With the conclusion of today's games, we will be halfway done with the Group Stage of this year's tournament. We had to add nearly a week to this part of the schedule compared to last year to accommodate the new teams entering into this year's extravaganza, which has meant additional games. As we prepare to reach the halfway point, we still have one team who remain unblemished at this stage, and several groups where it appears berth earnings will come down to the wire.
On today's schedule, Groups D and F follow up yesterday's day off with games, while Groups E and G are in action following two days of rest.. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Here are our results for the final day of the first half of Group Play.
Group D
@ '63 Boston Celtics 111, '76 Boston Celtics 109
Bob Cousy was fouled on a tip in attempt with 19 seconds to play, hit both free throws, and '63 John Havlicek grabbed the rebound on Jo Jo White's missed jumper with a second to go to give the '63 Celtics their third win of the tournament in dramatic fashion. Cousy finished with 11 points and seven assists, but Bill Russell was the star of the day with 21 points, 24 rebounds, seven assists, and seven blocks. '63 Havlicek added 21 points for his Celtics. '76 Hondo had 14 points, six rebounds, and five assists, White finished with 24 points and seven rebounds, and Dave Cowens chipped in 18 points and 25 rebounds for the '76 Celtics.
The Cavs avenge their opening round loss by coming back from down 12 early in the fourth, but after both Tony Parker and Tim Duncan missed go-ahead shots in the final 20 seconds, Cleveland got the rebound, called timeout, and Kyrie Irving buried a corner three at the buzzer with a hand in his face to complete the comeback. Irving finished with 24 points, six rebounds, and eight assists, LeBron James added 27, seven, and six, and Kevin Love added 17 points and 16 rebounds for Cleveland. Parker had 25 points, five rebounds, and 10 assists to lead the Spurs, Tim Duncan put up 17 points and 18 rebounds, and Manu Ginobili finished with 17 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists.
@ '78 Washington Bullets 105, '96 Chicago Bulls 104
Chicago only got to the 16 times, missing six of them, while the Bullets shot 51.6 percent from the floor to pick up their second win of the tournament, but scoring a huge upset in the process. Elvin Hayes had 20 points and nine rebounds to lead Washington to the win, Bob Dandridge added 17, Mitch Kupchak put up 16 points and nine rebounds off the bench, and Wes Unseld had a nice floor game with five points, 12 rebounds, and five assists. Michael Jordan had 27 points to lead the Bulls, Scottie Pippen added 15 points and eight rebounds, and Dennis Rodman chipped in nine points and 15 rebounds. If the tournament ended today, the defending champions would end up with the #4 seed out of this group.
'88 Los Angeles Lakers 117, @ '09 Los Angeles Lakers 88
The '88 Lakers shot 57.3 percent from the field and rode an awful day from three by their '09 counterparts to grab their fifth win of the tournament. James Worthy had 27 points and eight rebounds to lead '88 Los Angeles, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar added 21 points, and Magic Johnson had a near triple-double of 14 points, nine rebounds, and 10 assists. Pau Gasol had 20 points and six rebounds to lead the '09 Lakers, Kobe Bryant added 20 and five, and Andrew Bynum added 11 and six.
Group G
@ '72 Indiana Pacers 121, '02 Los Angeles Lakers 114
Indiana gets back to .500 after winning the rebounding battle and getting to the line 42 times and knocking the second place Lakers down a peg. Mel Daniels led the Pacers with 19 points and 23 rebounds, Bob Netolicky added 27 points and 11 rebounds, and Freddie Lewis chipped in 18 points. Shaquille O'Neal paced the Lakers with 25 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists, Kobe Bryant contributed 21 points, six rebounds, and five assists, and Robert Horry and Samaki Walker each put up 12 points and five rebounds.
The Celtics pulled down 74 rebounds and held St. Louis to 39.6 percent shooting to grab their fifth win. Bill Russell led the way with 15 points, 22 rebounds, and five assists, John Havlicek had 27 points and 11 rebounds, Satch Sanders added 19 and 11, and Sam Jones chipped in 18 and six for Boston. Bob Pettit led the Hawks with 28 points and 10 rebounds, Ed Macauley had 16 points in his first Tournament of Champions start, and Slater Martin added 14 points.
@ '97 Chicago Bulls 102, '64 Boston Celtics 92
The Celtics hit 7 of 12 three pointers and forced 21 Chicago turnovers, but only hit 35.5 percent of their total field goals and only managed 14 first quarter points to end up behind the 8-ball. Michael Jordan led the way with 22 points and 10 rebounds, Scottie Pippen added 10 points, 13 rebounds, and seven assists, Luc Longley dropped 18 points, and Dennis Rodman chipped in eight points and 19 rebounds for the Bulls, who move into a tie with the '02 Lakers. Bill Russell paced Boston with 15 points and 19 rebounds, John Havlicek posted 18 and six, and Tommy Heinsohn added 13 points.
