers opened a 24-point lead that swelled to 36 in the third.
Live fan discussion of this game took place in this forum topic.
Lakers beat Rockets 111-98 to even playoff series
The AP reports: Kobe Bryant scored 40 points, Pau Gasol added 22 points and 14 rebounds and Los Angeles won Game 2 111-98 on Wednesday night to even the Western Conference semifinal series… Ron Artest, one of two players ejected in the game, scored 25 points and Carl Landry added a career playoff-high 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets, who overcame a 14-point deficit in the first half only to trail most of the second half… Houston’s Yao Ming finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds after picking up three fouls in the first half… Emotions boiled over in the second half, with Derek Fisher of the Lakers and Artest getting ejected and technical fouls assessed to Bryant, Artest, Luis Scola, Luke Walton and Lamar Odom, who had 11 rebounds… Odom replaced C Andrew Bynum in the Lakers’ starting lineup. Bynum was scoreless with one rebound in 8 minutes.