By: Holly MacKenzie
And with a blowout win for the Boston Celtics, the Rockets streak is over at 22. The second-longest streak in NBA history has come to a close as KG and the Celtics made easy work of Houston in the second half of their game last night. While the Rockets were able to overcome a rough game from TMac in their win over the Lakers on Sunday, they couldn’t do it last night and Boston prevailed.
It will be interesting to see how the Rockets bounce back from the loss now that they are about to go out on the road.
Has Tony Allen always been so damn jacked? His arms looked monstrous when he was shooting free throws.
Funny stuff on Inside with Battier on the videophone thing, talking about Deke’s age. Doesn’t matter how often we do it, it doesn’t get old.
For everyone wondering on the status of Andrew Bynum, looks like he will be out until the playoffs. Too bad, but I just want him healthy even if that means he does not return this season/postseason at all.
Speaking of Laker injuries, scary moment last night when Kobe jammed his hip at the end of the game. He says he is good to go, I can only hope he is right.
Chris Bosh is supposed to play tonight in the Raptors game against the Heat. Hopefully he is healed and good to go.
DA getting into the Glen Taylor drama with KG. Good for KG for ignoring the insanity of Taylor. His statements were absolutely ridiculous and show the lack of class that the man has as well as his disrespect towards a player who has given more to the fans of Minnesota than he ever will. To attack the most recognized face of his franchise and arguably the most intense/competitive player in the league just makes him look like a moron.
Lakers and Dallas had me on the edge of my seat all night long. The first half I was on top of the moon, but so worried because I knew a Dallas run was coming. It sure did come, as they came all the way back from 25 down to get within one point in the final seconds. Thankfully my guys pulled it out, but we got real lucky when Dirk bobbled that ball on the final possession.
His two three-pointer’s to bring the Mavs back late in the third were crazy and then that three by Terry on the broken play? I thought we were in trouble when that went down. Lamar Odom had a great game, with 17 points and 17 rebounds and he was clutch at the line when it mattered. Vlad-Rad was great for LA and provided a great boost offensively. Sasha showed some grit again and came up with some nice steals.
Dirk was great for the Mavs, but that final shot killed. Jason Kidd was in the game at the end this time around, but he was awful the whole way through, besides his 7 assists.
Kobe’s acrobatic bank shot in the third was ridiculous. I think it was my play of the night. Okay, thats not fair, I guess Stro’s huge dunk gets the number one spot (now I have Ludacris going through my head. Great.).
Detroit outrunning Denver was a highlight of my night. I did not expect it and I enjoyed every minute that I watched. Sheed is fantastic. I think I would be very nervous around that man, but he brings me so much enjoyment watching him play, shoot around, sit on the bench, whatever.
Maxiell is looking really good as of late, also. Detroit and Boston are looking strong.
Phoenix have strung together five straight wins with their victory against Portland last night. Shaq put in a great night, finishing with 16, 18, 5 and 3.
Rajon vs. Rafer was interesting. Rafer’s gotta calm himself down. I can see him getting out of hand one of these games. Loving his game this season, though.
Detroit 136 Denver 120
In a clash of styles the Detroit Pistons showed they can play an uptempo game, dropping the Denver Nuggets 136-120 last night. While the Pistons came out strong and took a 34-25 lead after the first quarter, they really poured it on in the second when they went off offensively, scoring 39 points to the Nuggets 26, leaving them with a 73-51 advantage at the half and the game already a blowout. The Detroit offense was especially efficient, 42 assists on 55 field goals, finishing the game at 60% shooting from the floor. In the third, the Nuggets briefly got on track and managed to cut the deficit to 10 at one point, but the Pistons came charging back in the opening minutes of the fourth and extended their lead back to 17 points thanks to eight points from Rasheed Wallace in a two-minute span. The rest of the fourth period was an easy one for Detroit as they rolled to the victory. They were led by Richard Hamilton’s 24 points while Rasheed Wallace had 21 points, Jason Maxiell scored 18 points and Jarvis Hayes had 17 off of the bench. Chauncey Billups had 14 points and 10 assists and Tayshaun Prince added 13. Carmelo Anthony had 27 points for the Nuggets, Allen Iverson scored 20 points to go with 11 assists and Kenyon Martin scored 16. Marcus Camby had 15 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists.
LA Lakers 102 Dallas 100
After losing two straight, the Lakers wanted this one against the Mavericks who were coming into the game riding a five-game winning streak. They wanted it enough to come out blazing, shutting down the red-hot Mavs in the first quarter, and leading 59-38 at the half. The Lakers continued to roll in the opening minutes of the third, extending their lead to 25 points as they got to the rim at will while also knocking down three-pointers with ease. As the crowd starting cheering for Bryant and the Lakers, the Mavericks got their game faces on and strung together a 14-1 run to cut into the deficit while also outscoring LA 27-18 in the quarter. They opened the fourth by going on a 9-2 run and had the deficit down to five points. For the duration of the fourth, the Lakers managed to keep their lead until the final minutes where Dirk Nowitzki got to work, knocking down back-to-back three-pointers, the second with 41 seconds remaining to cut the Laker lead down to 98-97. After two free throws from Lamar Odom and one from Sasha Vujacic, Jason Kidd missed a three-pointer and the Lakers led 101-97 with 13 seconds remaining. With four seconds on the clock, Jason Terry drilled a three-pointer to cut it to 101-100. After Derek Fisher made one of two from the free throw line, Nowitzki bobbled the ball on their final possession and missed a three-pointer at the buzzer to win it. Kobe Bryant finished with 29 points and 7 assists for the Lakers. Lamar Odom had 17 points and 17 rebounds, Vladamir Radmanovic scored 21 points to go with 10 rebounds and Ronny Turiaf added 11 points. Dirk Nowitzki had 35 points and 11 rebounds in the loss while Josh Howard and Jason Terry each added 19 points.
