The AP reports: Paul Pierce spent part of the week looking over the schedule, counting the missed opportunities that cost the Celtics a chance to repeat as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. There was a loss to the Clippers in Los Angeles. Another to the Trail Blazers when Brandon Roy was out… Pierce scored 21 of his 28 points in the second half, including the go-ahead free throws with 97 seconds left to help the Celtics earn their sixth straight win… Rajon Rondo had seven points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists for Boston, and Glen “Big Baby” Davis scored 22 points with eight rebounds. Dwyane Wade scored 21 of his 31 points in the second half, adding nine assists, to help the Heat tie it 95-all with just under 2 minutes left. But Boston scored the next eight points to pull away.
Category: Games
Basketball games blog
Cavaliers beat 76ers to clinch No. 1 spot in East
The AP reports: LeBron James had 27 points and 10 assists, Wally Szczerbiak scored a season-high 18 and the Cavaliers beat the struggling Philadelphia 76ers 102-92 Friday night to clinch home-court advantage in the Eastern conference playoffs… Andre Iguodala led Philadelphia with 26. The Sixers (40-39) have lost four straight since clinching a playoff berth. They remained one game behind Miami for fifth place in the East… Andre Miller and Lou Williams each scored 17 for Philadelphia, and Mo Williams had 18 for the Cavs.
Bryant scores 33, Lakers beat Nuggets 116-102
The AP reports: Pau Gasol was impressed with Andrew Bynum’s comeback. A decrease in his own minutes to accommodate his fellow 7-footer wasn’t too shabby, either. Kobe Bryant scored 33 points, Gasol added 27 points and 19 rebounds and the Los Angeles Lakers welcomed back Bynum in a 116-102 win over the Denver Nuggets on Thursday night. The win was the fifth straight for the Lakers (63-16) and tied them with the idle Cleveland Cavaliers (63-15) for the league lead. Bynum, playing in his first game since tearing the medial collateral ligament in his right knee on Jan. 31, had 16 points and seven rebounds in 21 minutes… Carmelo Anthony had 23 points to lead the Nuggets, who lost for the first time in nine games and failed to secure the number two seed in the Western Conference. J.R. Smith had 19 points, while Chauncey Billups and Nene each added 17.
Artest scores 26, Rockets beat Kings 115-98
The AP reports: Cheered in pre-game warmups for his tenure in Sacramento, Ron Artest responded by scoring 26 points and the Houston Rockets used a big third quarter to pull away for a 115-98 victory over the Kings, Adelman’s first at Arco since being fired by the team after eight seasons… Yao Ming had 20 points and nine rebounds for the Rockets, who trailed by five at halftime but dominated the third quarter, taking an 11-point lead that never dipped back into single digits in the fourth. Luis Scola scored 15 points, Von Wafer had 13 and Shane Battier added 12. Spencer Hawes had 22 points and 11 rebounds for the struggling Kings, while Francisco Garcia and Andres Nocioni scored 17 each and rookie Jason Thompson added 16 points and 10 rebounds.
Thomas, Gordon lead Bulls over 76ers, 113-99
The AP reports: There’s no denying the Bulls have come a long way in recent weeks, though. Tyrus Thomas and Ben Gordon each scored 24 points, and Chicago closed in on its fourth playoff appearance in five years with a 113-99 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night… Thomas set a season-high for points while converting a career-best 14 of 14 free throws. He scored 10 in the third quarter and Gordon added seven as the Bulls turned a 50-50 halftime tie into an 82-72 lead, before pulling away in the fourth for their 13th home win in 14 games… Andre Miller scored 20 points—none in the fourth quarter—and Andre Iguodala added 19 for the 76ers, who trail Miami by a game and lead Chicago by just 1 1/2.
Telfair, Love help Wolves beat Warriors 105-97
The AP reports: If the Minnesota Timberwolves hurt their chances to win the draft lottery by winning a few more games, it won’t disappoint Kevin Love one bit. “You never want to accept losing and we’re not trying to lose to get more lottery chances,” said Love after posting getting 20 points and 12 rebounds while helping Minnesota to a 105-97 win over the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday… Sebastian Telfair came off the bench to score 21 points, including a pair of key 3-pointers down the stretch in the fourth quarter when the Timberwolves went with a three-guard offense… Jamal Crawford scored 31 points and Kelenna Azubuike added 26 to pace Golden State, which had its three-game winning streak snapped. The Warriors have not won four straight since February 2008.
Mavs clinch playoff spot with 130-101 win over Jazz
The AP reports: With their spot in the playoffs secured, now the Dallas Mavericks can work on trying to avoid a first-round series against the Los Angeles Lakers. Dirk Nowitzki scored 31 points, a dozen in a row at one point, and Josh Howard overcame a bloody nose and swollen eye to add 13 points and a career-high seven steals as the Mavericks beat the Utah Jazz 130-101 on Wednesday night to clinch the final playoff spot in the Western Conference… “Knowing the importance of each game and the sense of urgency, we treat every game like it’s a Game 7 playoff game,” said Jason Terry, who added 21 points off the bench… Deron Williams scored 18 points to lead all five Utah starters in double figures, and also had 12 assists. Andrei Kirilenko had 17 points.
Nuggets eighth straight win, beat Thunder 122-112
The AP reports: Ideally, the Denver Nuggets wanted to jump on the Oklahoma City Thunder early and coast to a win before flying out to Los Angeles for their showdown with the Lakers. Instead, they had to fight like crazy before coming up big in the fourth quarter for a 122-112 win Wednesday night thanks to the usual stars—Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups—and an unusually good finish by Linas Kleiza… Anthony scored 31 points against the Thunder, Nene added 23, Billups chipped in 18, including every one in an 11-2 spurt the Nuggets used to finally get control of the game. Kleiza scored 12 of his 17 in the fourth quarter and Chris Andersen blocked seven shots. The Nuggets needed every bit of that effort to stave off the Thunder, who were led by Kevin Durant’s 31 points and Jeff Green’s 24.
Hawks beat Bucks 113-105, close in on No. 4 seed
The AP reports: The Atlanta Hawks’ recent string of losses to playoff contenders was understandable, if not particularly convenient. But with the Hawks scrambling to secure the No. 4 playoff seed in the Eastern Conference, a loss to the Milwaukee Bucks would have been much harder to explain. Joe Johnson stepped in took care of the potential problem. Johnson scored 30 points and hit a pair of big shots in the final minute of the game, stopping a late Milwaukee rally and nailing down a 113-105 victory Wednesday night… Bibby finished with 22 points and Josh Smith added 21 points and 7 rebounds for Atlanta. Bogans had 22 points and Jefferson added 19 for Milwaukee.
Chris Paul rocks, but Suns beat Hornets 105-100
The AP reports: Steve Nash and Shaquille O’Neal will be playoff outsiders for the first time in a long time. Nash had 24 points and 13 assists, making six key free throws in the final 42 seconds, and Phoenix survived a late New Orleans rally to take a 105-100 victory on Wednesday night. But the victory wasn’t enough to keep Phoenix’s playoff hopes alive. The Suns were knocked out of the postseason for the first time since 2004, when Dallas beat Utah later Wednesday night… Chris Paul wound up with a game-high 29 points and 16 assists… David West had 28 points and 12 rebounds for New Orleans, which trailed by 14 early in the fourth quarter but got as close as 100-97 on Stojakovic’s 3-pointer with 26 seconds to go.