2015 NBA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 6

It's Monday, but the NBA Tournament of Champions marches on to its sixth day of games.

It's still very early in the tournament, so even the teams in an 0-2 hole like the 2012 Heat or the 1985 Lakers have time to redeem themselves. Likewise, hot-starting teams like the '96 Bulls or the '95 Rockets can add to their early advantage. All get that chance today.

Groups B and C are getting their first action in three days, while Groups A and H got the standard one day off. It's all random, and since the pattern is staying in groups, no team in a given group is given an unfair advantage in terms of rest. Group H, however, gets the weird schedule quirk of having this round be the conclusion of home-and home series from Day 4.

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. Here we go.

Group A

@ 2015 Golden State Warriors 123, 1989 Detroit Pistons 99

The Warriors had a little trouble early on with the Pistons, who led by three at halftime and were tied after three quarters. Then the Warriors absolutely caught fire, hitting 19 of their 24 field goals in the fourth quarter to pull away. Steph Curry was blistering hot, going 7-11 from beyond the arc to lead all scorers with 35 points. Klay Thompson hit five of his 11 threes and finished with 29 points. Adrian Dantley paced Detroit with 16 points, while Dennis Rodman had a game-high 12 rebounds.

1979 Seattle Supersonics 109, @ 2012 Miami Heat 101
Seattle did a pretty good job clamping down on defense, holding the Heat to 39.5 percent shooting, but Miami actually looked to be in control for a while. A 30-17 second quarter advantage had Miami up by as many as 12 in the fourth quarter, but the Sonics got some bench help to fight back and steal a win to push Miami to 0-3. Gus Williams helped ice the game and finished with 26 points. Jack Sikma had 15 points and 14 rebounds, while Tom Lagarde made three of his four field goals on consecutive trips down the floor to give Seattle the lead it would not relinquish. LeBron James led all scorers with 31 points, Chris Bosh added 22 and Dwyane Wade chipped in 19.

@ 1970 New York Knicks 99, 2002 Los Angeles Lakers 97
The Knicks nearly blew a 13 point fourth quarter lead, but were able to hang on to hand the Lakers their first loss of the tournament. Fair or not, one could point at the 8-14 mark in free throws for LA, but they were also outrebounded 60-54, and the Knicks weren't much better at the stripe, finishing at 64 percent. Five Knicks did score in double figures, paced by Dave DeBusschere's 18 to go with 13 rebounds, while Walt Frazier had 17 points, seven rebounds and 11 assists. Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 21 points and nine assists, while Shaq just 16 points, but pulled down 10 rebounds and dished out eight assists.

@ 1982 Los Angeles Lakers 110, 2010 Los Angeles Lakers 102
It may have taken a paradox, but after a pair of close losses to start the tournament, the '10 Lakers finally broke through for a win. The '82 team got off to a great start, outscoring the '10 team 31-15 in the opening quarter. The '10 Lakers did come back and pull to within three to start the final frame and within two at one point early in that frame, but couldn't get any closer. The '10 Lakers really had no answer for Kareem, who had 32 points and 11 rebounds, while Jamaal Wilkes added 19 and Magic Johson had 13 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Kobe Bryant paced the '10 Lakers with 27, while Pau Gasol had 17 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks and Andrew Bynum chipped in 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Group B

1971 Milwaukee Bucks 128, @ 1965 Boston Celtics 105
Milwaukee shot 51 percent from the floor en route to its third straight win, overcoming an eight point deficit early in the first to make it happen, and pouring on the gas from there. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did slow down finally, managing only 28 points on 12-26 shooting, though he did have 18 rebounds. Oscar Robertson added 21 points and 13 assists in the win. Sam Jones led the Celtics with 28 points while Bill Russell added 11 and 20 rebounds.

1985 Los Angeles Lakers 137, @ 1980 Los Angeles Lakers 119
Showtime prevailed in the 80's Lakers Paradox Game. Both teams shot over 50 percent for the game and a combined 13 players scored in double figures. The '85 Lakers got to the line more times, which certainly helped their winning cause. '85 Kareem was sublime, posting 29 points to lead all scorers, while '85 Magic had 13 points, eight rebounds and 14 assists. '80 Magic did nearly as well, with 22 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, while '80 Jamaal Wilkes had 25 points and '80 Kareem chipped in 19.

1996 Chicago Bulls 107, @ 1975 Golden State Warriors 87

Both teams struggled out of the gate offensively, with the Warriors leading after one quarter 19-15. The Bulls figured it out from there, outscoring the Warriors 37-27 in the second, and clamping down on defense after that to pull away for the easy win. Michael Jordan led the way, scoring 28 points and pulling down 11 rebounds in the win while Scottie Pippen added 22 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists and Steve Kerr hit four threes. Rick Barry led the Warriors with 22 points, six rebounds and six assists while Jamaal Wilkes added 14 points.

