2015 NBA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 13

Today, we'll play our 200th game of the NBA Tournament of Champions. And with it, half of our teams will have played seven of their 14 scheduled group play games.

There's been a lot going on in the past two weeks, with just two teams sitting on 6-0 records: the '96 Bulls and the '86 Celtics. Meanwhile, we have several groups where the top of the standings are tight. This was the idea going in.

So today, Group F will return after a day off, while Groups A, C and G will be back in action after playing yesterday.

Below, I will include links to each group's page in their respective headers so you can view scores and standings. On those pages, the team on the right will be considered the home team for all games. All game simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. To view player and team stats for the tournament, click here. Let's play.

Group A

@ 1989 Detroit Pistons 104, 1979 Seattle Supersonics 99
After starting 4-0, Seattle has now dropped three straight, and this is a tough one, with the Pistons having struggled so far. Detroit didn't struggle today, hitting 48.8 percent from the field, with Dennis Rodman of all people hitting the go-ahead basket late to give Detroit its second win of the tournament. Bill Laimbeer was the star though, finishing with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Joe Dumans added 16 points while Rodman finished with 15. Gus Williams led the Sonics with 26 points while Jack Sikma added 16 points and 15 rebounds.

2015 Golden State Warriors 112, @ 2002 Los Angeles Lakers 105

The Lakers made it interesting late, pulling within four at a couple points down the stretch, but the Warriors just had too much offense, shooting 46.2 percent from beyond the arc to maintain their hold on first place in Group A. Klay Thompson was back again today, going 7-12 from beyond the arc to finish with 35 points. Steph Curry was phenomenal though too, putting up 24 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, and Harrison Barnes added 20 points. Shaquille O'Neal led the Lakers with 30 points and 10 rebounds, Derek Fisher had 22 points, while Kobe Bryant finished with 14 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

@ 2010 Los Angeles Lakers 99, 2012 Miami Heat 92
This was an awful finish for Miami. The Heat led 52-35 at halftime and led by as many as 21 in the third quarter before the Lakers started to come back. LA came within eight but ended the third quarter down 12. The Heat led 82-68 with 8:39 to go, but the Lakers went on a 26-4 run in the next eight-plus minutes to steal the win. Kobe Bryant struggled from the field, but did well at the line to finish with 22 points, six rebounds and eight assists, Ron Artest had 11 of his 16 points in that decisive fourth quarter and Lamar Odom added 12 points and 14 rebounds. The collapse overshadowed a great game for LeBron James, who finished with 35 points and nine rebounds. Mario Chalmers had 16 points, and Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh each chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds.

@ 1982 Los Angeles Lakers 115, 1970 New York Knicks 100
The Lakers shot better from the field (53.2%) than they did at the line (51.7%) but that field goal percentage, combined with a 60-46 rebounding advantage, allowed the Lakers to gain a singular hold on second place in Group A. Norm Nixon led the Lakers with 26 points, Mitch Kupchak had 20 points and 13 rebounds, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar pitched in 14 points and 11 rebounds. Bill Bradley led the Knicks with 15 points, Bill Hosket had 14 off the bench, and Walt Frazier and Willis Reed each pitched in 13.

Group C

@ 1983 Philadelphia 76ers 110, 1972 Los Angeles Lakers 104
Six wins in a row has Philadelphia atop Group C after they pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat Los Angeles. The Lakers got to the line 38 times in this game, but missed 15 tries in a six point game. The other problem was that the Lakers' big men were no match for Moses Malone, who went off for 33 points and 18 rebounds, while Julius Erving added 23 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists for the Sixers. Jerry West led the Lakers with 22 points and 10 assists, Wilt Chamberlain added 17 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks, Gail Goodrich had 19 points and Jim McMillian chipped in 18.

1992 Chicago Bulls 106, @ 1958 St. Louis Hawks 86
Different location... exact same result. The Bulls shot 50 percent in this one, held the Hawks to 34.5 percent shooting, and outrebounded them 62-45 in a game the Hawks only led 2-0 and 3-2. Chicago led 26-17 after one and 51-37 at the half in their fifth win to stay just one game back of the Sixers. The Bulls had a pretty balanced offense, with Michael Jordan leading the way with 18 points and eight rebounds. Scottie Pippen added 13 points, 11 rebound and seven assists, and Horace Grant had 17 points and a game-high 18 rebounds. Bob Pettit led all scorers with 24 points and added nine rebounds for the Hawks, but no other St. Louis player had more than eight points.

1993 Chicago Bulls 109, @ 1995 Houston Rockets 102

The Bulls overcame a nine point deficit going into the fourth quarter to force a see-saw battle, but Scottie Pippen hit the go-ahead three with 3:12 to go and the Bulls wouldn't give the lead up. Michael Jordan scored the final eight points to seal the win and snap Chicago's two game losing streak and seal a sweep of the Rockets. Jordan exploded for 32 points and 10 rebounds to lead the way, Horace Grant added 19 points, and Pippen had 16 points, eight rebounds and nine assists. Clyde Drexler led the Rockets with 23 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, Hakeem Olajuwon had 20, 10 and six, and Kenny Smith chipped in 21 points.