Boston 94 Houston 74
One team was on the verge of winning 23 straight and the other was on the second night of a back-to-back, looking to add to their league-best record. At the end of the first half things were even with the score tied at 40. Things changed in the second half of the game as the Celtics and their tired and heavy legs pushed through, outscoring the Rockets 32-16 in the third quarter, blowing the game open and taking a 72-56 advantage into the fourth quarter. The Celtics added to their lead in the opening minutes of the final quarter, extending it to over 20 on their way to leading by as many as 27 points in the final minutes of the game. With Tracy McGrady watching from the sidelines, the Houston Rockets were no match for the Celtics in the second half and they were unable to add to their winning streak, the second-longest in NBA history. Kevin Garnett had 22 points and 11 rebounds for Boston, Paul Pierce scored 20 points and Leon Powe added 21 off of the bench. Luis Scola led Houston with 15 points and 8 rebounds, Rafer Alston and Mike Harris scored 12 points apiece and Aaron Brooks added 10 points. McGrady struggled from the floor, finishing with 8 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists in the loss.
Sacramento 122 Golden State 105
While the Warriors started out strong against the Kings, they faded fast in the second and third quarters as Sacramento outran them, 122-105. Leading 31-29 at the end of the first quarter, the Warriors went down 61-57 at the half. Their offense continued to sputter in the third when the Kings blew open the game scoring 40 points in the period while holding Golden State to only 25 as they went up by as many as 23 points, taking a 101-82 lead into the final quarter. The Kings struggled to hang on to their lead in the fourth when their offense went cold and the Warriors managed to get within six points, trailing 107-101 midway through the period as they put together a 17-2 run, led by Stephen Jackson and the Warrior bench. With the lead down to six, the Kings stepped it up on the defensive end, holding the Warriors scoreless for over five minutes to seal the victory. The Kings shot 58% for the game while holding the Warriors to only 40%. They were led by Kevin Martin’s 34 points in the game while Ron Artest scored 26 points, Mikki Moore had 19 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks, Brad Miller scored 14 points to go with 13 rebounds and Anthony Johnson had a 13-point, 13-assist double-double. Baron Davis had 24 points and 8 assists to lead the Warriors as Kelenna Azubuike scored 14 off of the bench to go with 9 rebounds and Andris Biedrins added 13 points and 8 rebounds.
Phoenix 111 Portland 98
After hearing it all from their critics in the early days after the Shaquille O’Neal trade, things suddenly look much brighter in Phoenix. After dropping the Portland Trailbalzers 111-98 last night, the Suns extended their winning streak to five games and are only one game behind the Lakers for the Pacific division lead. After a close first quarter the Suns led 29-28. In the second they were able to put some distance between themselves and the Blazers, but lazy defense allowed Portland to get back into the game late in the quarter. Phoenix responded with an 8-0 run and led by eight at the half, 57-49. In the third, the Blazers came out focused, taking it to the Suns, as they managed to trim the lead to to four points, trailing 77-73 before Phoenix responded with back-to-back three-pointers, extending their lead into double-figures. In the fourth Portland kept things close initially, but they were unable to stifle the Suns and Phoenix led by as many as 18 points as they finished the game shooting 55% from the floor compared to 43% for the Blazers. Amare Stoudemire had 25 points for Phoenix while Shaquille O’Neal finished with 16 points, 15 rebounds and 3 blocks. Steve Nash finished with 22 points and 5 assists, Boris Diaw and Leandro Barbosa each scored 12 points and Grant Hill added 11. LaMarcus Aldridge led Portland with 31 points and 8 rebounds while Travis Outlaw finished with 13 points, Channing Frye and Jarrett Jack each scored 12 points and Steve Blake added 10.
The Rest…
The Miami Heat grabbed their first victory in March with a 112-106 win over the Bucks last night. The loss was the Bucks sixth in a row as they gave up a 40 point fourth quarter to the Heat. Jason Williams had 21 points and 10 assists for the Heat, Chris Quinn scored 17 points, Earl Barron had 16 and Ricky Davis scored 14 points to go with 10 assists before fouling out. Michael Redd led the Bucks with 27 points, Mo Williams had 26 points and 11 assists, Michael Ruffin had 14 points and 16 rebounds off of the bench and Charlie Bell had 15. Chicago defeated the Nets 112-96, thanks to 20 points and 9 rebounds from Luol Deng, 19 points and 11 rebounds from Drew Gooden and 17 points from Ben Gordon. Larry Hughes added 16 points and Kirk Hinrich had 14 points and 8 assists. The Nets had 22 points from Vince Carter and 21 from Richard Jefferson in the loss. Devin Harris left the game with a sprained ankle and Marcus Williams stepped in to score 16 points in his place.
