NBA Playoffs Blog – Page 104 – NBA Blog

Lakers grind past Hornets, even playoff series

The AP reports:

Andrew Bynum had 17 points and 11 rebounds, Lamar Odom scored 16 points, and the Los Angeles Lakers survived poor games from their two biggest stars to even their first-round playoff series with an 87-78 victory over the New Orleans Hornets in Game 2 on Wednesday night.

Ron Artest added 15 points as the two-time defending champions rebounded from a stunning nine-point loss in the series opener with an improved defensive effort against Chris Paul, who still had 20 points and nine assists after shredding Los Angeles’ defense in Game 1.

With Odom’s outstanding performance leading strong bench play, the Lakers overcame the struggles of All-Stars Kobe Bryant, who managed just 11 points, and Pau Gasol, who had eight.

Game 3 is Friday night in New Orleans.

Trevor Ariza scored 22 points for the Hornets, who committed 16 turnovers after making just three in Game 1.

The second-seeded Lakers nursed a small lead throughout the second half largely thanks to Odom, who was in top form in his first game since winning the NBA’s Sixth Man award on Tuesday. After Bynum scored 12 points in the first half, Odom drove the Lakers’ offense down the stretch.

Ginobili returns, Spurs beat Grizzlies 93-87 in Game 2

The AP reports:

Manu Ginobili scored 17 points in the All-Star’s return after missing Game 1 with an elbow sprain, and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Memphis Grizzlies 93-87 on Wednesday night to even the first-round series.

Ginobili wore a thick sleeve to protect his right elbow but played as physically reckless as usual. He stayed questionable until just before tipoff, yet even with Ginobili, the top-seeded Spurs didn’t have it easy.

Sam Young led Memphis with 17 points. The Grizzlies opened the series with a stunner for their first franchise playoff win, and 2-0 lead seemed possible in the final seconds.

Young’s 3-pointer with 14.9 seconds left made it 89-87 before George Hill sealed the win at the free throw line…

Tim Duncan had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Spurs, and Hill and Richard Jefferson added 16 apiece…

Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol, who combined for 49 points in the opener, were far less dominant in Game 2. Randolph scored 11 points on 5-of-14 shooting and Gasol had 12 points, making just 2 of 9. Gasol had 17 rebounds.

Thunder rock Nuggets 106-89, take 2-0 lead

The AP reports:

Kevin Durant scored 23 points, Russell Westbrook added 21 and the Oklahoma City Thunder built a huge first-half lead on their way to a 106-89 victory over the Denver Nuggets in Game 2 on Wednesday night…

The Thunder relied heavily on their All-Star duo in Game 1, getting a combined 72 points from Durant and Westbrook. But they got contributions from everyone to build a 26-point lead early in the second quarter of a dominant victory.

Ty Lawson scored 20 points to lead Denver, which got as close as 10 in the fourth quarter before Oklahoma City put the game away.

Nene and Raymond Felton added 16 points apiece for the Nuggets…

Oklahoma City got a balanced performance, with James Harden providing 18 points and Serge Ibaka adding 12 points and 12 rebounds. Kendrick Perkins had 11 rebounds as the Thunder piled up a 41-19 edge on the boards by late in the third quarter.

The Sports Network reports:

James Harden scored 14 of his 18 points in a first half controlled by the Thunder, who went up by as many as 26 points early in the second quarter and led by double digits the rest of the way.

Ty Lawson scored 20 points, while Nene and Raymond Felton both had 16 for the Nuggets, who shot just 39 percent from the field and head back to Denver for Saturday’s Game 3 trailing the series, 2-0.

Fan discussion of this game took place as it happened in this forum topic.

Celts up 2-0 vs Knicks but have issues

The Boston Celtics lead the New York Knicks 2-0 in their first round playoff series, but both teams have been incredibly close, and had the ball bounced differently for just a few plays per game, the Knicks would be the ones with the lead right now.

John Schuhmann of NBA.com reports:

In Game 1, when Amar’e Stoudemire went off for 12 fourth-quarter points, the Celtics had to aggressively deny him the ball, sacrificing their ability to help on the ballhandler. In Game 2, with Anthony in the midst of scoring 26 second-half points, they blitzed him with a second defender on every possession, allowing Anthony’s teammates to make runs at the rim and grab countless offensive rebounds.

Neither strategy is sustainable for more than a quarter, let alone a seven-game series. Whether Stoudemire is 100 percent for Game 3 or not, the Celtics need to find a better way to slow down the Knicks’ stars.

The Celtics’ also need to get more production out of their bench, which has been dreadful. Boston led by 10 points near the end of the first quarter on Tuesday, but with the bench playing, the Celtics allowed Anthony to lead the Knicks on a 13-1 run. Poor bench play was largely responsible for the Celtics’ late-season funk, and poor bench play has kept the Knicks in Games 1 and 2.

As the series moves to New York, the Celtics can be happy about two things, other than the two wins. The first is their offensive execution down the stretch. In each game, they scored on four of their final five possessions, including four buckets that either tied the score or gave them a lead.

The second is Rajon Rondo’s aggressiveness in Game 2. With the Knicks failing to get back in transition and playing him soft in the Celtics’ half-court offense, Rondo attacked the basket and finished strong at the rim. He scored a season-high (and playoff career-high) 30 points, playing with a confidence that has seemingly been missing for the last two months.

Game 3 is in Madison Square Garden Friday. For a good time, blast your television, because the crowd energy is going to be insane.

Danny Ainge defends trade of Kendrick Perkins

The Boston Celtics gained versatility but lost toughness in their trade of center Kendrick Perkins to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Pieces they received in return — center Nenad Krstic and small forward Jeff Green — have not helped as much as a healthy Perkins did in the past. But Celtics general manager Danny Ainge still feels good about the trade. Publicly, at least.

