2015 NBA Tournament of Champions: Group Play Day 7

The 2015 NBA Tournament of Champions rolls on, as today we play the 100th game of the tournament.

We're still very early in group play, as every team has played three games to this point. Some early leads have been built in some groups, while in others, we already have some fantastic races to first place and early home court advantage in the elimination rounds, especially in one group that plays today.

Today as we start Round 4, Groups B and C will finish the back end of a back-to-back, while Groups D and E are back in action after a day off.

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 B

@ 1971 Milwaukee Bucks 131, 1966 Boston Celtics 98
Milwaukee outscored Boston in every quarter and never trailed, shooting 48.5 percent from the field and getting to the free throw line 46 times to make it a 4-0 start. The Celtics were held to just 40.2 percent shooting and were outrebounded 73-50 in their fall to 1-3. Kareem was back at it, posting 31 points and 19 rebounds, while Oscar Robertson had 14 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Bill Russell had a game-high 22 rebounds for the Celtics, while Sam Jones and Satch Sanders each had 17 points.

1968 Boston Celtics 120, @ 1975 Golden State Warriors 115
Golden State couldn't erase a 10-point fourth quarter deficit, though they came close. Both teams shot well from the floor, and despite getting outrebounded, the Warriors had a chance at the end, but Rick Barry missed a go-ahead turnaround with less than 10 seconds to go. Despite that miss, Barry finished with a game-high 37 points on 15-31 shooting, including 3-6 from beyond the arc. Six Celtics scored in double figures in the win, led by Bill Russell's 23 to go with 19 rebounds. Bailey Howell added 17 points and 17 rebounds.

1996 Chicago Bulls 102, @ 1980 Los Angeles Lakers 100

This one didn't look good for Chicago, who shot 38.8 percent for the game and trailed by 13 at halftime. The Lakers would lead by as many as 15 halfway through the third before the Bulls started their comeback, narrowing the gap to four at the end of three. It was tight to the finish as Scottie Pippen converted a three point play to tie the game with 30 seconds to play, and of course, it was Michael Jordan at the buzzer with a defender on him to win the game. Jordan finished with 36 points, including the game-winner, plus seven rebounds and seven assists. Pippen filled the box score with 19 points, eight rebounds, five assists, three steals and three blocks, while Dennis Rodman had a game-high 26 rebounds, including 16 on the offensive glass. Jamaal Wilkes led the Lakers with 21 points while Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had 14 points, 11 rebounds and six blocks.

1985 Los Angeles Lakers 123, @ 1965 Boston Celtics 112
The Lakers worked their way back to .500 with their second straight win after starting the game on an 11-0 run. Boston would work its way back, even tying the game at one point in the third quarter, but could never take the lead, falling to 0-4. Big Game James Worthy led the way with 22 points and 11 rebounds, Kareem added 21, while Kurt Rambis had 16 rebounds. Sam Jones had 22 points for the Celtics, while Bill Russell added 18 points and 27 rebounds.

Group C

1983 Philadelphia 76ers 109, @ 1972 Los Angeles Lakers 92
Make it three in a row for the Sixers after they held the Lakers to 38.8 percent shooting and just 2-12 shooting from beyond the arc. The Sixers jumped out to a 33-21 lead after one quarter and never trailed in this game. Moses Malone had a monster performance of 32 points and 14 rebounds, while Julius Erving had a near triple-double of 14 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists. Wilt Chamberlain had 12 points and 25 rebounds for the Lakers, while Jerry West added 15 points and 10 assists.

@ 1992 Chicago Bulls 106, 1958 St. Louis Hawks 86
The Bulls' defense came to play in an effort to end the skid, holding the Hawks to just 34 percent shooting for the game and blocking 12 shots in the win. The Bulls were able to empty their bench in the win, with Horace Grant leading the charge with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Scottie Pippen added 18 points, eight rebounds and five assists, while Michael Jordan had 13 points, five rebounds and eight assists. Bob Pettit led the Hawks with 18 points, while Chuck Share had a game-high 15 rebounds.

@ 1993 Chicago Bulls 119, 1995 Houston Rockets 108

Despite Hakeem Olajuwon being the best big man on the floor, the Rockets were outrebounded by the Bulls and dropped their second straight game. The Bulls used a 41-28 third quarter to pull away, though Houston did keep it reasonably close by shooting 13-29 from deep. Michael Jordan was not going to be denied in this game though, hitting a trio of triples en route to 30 points while adding eight rebounds and seven assists. Scottie Pippen added 22 points, and Horace Grant had 15 to go with 10 rebounds. Clyde Drexler had 28 points, eight rebounds and nine assists to lead the Rockets, while Hakeem had 23 points, seven rebounds and seven blocks.