'11 Dallas Mavericks 121, @ '67 Philadelphia 76ers 116
Dallas forced 18 turnovers and shot 33 free throws to Philly's 15 to drop the Sixers below .500 and create a three team tie for third place. Dirk Nowitzki went off for 34 points, eight rebounds, and five steals to lead the Mavericks, Caron Butler added 21 points and nine rebounds, and Jason Kidd had seven rebounds and 11 assists to make up for only scoring three points. Wilt Chamberlain went off for 33 points and 23 rebounds in the loss, while Hal Greer added 21 and 10 and Chet Walker chipped in 19 and nine for the Sixers.
Group E
'77 Portland Trail Blazers 111, @ '15 Golden State Warriors 99
The Warriors hit 12 of their 27 threes for the game, but turned it over 24 times, saw the Blazers get to the line 32 times and limit them to 37 rebounds in just their second loss of the tournament. Bill Walton led Portland with 18 points and 13 rebounds, Lionel Hollins had 18 points, five assists, and four steals, and Maurice Lucas finished with 12 points, six rebounds, and six assists. Klay Thompson finished with 28 points and five rebounds, Steph Curry added 26 points, five rebounds, and 10 assists, and Draymond Green added 16 points and 13 rebounds for Golden State.
'71 Utah Stars 122, @ '53 Minneapolis Lakers 86
The Stars shot 50.5 percent for the game and forced 26 turnovers to grab their third win of the tournament and keep the Lakers in the basement of Group E. The Lakers couldn't contain Zelmo Beaty, who finished with 30 points and 13 rebounds, Donnie Freeman had 21 points and seven assists, and Red Robbins added 12 points and 11 rebounds for Utah. James Pollard scored 18 points to pace Minneapolis, George Mikan added 14 points and 10 rebounds before fouling out, and Vern Mikkelsen chipped in 12 and seven.
Mitch Kupchak got a steal with 18 seconds left, and banked home the game-winning layup with two seconds to go, and Sam Jones missed short on a jumper following a Boston timeout to give the Lakers their fifth win of the tournament. Kupchak finished with 17 points and 15 rebounds, Magic Johnson had 25 points, eight rebounds, 10 assists, and four steals, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar added 18 points, 14 rebounds, and six blocks for Los Angeles. Bailey Howell had 23 points and seven rebounds to pace the Celtics, Bill Russell added 13 points, 18 rebounds, and eight assists, and Sam Jones chipped in 18 points and four steals.
@ '92 Chicago Bulls 120, '61 Boston Celtics 79
The Celtics shot just 32.3 percent from the floor and turned the ball over 19 times as the Bulls become the first team to eight wins in the tournament. Michael Jordan had 29 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, and four steals, Scottie Pippen added 21 points, 14 rebounds, and eight assists, and Horace Grant added 20 points, 15 rebounds, and four steals for Chicago. Bill Russell led Boston with 10 points, 15 rebounds, and four blocks, Sam Jones scored 14 points, and K.C. Jones added 11.
Group F
@ '86 Boston Celtics 113, '52 Minneapolis Lakers 81
Boston gave its bench some extended run in this one, and they still shot 54.2 percent en route to their sixth win of the tournament. Kevin McHale had 18 points and nine rebounds in 23 minutes, Dennis Johnson added 17 points in 24, and Larry Bird put up eight points, 15 rebounds, and seven assists for the Celtics. James Pollard led the Lakers with 21 points, George Mikan added 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Vern Mikkelsen chipped in nine points, 13 rebounds, and six assists.
@ '68 Boston Celtics 109, '79 Seattle Supersonics 107
John Havlicek buried a jumper with one second left to give the Celtics the win, though he still had to take the free throw, but he missed, and Seattle didn't have time for a desperation heave. It was something of a relief for a Celtic team that blew a 21 point halftime lead, but it gives them a sixth win and has them in great shape for the Elimination Stage. Havlicek finished with 18 points, nine rebounds, and four steals, while Bill Russell added 20 points, 15 rebounds, and six assists, and Sam Jones had 17 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocks for Boston. Jack Sikma led the Sonics with 22 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists, Dennis Johnson added 21 points and nine rebounds, and Gus Williams chipped in 20 and five.
@ '84 Boston Celtics 104, '89 Detroit Pistons 79
It's a clean home sweep for the Celtics of Group F, as Boston went 26-30 at the line and forced 26 turnovers to keep pace with their '84 brethren. Larry Bird had 29 points, 11 rebounds, and four steals to lead Boston to the win, Dennis Johnson added 15 points, and Kevin McHale and Robert Parish each added 13 points. Bill Laimbeer had 14 points and 17 rebounds to lead Detroit, Isiah Thomas added 14 points and eight assists, and Mark Aguirre scored 13 points.
@ '04 Detroit Pistons 117, '01 Los Angeles Lakers 90
Detroit outscored LA 37-15 in the second quarter to build a 27 point halftime lead, and the Pistons never looked back en route to just their second win. Rip Hamilton went off for 34 points, Rasheed Wallace had 17 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists, Tayshaun Prince added 15 points and nine rebounds, and Corliss Williamson chipped in 13 points off the bench for the Pistons. Kobe Bryant paced the Lakers with 23 points, Shaquille O'Neal added 20 points, eight rebounds, and four blocks, and Derek Fisher contributed 12 points.
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