Month: April 2006 (Page 8 of 20)

The Cavs/Wizards, Spurs/Kings and Suns/Lakers play tonight. Here’s what happened last night:

Indiana 107, New Jersey 95 (Indiana leads series, 2-1)
Now they’ve done it. They’ve gone and pissed Jermaine O’Neal off. Who is “they,” you ask? I’m not exactly sure, but after being fined for comments about the officiating, O’Neal filleted the Nets for 37 points and 15 rebounds in Game 3. The Pacers enjoyed 25 points, eight assists and five boards from Anthony Johnson, who seems to be perennially underrated. I’m not sure why Indiana keeps going with Jamaal Tinsley when AJ is the better guard. The Pacers held the Nets to just 39% shooting and only allowed double-figure scoring from the Nets’ “Big 3.” Game 4 is pretty much a must-win for the Nets, who don’t want to go home down three games to one.

Chicago 109, Miami 90 (Miami leads series, 2-1)
The Bulls are not dead yet. Chicago capitalized on one of Shaquille O’Neal’s worst games, blowing out the Heat and embarrassing them in the process. O’Neal had just eight points and four rebounds and went 0-6 from the free throw line. In fairness, he was plagued by foul trouble and only played 24 minutes. Chicago’s balanced attack – which included four players scoring 19+ points – was too much for a Miami squad that was without the Diesel. Chicago is not going to roll over in this series, so the Heat better use this game as motivation if they want to avoid turning this into a three-game series.

Denver 94, LA Clippers 87 (LA leads the series, 2-1)
This game wasn’t about who played better, it was about who played worse. The Clippers missed a golden opportunity to effectively win the series. Tied 70-70 going into the fourth quarter, the Clippers just looked out of synch, scoring only 17 points in the final period, going a miserable 5 of 16 (31%) from the field while committing four turnovers. Elton Brand didn’t play his normal game, but did manage 17/8 before fouling out, which shows you just how consistent of a player he is. Denver didn’t exactly play well either, but they did enough to get the victory. Five Nuggets scored double-digits, led by Carmelo Anthony’s 24 points.

ESPN has picked up reports that Steve Nash will win his second consecutive MVP award.

The announcement may not come for two weeks, according to the Arizona Republic. But the paper, and others, report that the voting shows Nash edging LeBron James, Dirk Nowitzki, Chauncey Billups and Kobe Bryant for the MVP.

The Phoenix Suns playmaker would become the 10th player to win the award in consecutive seasons.

If he does in fact win the award, Nash certainly benefited from being on an elite team. MVPs almost always come from teams with 50+ wins, which probably hurt Kobe Bryant’s chances (and the chances of LeBron James) to a certain extent. It’s hard to argue with the decision after the year Nash had, considering that the team lost Joe Johnson, Amare Stoudemire, Kurt Thomas and Quentin Richardson to trades or injuries.

But, of course, the NBA declined to comment on the report. If the voting is complete, I’m not sure why the league doesn’t announce it themselves. What’s the benefit of waiting? Certainly, the announcement has less of an impact when the news has already been filtered through a few Arizona newspapers.

The Nets/Pacers, Heat/Bulls and Clippers/Nuggets play tonight, with the last two games on TNT. Here’s what happened last night:

Detroit 109, Milwaukee 98 (Detroit leads the series, 2-0)
In Game 1, it was the Pistons’ defense that beat the Bucks. In Game 2, it was their offense, with six Pistons scoring double digits in the victory. Detroit played with the Bucks, who were never able to get closer than 11 in the second half. Milwaukee has a lot of talent on the roster, but they’re young and they need to grow up quickly if they want to make this a series.

Dallas 94, Memphis 79 (Dallas, 2-0)
Dirk Nowitzki shrugged off early foul trouble (and the news that he would not win the MVP) to score 31 points on 9 of 19 shooting. The Mavericks also got 17/6 from Josh Howard, who has emerged this season to become the team’s second best all-around player. Jason Terry tallied 16 points, nine assists and six boards. But the key to the game was the team’s ability to limit the Grizzlies’ best player, Pau Gasol. The big Spaniard did score 16, but Dallas forced him into tough shots all night, which limited his effectiveness. Memphis turned the ball over 20 times, a stat that won’t win you many games.

LA Lakers 99, Phoenix 93 (series tied, 1-1)
After a good effort in Game 1, the Lakers played brilliantly in Game 2, and were able to wrestle home court advantage away from the Suns. The difference in the game was three-point shooting. The Lakers shot 9 of 16 (56%) from behind the arc, while the Suns had to take 27 threes to make 9 (33%). Lamar Odom played particularly well, scoring 21, while grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five assists. Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 29 points and 10 rebounds, shooting a solid 12 of 24 from the field. Five Suns scored in double figures, but the team shot a mediocre 42% from the field, getting next to nothing from their bench. Shawn Marion really had an off game, going 5 of 15 from the field for only 13 points. It looks like this series might go six or seven games.