Author: John Paulsen (Page 871 of 937)

Miami 106, New Jersey 105 (Heat win series, 4-1)
Surely, the Heat did not want to go back to New Jersey for a Game 6. Six Miami players scored in double figures, led by Antoine Walker’s 23 points. Dwayne Wade posted 21 points, six rebounds and six assists, and came up with a key steal as the Nets were trying to set up for the game winning shot. Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson each had 33 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Jason Kidd posted 22 points and eight dimes. Shaquille O’Neal had a quiet, yet effective game, scoring 17 points on 8-10 shooting. Miami moves on and awaits the winner of the Detroit/Cleveland series, which is tied 2-2.

Phoenix 125, L.A. Clippers 118 (Suns lead, 3-2)
Phoenix had this game won. Then the Clippers had it won. Then the Suns actually won it. Phoenix led by as many as 19 points in the middle of the third quarter, but the Clippers stormed back to tie the game, 101-101, with 0:39 to play in regulation. Several missed shots later, the game went to overtime. With 0:03 to play in the first overtime, Sam Cassell – who had a costly 8-second violation at the end of regulation – calmly hit two free throws to give the Clippers a three point lead. After advancing the ball with a timeout (which is one NBA rule that drives me nuts), Raja Bell pushed off on the Clippers’ Daniel Ewing and got open in the corner. Ewing closed out on Bell, but he got the shot off and drained the game-tying bucket, forcing a second overtime. The wind was clearly out of the Clippers’ sails in the second extra period, but they kept the game close until the final minute of play. Shawn Marion led all scorers with 36 points, grabbing 20 rebounds in the process. Tim Thomas and Raja Bell chipped in 25 and 22 points, respectively, with each player hitting five threes in the game. Elton Brand led the Clippers with 33 points and 15 rebounds, while Cassell scored 32. The series moves back to L.A. for Game 6 on Thursday. The Clippers have to win to force a Game 7.

Cleveland 74, Detroit 72 (series tied, 2-2)
After the way the Cavs played in the first two games, I don’t think anyone outside of the Cleveland faithful gave them much of a chance of tying the series up. But here we are, two games later, and the Cavs have held serve on their home court. As you can tell from the score, Cleveland did it with their defense, holding the Pistons to just 33% shooting from the field. LeBron James flirted with a rare quadruple-double, tallying 22 points, nine assists, eight rebounds and eight turnovers. The Cavs were playing without Larry Hughes for the second straight game, due to the death of his brother. It will be interesting to see if the Cavs will be able to keep this momentum once Hughes returns to the lineup. But this victory was especially sweet, considering Rasheed Wallace’s guarantee of a victory in Game 4. The power forward had two key turnovers late in the fourth quarter and spent much of the period on the bench.

Dallas 123, San Antonio 118 (OT) (Mavs lead, 3-1)
These aren’t your daddy’s Dallas Mavericks. In the past, the franchise has had a difficult time winning playoff games, especially the close ones, but these Mavericks have shown the mental toughness absent in years past. The game was tight the whole way, with 20 ties and seven lead changes. Like Game 3, it seemed like the Spurs were going to find a way to pull out a win – only they didn’t. The Dallas backcourt shined in overtime, with Jason Terry and Devin Harris combining for eight of the Mavs’ 12 points in the period, including Terry’s impossible rainbow jumper over the outstretched arms of Tim Duncan, which put the Mavs up five with 0:38 to play. Terry had a great game, finishing with 32 points and five assists, while Dirk Nowitzki battled a sore ankle en route to 28 points and nine boards. Harris once again played well – the young point guard tallied 18 points (on 7-10 shooting), six assists and six rebounds. If he adds a consistent jumper in the offseason, he will be deadly.

Miami 102, New Jersey 92 (Heat leads series, 3-1)
One thing’s for sure – if the Heat can get a combined 80 minutes out of Dwayne Wade and Shaquille O’Neal, they’re tough to beat. O’Neal stayed out of foul trouble, generating an efficient 16 points and eight rebounds in the middle, while Dwayne Wade made shots all over the court en route to 31 points, seven rebounds and eight assists. Udonis Haslem and Antoine Walker each chipped in 20 points. In fact, the entire team played pretty well – they shot 53% from the field. Barring an injury to one of their two stars, the Heat are going to advance.

L.A. Clippers 114, Phoenix 107 (series tied, 2-2)
The Clippers shot 49% from the field and outrebounded the Suns 55-37, and the game was still tight in the fourth quarter. But the Clippers got big shots from Elton Brand and Sam Cassell down the stretch and were able to tie the series with the win. Brand (30/9/8) and Cassell (28/11/9) each flirted with a triple-double, while Corey Maggette tallied 18 points and 15 rebounds in his first start in the playoffs. L.A.’s series chances took a blow when center Chris Kaman showed up with an injured shoulder, and it is unclear if he will be available for Game 5 on Tuesday. The Clippers have the advantage in the series, but they still go through long stretches without giving Elton Brand a touch in the post and, not surprisingly, that’s when the Suns make a run. This series looks like it will probably go seven games.

Cleveland 86, Detroit 77 (Pistons lead series, 2-1)
All due respect to the Cavs, the Pistons just aren’t playing well in Game 3’s this year. In the first round, it took a 124-104 loss to the Bucks in Game 3 of that series to wake the Pistons up. Yesterday, behind another LeBron James playoff triple-double (21/10/10), the Cavs took advantage of a lackluster performance by Detroit to take Game 3. James scored 15 points in the final period, taking over the game when it mattered most. The win is especially impressive considering that the team was playing the game without Larry Hughes, who was with his family after the death of his younger brother. Flip Murray started in his stead and provided 13 points and seven rebounds in over 45 minutes of playing time. The Pistons were hampered by poor shooting from Rasheed Wallace (3-11), Chauncey Billups (6-15) and Tayshaun Prince (4-10), while committing 16 turnovers in the loss. Cleveland will have the opportunity to even the series in Game 4 on Monday.

Dallas 104, San Antonio 103 (Dallas leads series, 2-1)
Maybe the Mavericks do know how to win the close ones. Things were looking a little grim when Brent Barry hit a wide open three to give the Spurs a 98-95 lead with 3:08 to play. But Dallas fought back and caught a break when Dirk Nowitzki stepped on Tim Duncan’s foot. Nowitzki twisted his ankle, but Duncan was called for his sixth foul and had to leave the game. Nowitzki was hobbled for the rest of the game, but was able to make several key plays to give his team the win. The Mavericks almost squandered the victory when Jerry Stackhouse was fouled with 0:02 to play. After missing the first free throw, he tried to miss the second free throw intentionally, but failed to hit the rim on the attempt, so the Spurs got the ball near midcourt. Without a timeout, the Spurs threw a long pass to Robert Horry, who stumbled as he attempted the game winner, which missed its mark. Tim Duncan finished with 35 points and 12 rebounds, and is having a great series. Manu Ginobili finally looked like his old self, dropping 24 with a series of aggressive drives to the basket. Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks with 27/15, including 21 of 24 (88%) from the free throw line. But it was the play of the Mavericks’ 2004 first round draft pick, Devin Harris, that made the difference in the game. He scored 24 points by going to the hole relentlessly, and contained Tony Parker (15 points on 6-16 shooting) on the other end of the court. Dallas could take control of the series with a win at home on Monday.