1968 Boston Celtics 111, @ 1966 Boston Celtics 101
This was a pretty even game throughout with the '66 Celtics holding a narrow three point lead going into the final stanza. The '68 team found another gear though and outscored the '66 Celtics 34-21 down the stretch to come away with the road win. '68 John Havlicek outdid his younger self, leading all scorers with 27 points and pulling down eight rebounds, while '68 Bill Russell added 18 points and 15 rebounds. '66 Hondo led his team with 22 points, while '66 Russell pulled down a game-high 28 rebounds.

Group C

@ 1972 Los Angeles Lakers 123, 1958 St. Louis Hawks 102
The Lakers took advantage of their first home game of the season, holding the Hawks to 38.2 percent shooting and other than 2-0, never trailed in this game. Wilt Chamberlain didn't need to do much on offense, but had a good game with 13 points and a game-high 21 rebounds. Jerry West was arguably better though with 21 points, eight rebounds and 12 assists. Happy Hairston and Jim McMillian also posted double-doubles for the Lakers. Bob Pettit led the Hawks with 19 points and 14 rebounds while Cliff Hagan added 14 points.

@ 1983 Philadelphia 76ers 115, 1995 Houston Rockets 106

The Sixers handed the Rockets their first loss of the tournament behind an offensive clinic, shooting 56.4 percent and making 27 of their 33 free throws. Houston played well, but had no answer for Philly's three-headed monster. Andrew Toney led the way with 28 points, Moses Malone and Julius Erving each added 24, and Malone picked up 13 rebounds. Hakeem Olajuwon could only do so much, leading all scorers with 29 points while pulling down 10 rebounds. Clyde Drexler added 18 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

1977 Portland Trailblazers 121, @ 1992 Chicago Bulls 108
Make it two losses in a row for the Bulls, who blew a four point lead going into the fourth quarter and couldn't answer Portland's surge, getting outrebounded 61-43. Maurice Lucas led the way with 26 points and 18 rebounds, Bob Gross added 20 points, and Bill Walton chipped in 16 points and 16 rebounds. Michael Jordan did all he could, leading all scorers with 34 points, while Scottie Pippen filled the stat sheet, picking up 13 points, seven rebounds and nine assists.

@ 1993 Chicago Bulls 106, 1954 Minneapolis Lakers 91
The Lakers were able to keep pace with the Bulls for a while, but their 39.8 percent shooting couldn't sustain a manageable gap. After getting within three early in the third quarter, the Bulls went on a 10-3 run to open up the game. Michael Jordan ensured that the losing streak would not hit two, dropping 39 points while grabbing nine rebounds. Scottie Pippen added 12 points, while Bill Cartwright and B.J. Armstrong each scored 10. George Mikan had 15 points and 17 rebounds to lead the Lakers, while Slater Martin had 14 and Vern Mikkelsen added 13.

Group H

@ 2006 Miami Heat 118, 1984 Boston Celtics 109

The '84 Celtics fall to 0-3 after getting outscored 31-18 in the opening frame. Boston would work its way back, getting to within three on a few occasions, but the Heat were able to fight them off, partially thanks to their 40 free throws. (By comparison, Boston shot 18, and I have no idea if Bennett Salvatore was the official or not because WhatIfSports doesn't list officials). Dwyane Wade, of course, had a monster game with 36 points and eight assists, Shaquille O'Neal had 28 points and 13 rebounds, while Jayson Williams chipped in 12 points and nine assists. Dennis Johnson led the Celtics with 22 points while Larry Bird put up 19 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

1963 Boston Celtics 123, @ 1962 Boston Celtics 104
Because the space-time continuum wasn't messed up enough, the two teams combined for 222 field goals and 61 free throws in an up and down affair, though the '63 Celtics controlled the game, leading by 23 at halftime. '63 Bill Russell had 19 points and a tournament-high 33 rebounds while adding six assists and five blocks just for the heck of it. Six other '63 Celtics scored in double figures. '62 Tommy Heinsohn led his team with 29 points, while '62 Russell had 13 points and 15 rebounds.

1991 Chicago Bulls 92, @ 1952 Minneapolis Lakers 90
In the second game of a home-and-home, the Bulls very nearly blew the sweep, but the Lakers looked very good throughout. Minneapolis actually led 48-45 at halftime and outrebounded the Bulls 62-43 for the game. The Bulls came back in the third and fourth quarters and took the lead, going up by as many as eight late in the fourth before terrible free throw shooting nearly did them in. Michael Jordan threw down the go-ahead dunk with 26 seconds to go, but the Lakers got two looks at forcing overtime, but neither shot fell. Scottie Pippen led the Bulls with 20 points while Michael Jordan had 19, seven rebounds and six assists. George Mikan led the Lakers with 22 points and 17 rebounds, Vern Mikkelsen had 17 and 10, and James Pollard had 12, 11 and five steals.

@ 1969 Boston Celtics 128, 1976 Boston Celtics 110
A tight game at halftime saw the hosts earn the split by pulling away. The '69 Celtics forced 19 turnovers en route to the big win while only turning it over eight times themselves. For the '69 team, John Havlicek and Bailey Howell each scored 25 points, Sam Jones added 18, and Bill Russell had seven points, 12 rebounds and seven blocks. '76 Jo Jo White led all scorers with 30 points, while Dave Cowens had 24 points and 16 rebounds.