1977 Portland Trailblazers 123, @ 1954 Minneapolis Lakers 80
Portland controlled all aspects of this game; they shot 54.8 percent, held the Lakers to 31.1 percent, outrebounded the Lakers 61-47, and hit 17 of their 18 free throws, and held the Lakers to eight second quarter points, a tournament-low. Five Blazers reached double figures, led by Maurice Lucas' 27 and 15 rebounds, while Bill Walton added 18 points and 19 boards. George Mikan led the Lakers with 20 points and 12 rebounds.

Group D

2009 Los Angeles Lakers 128, @ 1959 Boston Celtics 108

Boston drops its third straight game as the Lakers were more than happy to run the floor with the Celtics; the two teams combined for 195 field goals and 61 free throws. Boston shot fairly well, but were outrebounded 67-49. Ultimately, they had no answer for Pau Gasol, who had a triple-double of 26 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists. Kobe Bryant added 23 points, while Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum also had double-doubles. Bill Sharman paced the Celtics with 24 points, while Bill Russell added 22 points and 21 rebounds.

@ 2007 San Antonio Spurs 107, 2013 Miami Heat 85
LeBron James took a better team against his first Finals opponent, but even that wasn't enough. The Spurs held Miami to 36.5 percent shooting while shooting 49.9 percent on their own, including a 9-19 performance from three. Tim Duncan led the way with 27 points and 13 rebounds while Tony Parker added 17 points. LeBron James led the Heat with 25 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, three steals and three blocks, but was just 1-6 from three. Ray Allen added 14 points and seven rebounds off the bench.

1999 San Antonio Spurs 108, @ 1953 Minneapolis Lakers 82
The Lakers took an early lead in the first couple of minutes, but the Spurs were quick to pull ahead and stay ahead, leading 37-25 after just one quarter. The Lakers shot just 36.1 percent for the game and were outscored in every frame. Tim Duncan led a balanced San Antonio attack with 20 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks while David Robinson added 13 points and 10 rebounds. James Pollard led the Lakers with 14 points, while George Mikan, Vern Mikkelsen and Slater Martin each chipped in 13.

@ 2000 Los Angeles Lakers 94, 2011 Dallas Mavericks 84
Dallas shot just 35.2 percent from the floor and 28 percent from three as the 2000 Lakers remain atop the group standings at 4-0. Dallas trailed by 16 at halftime, pulled to within six after three, but would get no closer than down four in the final quarter as they fall to 2-2. Shaquille O'Neal led the way with 28 points and 14 rebounds, Glen Rice had 19 and 8, and Kobe Bryant chipped in 15 points and four steals. Dirk Nowitzki, Caron Butler and Jason Kidd each had 15 points for the Mavericks.

Group E

@ 1997 Chicago Bulls 97, 1981 Boston Celtics 76
The Bulls buckled down on defense after allowing 108 points the other day, holding a tough Celtics team to just 38.8 percent shooting and minimizing free throw opportunities. It was a fairly clean game overall, as just 23 fouls were called and only 18 free throws were shot. Michael Jordan led the way for the Bulls, leading all scorers with 27 points. Scottie Pippen added 21, and Dennis Rodman posted a game-high 17 rebounds. Larry Bird had 16 points and 11 rebounds for Boston, while Kevin McHale added 16 points off the bench.

1974 Boston Celtics 100, @ 1990 Detroit Pistons 89

Detroit got outrebounded 62-50 and missed 13 free throws en route to their fourth straight loss and third at home. The Pistons did trade leads throughout the first quarter with Boston, but couldn't keep pace as the second quarter moved on. Six Celtics reached double digits, led by 15 apiece from Jo Jo White and John Havlicek, while Dave Cowens had 14 points and 15 rebounds and Don Chaney chipped in 10 and 12. Bill Laimbeer led the Pistons and nine rebounds, with Isiah Thomas and John Salley each contributing 12 points.

2008 Boston Celtics 89, @ 2014 San Antonio Spurs 76
The Celtics forced 16 turnovers and held a Spurs team that caught fire on Sunday to just 35.6 percent shooting in handing them their first loss of the tournament. Boston showed a lot of balance in this game, with just three players scoring in double figures, but nine other players got into the points column. Paul Pierce led all scorers with 16 points, Eddie House added 13 off the bench, and Kevin Garnett led the team with 10 rebounds. Tim Duncan was held in check to just 10 points and 10 rebounds, while Tiago Splitter was the only other player to reach 10 points.

@ 1973 New York Knicks 114, 1978 Washington Bullets 101
The Bullets led by as many as eight a few minutes into the second quarter thanks to a balanced attack, but they had no answer as the game went on, with the Knicks going on a 15-3 run after that eight point deficit to take a lead they would not relinquish. Walt Frazier was brilliant, going off for 31 points and 11 rebounds. Bill Bradley added 19, Jerry Lucas had 15, and Dave DeBusschere threw in 10 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists. Elvin Hayes led the Bullets with 15 points and 19 rebounds, five other players reached double figures, and Wes Unseld had 14 rebounds.