Yesterday was kind of a chaotic day with a few undefeated teams dropping off, and as we approach the aforementioned one-third marker, I'm amazed at how bunched up most of these groups are. There are some elite teams that have separated themselves, but there is also a lot of competition for the 32 spots that will advance to the Elimination Stage.
On today's slate, Groups C, D, and E are back in action after having yesterday off, while Group A has had two days to recover for today's action. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's go.
Group E
'77 Portland Trail Blazers 120, @ '61 Boston Celtics 104
Portland went on an 11-4 run to start the second half and put the Celtics behind the 8-ball, while Boston hit just two of their 13 three point attempts in dropping to 1-4. Maurice Lucas had 23 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Blazers to their fourth win, Bill Walton added 15 points, 16 rebounds, and five blocks, and Bob Gross had a solid floor game with 11 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists. Bill Russell led the Celtics with 19 points and 21 rebounds, and Bob Cousy and Sam Jones each scored 17 points.
Michael Jordan hit a go-ahead fadeaway with 52 seconds to go, and after a bad pass by Magic Johnson, Jordan missed a three but saw Bill Cartwright get the key offensive rebound, and Jordan would hit one of two free throws to secure the game after Magic missed a runner at the buzzer. Jordan finished with 36 points and 14 rebounds, while Scottie Pippen added 29 points, six rebounds, and 11 assists for the Bulls, who are the first team to 6-0. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had 26 points and 15 rebounds to pace the Lakers, Norm Nixon had 20 points and nine assists, and Magic finished with 10 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists.
'69 Boston Celtics 133, @ '71 Utah Stars 127
Boston shot 49 percent from the field and got to the line 43 times to pick up their third win in six tournament games. John Havlicek went off for 33 points, eight rebounds, and six assists, Bailey Howell added 24 points and 11 rebounds, and Bill Russell logged 10 points, 18 rebounds, and five blocks for the Celtics. Zelmo Beaty had 27 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Stars, Donnie Freeman had 22 points, six rebounds, and seven assists, and Willie Wise finished with 16 points and 16 rebounds.
@ '60 Boston Celtics 112, '53 Minneapolis Lakers 108
A seven point Laker lead going into the fourth quarter was erased in less than three minutes, though Minneapolis stayed in the game until a Bob Cousy steal and transition dunk ended things. Cousy finished with 16 points and seven assists, Tommy Heinsohn had 29 points and nine rebounds, and Bill Sharman logged 25 and seven for Boston. They spoiled a 30 point, 19 rebound night for George Mikan, while Vern Mikkelsen added 24 and 11 and James Pollard recorded 15 and 12 for the Lakers.
Group D
@ '09 Los Angeles Lakers 113, '62 Boston Celtics 92
Los Angeles held the Celtics to 38.8 percent shooting and forced 20 Boston turnovers to get to .500, while also getting to the line 31 times. Seven Lakers scored in double figures, led by 19 points and nine rebounds from Pau Gasol, while Kobe Bryant added 18 points and nine assists, Andrew Bynum logged 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Lamar Odom came off the bench with 14 and 10. Frank Ramsey had 16 points and eight rebounds off the bench for Boston, but turned the ball over seven times. Tommy Heinsohn chipped in 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Bill Russell finished with 13 points, 18 rebounds, five assists, and four blocks.
'88 Los Angeles Lakers 123, @ '78 Washington Bullets 111
The Lakers keep up the momentum from a sweep of the '96 Bulls with a third straight win thanks to forcing 25 turnovers. James Worthy led Los Angeles with 25 points, Magic Johnson added 20 points, eight rebounds, 14 assists, and six steals, and A.C. Green contributed 16 points and 20 rebounds. The Bullets shot 51.6 percent from the floor, getting 24 points from Bob Dandridge, while Elvin Hayes added 15 points and 10 assists. Wes Unseld finished with 10 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists for Washington.
@ '07 San Antonio Spurs 87, '96 Chicago Bulls 70
The Bulls are falling apart, having lost three straight and shooting just 33.7 percent from the floor in this one. The Spurs, meanwhile, were ruthlessly efficient, shooting 50.7 percent on about 30 fewer shots; the Bulls did grab 20 offensive rebounds, but couldn't convert on second chances. Tim Duncan led the way with 17 points and eight rebounds for San Antonio, Fabricio Oberto added 10 and five, and six other players scored between seven and nine points. Michael Jordan had 16 points and four steals for Chicago, Scottie Pippen added 13 points, six rebounds, and nine assists, and Dennis Rodman finished with eight points and a game-high 26 rebounds.