CSNNE reports:

Danny Ainge tells Comcast SportsNet New England’s Greg Dickerson that he has no second thoughts — at the moment — about the trade that sent Kendrick Perkins to Oklahoma City.

But ask him again in a few months, and he might have a different answer.

“I would do the trade over again in a heartbeat, as of today,” said Ainge. “But at the end of the season, I’ll look at all the things and I’ll be the first one to say . . . some things that we could have done or that we didn’t, or things that we did do that we shouldn’t [have].”

The Celtics are definitely missing something without a dominant defensive center manning the middle. But, we must remember, the team feared losing Perkins to free agency, and that’s why the trade happened in the first place.

Read fan reaction and discuss your own opinion in this forum topic.

Melo scores 42, but Celtics beat Knicks 96-93 in Game 2

The AP reports:

Amare Stoudemire didn’t play in the second half and Chauncey Billups didn’t play at all, and still the Boston Celtics needed more late heroics from one of their Big 3 to beat the New York Knicks in Game 2 of their first-round series.

“We were lucky to win,” coach Doc Rivers said after Boston overcame Carmelo Anthony’s 42 points in a 96-93 victory on Tuesday night.

Kevin Garnett sank the go-ahead basket with 14 seconds left then stole the ball with 4 seconds remaining as the Knicks gave the Celtics all they could handle in falling into an 0-2 hole in the series…

Billups had a strained left knee and his status for Game 3 on Friday night at Madison Square Garden is uncertain. Stoudemire had back spasms but expects to be back when the best-of-seven series resumes.

Rajon Rondo led the Celtics with a career playoff-high 30 points, 14 of them in the first quarter when he kept driving to the basket…

Anthony matched his career playoff high for points and set a new high with 17 rebounds as the Knicks held a 53-37 advantage on the boards. Toney Douglas had 14 points in place of Billups.

Paul Pierce had 20 points after missing his first five shots, and Ray Allen, who hit the game-winning 3-pointer in Boston’s 87-85 win in the opener, scored 18.

D-Howard scores 33, Magic beat Hawks 88-82 in Game 2

The AP reports:

Dwight Howard had 33 points and 19 rebounds, Jameer Nelson added 13 points and eight rebounds to help the Magic hold off the Hawks 88-82.

The Magic evened the best-of-seven series, with Game 3 Friday night in Atlanta.

Orlando used a 10-1 run to close the third quarter to take an 11-point lead into the fourth and fought off a late Atlanta charge down the stretch. The Magic struggled from the field shooting just 34 percent and had 16 turnovers. But they defended well…

Jamal Crawford led Atlanta with 25 points and Josh Smith added 17, but they missed 15 shots between them and expended a lot more energy to get off attempts…

Orlando led 48-42 at halftime. The Hawks led by as many as 10 in the second quarter, 32-22, before a 12-2 run by the Magic tied it at 34-all. Howard had 10 points during the spurt, which included the Magic doing their best job of the series converting defensive stops into quick offense.

Dirk scores 33, Mavs beat Blazers 101-89 in Game 2

The AP reports:

Peja Stojakovic tied his career playoff best with five 3-pointers and had 21 points, and Jason Kidd continued his surprising scoring surge with 18 points, powering the Mavericks to a 101-89 victory on Tuesday night in Game 2 of their first-round series.

Dirk Nowitzki led Dallas with 33 points, but was practically a complementary player. He was at his best after the 30-something, former All-Stars built the lead, scoring 14 points in the fourth quarter—including the team’s final 11— to help the Mavericks keep the Trail Blazers from ever making a serious push. He scored 18 in the fourth quarter of Game 1…

Portland had a lot of things go right, from LaMarcus Aldridge scoring 24 to Gerald Wallace and Wesley Matthews regaining their scoring touch after struggling in the opener. But the Trail Blazers got only 11 points from their bench, none in the second half. And while they were limiting Nowitzki to 5 of 15 shooting through three quarters, former All-Stars Kidd and Stojakovic were lighting them up…

Wallace and Andre Miller each scored 18 points for Portland. Matthews added 13. But Nicolas Batum’s 10 points and a free throw by Rudy Fernandez were all the points by reserves. Brandon Roy played 8 minutes and missed the only shot he took. The five backups who got into the game were a combined 4 for 11.

Another Heartbreaker for NY

By Scott Spangler

A crucial offensive rebound by Roger Mason gave the New York Knicks another chance, and they capitalized with a Jared Jeffries layup to go ahead 93-92 with 19.3 seconds remaining.

Garnett hit a tough hook in the lane over Jeffries to reclaim a one-point advantage for the Celtics just six seconds later.

It was Garnett again – this time on the defensive end – with a huge steal along the baseline. KG managed to get a timeout called to save possession as Boston holds on to win 96-93 in the second game of this best of seven.

Magic Look to Even Series 1-1

By Scott Spangler

They are launching grenades in Orlando. At the half, both teams hitting south of 40 percent. The Magic lead by six and need to build on a second-quarter outburst, which saw them outscore the Hawks 32-20.

A loss would put Orlando in dire straits heading to Georgia. Teams carrying a 2-0 lead end up advancing at a 94 percent clip.

Once again tonight, just about the only thing working for Stan Van Gundy is the play of Dwight Howard, fresh off his record-setting third consecutive Defensive Player of The Year Award. So far in this one, Howard has racked up 25 pts and 13 boards with about 6 minutes left in the third.

Despite shooting only 37 percent thus far, Atlanta is 6 of 15 from 3-point range. Add to that, the Hawks have only gone to the foul line seven times, converting four. Have I mentioned the massive (38-21) rebounding deficit? Well, there’s that, too.

The Magic are now up 55-48, about 5 minutes to go, third quarter.