@ 1977 Portland Trailblazers 120, 1954 Minneapolis Lakers 96
Minneapolis finally had a decent shooting day at 42.7 percent, but they turned it over 17 times and saw Portland shoot 53.5 percent as the Blazers cruised to the win. Six Blazers had double digit points led by Maurice Lucas' 26 points and 13 rebounds, Lionel Hollins added 19 and Bill Walton added 14 points and 13 rebounds. George Mikan paced the Lakers with 22 points and 15 rebounds, while Myer Skoog added 14 points.

Group F

@ 1998 Chicago Bulls 123, 1960 Boston Celtics 116
The Bulls got a big win to close the first half over .500, combining with Boston for 200 field goal attempts, but Chicago forced 23 Celtic turnovers en route to the win. Scottie Pippen went bonkers, abusing Tommy Heinsohn to the tune of 39 points and seven rebounds, Michael Jordan added 26 points and seven assists, Luc Longley had 14 points and nine rebounds, and Steve Kerr came off the bench to add 13. Bill Sharman led the Celtics with 25 points, Bob Cousy had 18, including a 3-4 day from beyond the arc, Tommy Heinsohn added 16, and Bill Russell finished with 11 points and a game-high 13 rebounds.

@ 1986 Boston Celtics 107, 1988 Los Angeles Lakers 98

In the first game between these teams since the Lakers eliminated the Celtics in the Larry Bird Bracket Finals in 2013, the Celtics got revenge behind an aggresive defense that forced 21 Laker turnovers and moved Boston to 7-0, the second team to reach that mark in this year's Tournament of Champions and cements them at the top of the group halfway through. Larry Bird clearly remembered the 2013 heartbreak, as he went off for 27 points and 13 rebounds. Kevin McHale was a force down low with 26 points, and Dennis Johnson had seven points and 14 assists. James Worthy and Byron Scott each had 19 points to lead the Celtics, while Magic Johnson had another triple-double of 17 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists.

@ 2004 Detroit Pistons 123, 1956 Philadelphia Warriors 99
The Pistons' defense came to play, holding the Warriors to 36.8 percent shooting. Detroit's offense was also excellent, scoring over 30 points in each of the first three quarters to build an insurmountable lead. Tayshaun Prince had a big game for the Pistons, finishing with 26 points and seven rebounds, while Rip Hamilton added 17 points, Rasheed Wallace had 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Ben Wallace finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Paul Arizin led the Warriors with 15 points, Joe Graboski added 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Neil Johnston chipped in 13 and 15.

@ 1961 Boston Celtics 108, 1994 Houston Rockets 99
The Celtics finally pick up their first win of the tournament by attacking the basket with reckless abandon. Boston shot 49 free throws off of 33 Houston fouls, with two Rockets fouling out and a couple others finishing the game with five. The Celtics trailed by 11 early in the third quarter, but had a monster frame to take the lead and finished it off in the fourth. Bob Cousy led the Celtics with 23 points and eight assists, Sam Jones added 21 points, and Bill Russell had 17 points, 24 rebounds and six blocks. Hakeem Olajuwon finished with five fouls, but still had 25 points, 18 rebounds, five assists and four blocks. Otis Thorpe added 12 points and 18 rebounds for Houston.

Group G

2005 San Antonio Spurs 109, @ 1967 Philadelphia 76ers 86
The Spurs are creating a log jam at the top of Group G behind a 9-16 day from beyond the arc and a 59-45 win in the rebounding column, while also forcing 18 Sixer turnovers. The Spurs led 33-19 after one quarter, and despite a little chipping away by Philly, they couldn't dig into the lead very far, and the Spurs pulled away in the fourth. Tim Duncan had 23 points, 21 rebounds and five blocks in the win while Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili each had 16 points. Wilt Chamberlain had a triple-double of 21 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists plus five blocks for the Sixers while Chet Walker had 17 points and Luke Jackson added 10 points and 13 rebounds.

@ 1964 Boston Celtics 126, 2001 Los Angeles Lakers 115

The Celtics outrebounded the Lakers 71-49, including 26-11 on the offensive glass, to hold them off and pick up a big win against a higher ranked team. The Celtics led by five going into the fourth quarter and the Lakers could get no closer than three, seeing the Celtics ultimately pull away. Seven Celtics scored in double figures, with Tommy Heinsohn's 20 leading the way. K.C. Jones added 19, John Havlicek had 16 points and nine rebounds, and Bill Russell had 14 points, a game-high 33 rebounds and seven blocks. The Lakers lost despite Shaquille O'Neal destroying the Celtics inside for 46 points and 12 rebounds. Kobe Bryant added 23 points in the loss.

1957 Boston Celtics 117, @ 1955 Syracuse Nationals 100
The Nationals were hoping to break through with a win, but a 34-17 first quarter lead for Boston proved to be too much. Bill Sharman had a game-high 31 points to go with seven rebounds to lead the Celtics, while Bob Cousy added 27 points and 10 assists, and Bill Russell finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Johnny "Red" Kerr had 15 points off the bench to lead the Nationals, while Earl Lloyd had 14 points and 13 rebounds in the loss.

1987 Los Angeles Lakers 110, @ 2003 San Antonio Spurs 93
The Lakers made it a three-way tie at the top of the group behind a 55 percent day from the floor and winning the rebound battle 52-44. The Lakers won every quarter, and while the Spurs hung around for a while, their 41.2 percent shooting day could only do so much. Magic Johnson ripped apart the Spurs defense for 33 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, while James Worthy added 26 points and Byron Scott chipped in 16. Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 21 points and 12 rebounds, while Tony Parker added 18 points.