Cleveland makes it five in a row thanks in large part to a 40-19 second quarter advantage that turned this one into a laugher early. LeBron James had a quiet triple-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists, Kevin Love had 16 points and 14 rebounds, and Kyrie Irving had 20 points and eight assists for the Cavs. Boston got a game-high 22 points from Jo Jo White, while Dave Cowens added 20 points and 11 rebounds and John Havlicek logged 18 points and five assists.
Group A
'95 Houston Rockets 110, @ '83 Philadelphia 76ers 90Houston deals Philly its first tournament loss after forcing 20 turnovers and going 7-17 from beyond the arc. Strangely, Philly had no answer for Hakeem Olajuwon, who went bonkers with 34 points and 16 rebounds, while Clyde Drexler added 23 and six, and Mario Elie chipped in 17 points for the Rockets. Moses Malone had just 12 points to go with 16 rebounds, while Julius Erving added 19 and seven and Andrew Toney dropped 20 points for the Sixers.
'72 Los Angeles Lakers 118, @ '70 Indiana Pacers 112
The Lakers improve to 5-1 after forcing 21 Indiana turnovers and getting to the line 41 times to Indy's 27. Jerry West was excellent with 25 points, 14 assists, and four steals for the Lakers, while Jim McMillian added 25 points and 12 rebounds, Gail Goodrich added 19 points and five assists, and Wilt Chamberlain logged 15 points and 17 rebounds. They spoiled a 28 point, 12 rebound day for Bob Netolicky, while Roger A. Brown added 24 points, five rebounds, and six assists, and Mel Daniels chipped in 18 points and 16 rebounds.
@ '06 Miami Heat 126, '14 San Antonio Spurs 120 (OT)
James Posey buried a three at the buzzer to force the extra session, and Shaq and Dwyane Wade took over from there to give Miami its first win of the tournament after they came back from an 18 point halftime deficit. Wade had a monster game with 36 points, six assists, and five steals, Shaquille O'Neal had 28 points and 14 rebounds, and Jason Williams added 18 points and 11 assists for the Heat. Tony Parker had 20 points and seven assists to lead San Antonio, Tim Duncan added 18 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists, and Marco Bellinelli and Patty Mills each scored 16 points.
@ '74 Boston Celtics 116, '65 Boston Celtics 94
The '74 Celtics held their '65 counterparts to 38.1 percent shooting and had 10 steals as a team to keep the '65 team winless on the tournament. Don Chaney had 24 points to lead the way for '74 Boston, Paul Silas added 15 points and 13 rebounds, and Jo Jo White added 15 points and five assists. '65 John Havlicek had 22 points off of his team's bench, while Bill Russell had 14 points, 23 rebounds, six assists, and four blocks for the '65 Celtics.
Group C
The Colonels managed just 15 fourth quarter points and surrendered a 16-2 run to open that fateful frame as the Warriors grabbed their third win of the tournament. Neil Johnston led the way with 30 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists, Paul Arizin added 32 points and seven rebounds, and Jack George contributed 20 points, six rebounds, and seven assists for Philadelphia. Bird Averitt led Kentucky with 23 points, Artis Gilmore logged 22 points and 12 rebounds, and Louie Dampier added 16 points.
@ '00 Los Angeles Lakers 101, '81 Boston Celtics 92
Boston made some late runs, but couldn't get over the hump against a Laker team that outrebounded them 57-42, despite forcing 22 Los Angeles turnovers. They didn't have an answer for Shaquille O'Neal, who dropped 26 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists. Kobe Bryant added 20 points and eight assists, and Glen Rice chipped in 15 points and seven rebounds for the Lakers. Larry Bird struggled a bit for the Celtics but still finished with 10 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists, while Cedric Maxwell had 22 points and Robert Parish finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
'08 Boston Celtics 92, @ '99 San Antonio Spurs 82
The Celtics won the rebounding battle and forced 16 turnovers in what looks like a tighter game that it may appear to be. Ray Allen got hot enough to go off for 17 points and six rebounds, Rajon Rondo added 14 and five, and Kendrick Perkins finished with 12 and seven for the Celtics. They contained Tim Duncan to the tune of 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Mario Elie added 15 and five, and David Robinson finished with eight points, 12 points, and seven blocks.
'12 Miami Heat 83, @ '05 San Antonio Spurs 70
The Spurs shot just 31.8 percent for the game and turned the ball over 21 times, negating an edge on the boards and seeing the Heat stay unbeaten. Dwyane Wade had a crazy line with 20 points, five assists, seven blocks, and four steals to lead the way for Miami, while LeBron James added 19 points and seven rebounds and Chris Bosh chipped in 17 and 11. Tim Duncan had 12 points and 15 rebounds to lead San Antonio, while Radoslav Nesterovic was the only other player in double figures, logging 12 points and five rebounds.
No comments:
Post a Comment