We had a whopping 13 games in the NBA last night. While I wont have to time to delve into eeach game as I haven't had time to watch them all, I'll do my best to recap in more detail the better games. Enjoy!
Game 1:
New Jersey Nets: 94
Toronto Raptors: 88
New Jersey won this game in large part due to a monster third quarter in which they outscored the Raptors 31-19 and turned an eight point deficit into a 4 point lead. New Jersey was lead by Joe Johnson who had 23 points and CJ Watson who had 16 points including a perfect 4 of 4 from downtown. Deron Williams once again struggled, scoring only 12 points and dishing out 4 dimes. For the Raptors, PF Ed Davis had one of his better games in his pro career. The third year player had 24 points on 11 of 13 shooting to go along with 12 rebounds. AND there was this: an official trying to block a free throw...kind of:
Game 2:
Atlanta Hawks-86
Orlando Magic-80
Despite a strong 4th quarter push from the Magic, the Hawks were able to hold on to secure there 13th victory of the season. Double-doubles from both Josh Smith (16 and 11) and Al Horford (13 and 13) propelled the Hawks to the victory. Glen Davis really struggled in this one, going 2 of 11 from the field for only 10 points and 7 boards. He was completely out classed athletically by the explosive Atlanta front line.
Game 3:
Cleveland Cavs-81
Indiana Pacers-96
A night after upsetting the Lakers, the Cavs struggled mightily in this contest. They made only one third of their shots and franchise player Krie Irving only managed to score a mere 9 points. The Pacers were paced (sorry) by Paul George who had 27 points on 10 of 18 shooting. Roy Hibbert continued to struggle making only 1 of the 7 shots he attempted while turning the ball over a team high 5 times. He did add 12 rebounds though in his teams winning effort. We did see some Brotherly Love in this one too, as Tyler defended Ben (who was signed this week) after a late elbow from Tristan Thompson:
Game 4:
Chicago Bulls-96
Philadelphia 76ers-89
The Bulls were the more aggressive team in this one as they went to the line 26 times and made 24 of those attempts. The Bulls had 4 players registering double digit points, led by Joakim Noah's 21 and Luol Deng's 19. Deng also added a team high 12 rebounds. The 76ers Jrue Holiday Scored 26 points and dished out 9 assists, but the 76ers came up short in a game they wish they could have back.
Game 5:
LA Clippers-100
Charlotte Bobcats-94
The Bobcats dropped there 9th straight game, falling to Clippers in what was a truly balanced effort from "lob-city". 3 players scored a team high 19 points including Chris Paul who also had 10 assists, Blake Griffin, and Matt Barnes. Byron Mullen also tied the game high of 19 points on 8 of 15 shooting. Lamar Odom provided a spark off the bench for the Clips with 9 points, 3 blocks and 2 steals. The Bobcats will hope to get out of their funk tomorrow in Atlanta.
Game 6:
Golden State Warriors-97
Miami Heat-95
A contestant for game of the night, the Warriors edged out the defending champion Heat on a layup by rookie Draymond Green with .9 seconds remaining. A miscommunication between veterans Ray Allen and Shane Battier allowed Jarrett Jack to find Green on a bullet pass wide open under the hoop. Green never landed and used the pass to score the alley-op layup. Lebron James missed a fade-away baseline jumper at the buzzer and the Warriors, the surprise team in the Pacific Division, danced out of Miami with a W. Green had 7 points and 7 rebounds, as the second round pick has made himself a quality role player. The Warriors were led in scoring by sharp-shooting Klay Thompson, who dropped 27 points on Dwayne Wade. Wade actually left the game briefly after getting whacked on the back of his head, but returned to the court a short time later. David Lee had another strong outing adding 22 points and 13 boards as he continues to be the veteran leader of this young up and coming team. Lebron had 31 points, while Chris Bosh added 21 points and 13 boards. Golden State now sits one game back of the Clippers atop the division. Miami's lead shrunk to a 1/2 game over the Hawks in the division.
Game 7:
Dallas Mavericks-115
Boston Celtics-117
2OT
In double overtime, the Celtics topped the Mavericks behind a near triple-double from PG Rajon Rondo. Rondo had a line of 16 points, 15 assists, 9 rebounds, and 3 steals. Paul Pierce led all scorers with 34 points, including a bevy of elbow jumpers and free throws down the stretch and in the overtimes. The Mavs had 7 players score in double digits, but committed an NBA season high of 27 turnovers. Near the end of -the game, with the Mavs down three, an errant in-bounds pass by Dahntay Jones sailed out of Darren Collison's reach, allowing the C's to ice the game at the line, much to the dismay of owner Mark Cuban, who was visibly annoyed on the sidelines. Dirk Nowitzki was interviewed during the game and hinted at his return to action in the coming weeks, naming Christmas day as a likely starting point.
Game 8:
Sacramento Kings-85
Milwaukee Bucks-98
Monta Ellis had 17 points, 11 assists and 8 rebounds, while Brandon Jennings dropped 19 points as the Milwaukee bucks proved to much for the Kings in 48 minutes of play Wednesday night. Ersan Ilyasova added 16 points and 14 boards off the bench for the bucks. For the Kings, who fell behind early and never managed to make up the gap, Tyreke Evans dropped 17. The Kings were out rebounded 60-50 in a game that featured a lot of missed shots.
Game 9:
Washington Wizards-93
Houston Rockets-99
James Harden had a successful return the lineup scoring 31 points on 10 of 20 shooting. Omer Asik added 9 points and 16 rebounds as the Houston Rockets edged the Wizards at home. Chandler Parsons also had an excellent game scoring 18 and ripping down 8 boards. For the Wizards, Bradley Beal had a team high 20 points while Emeka Okafor contributed 19 on 9 of 12 shooting. The Wiz fell to 3-16 while Houston moved with one win of a .500% record.
Game 10:
New Orleans Hornets-88
OKC Thunder-92
The Thunder, down 4 heading into the 4th, leaned on all world/franchise player Kevin Durant to dig them out of their hole. Durant had 35 points and 9 rebounds in this one, leading his team to another victory. The Hornets had chances down the stretch, but missed jumpers and turnovers gave the Thunder the edge they needed to pull out the W. Kevin Martin had 17 off the bench for the Thunder as the team improved to 18-4 on the season including 12-2 at home. No one played particularly well for New Orleans, so I wont waste my time breaking down their team tonight. It was good however to see Anthony Davis out there again, this team just needs to improve its offensive efficiency and utilize the high pick and roll (an NBA staple-THE NBA staple) more effectively.
Game 11:
Denver Nuggets-105
Minnesota Timberwolves-108
Kevin Love had his worst game of the season, making only 3 of 17 shots but his teammates had his back in helping to get by the Nuggets by 3 Wednesday night. 5 T-Wolves were in double figures, led by Nikola Pekovic's 22 points and 11 rebounds. Love finished with 8 points and 14 rebounds. For the Nuggets, Kenneth Faried had 26 points (14 pts in 1st qtr) and 14 boards, while Danilo Gallinari added 24 points. Andre Iguodala struggled in this one scoring only 2 points on 1 of 9 shooting. Ty Lawson had a chance to tie this one after a furious comeback by the Nuggets gave them a chance to tie, but his three at the buzzer fell short.
Game 12:
Memphis Grizzlies-80
Phoenix Suns-82
Goran Dragic Made a scoop shot with a half second left and the grizzlies alley-oop attempt at the buzzer was batted off the backboard in a thrilling victory for the Suns. The Suns had 5 players in double figures, out-rebounded the Griz by 4 and committed 4 less turnovers in what was the 5th loss of the season for the Grizzlies. The Grizzlies were led by Rudy Gay's 21 points and 11 rebounds.
Game 13:
San Antonio Spurs-96
Utah Jazz-99
What a finish in Salt Lake City! Mo Williams drained an isolation three pointer as time expired to give the passionate home crowd a reason to cheer. The big fellas dominated this game on both sides as Paul Milsap dropped 24 points and corralled 12 boards and Al Jefferson scored 21 as the Jazz improved to 13-10 on the season. For the Spurs, Tim Duncan had 22 points and 21 rebounds as well as 6 blocks in a retro effort that reminded anyone watching of performances a decade ago. Tony Parker also had 22 points for the spurs. Gordon Haywood had a great game as well, scoring 19 points, adding 7 rebounds and 6 assists. He hit 4 of 6 three pointers and did a great job of pushing the tempo for the run-and-gun Jazz. Of all the games, the best was really saved for last as this gets my vote for game of the night. The Crowd at EnergySolutions Arena was the best I'd seen so far in this young season.
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