With the conclusion of today's games, we will be through three weeks of basketball action. This year's tournament is running longer than last year's just due to the sheer number of involved teams. Having the extra eight from the ABA teams and the 2016 Cavs, even with the Play-In Round, has made this a little more time-consuming.Nonetheless, we are beginning to see a separation between the haves and the have-nots, which is important, since only 32 teams get to play beyond the opening week of August. Today, Groups B and F are concluding a back-to-back while Groups A and G return from yesterday's off day. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Here's a look at today's games.
Group B
'87 Los Angeles Lakers 134, @ '73 Indiana Pacers 96
The Lakers shot 50 percent, forced 19 turnovers, and easily won the rebounding battle to remain in second place in Group B. James Worthy led the way with 27 points and 13 rebounds, while Magic Johnson put up a triple-double with 18 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar logged 21 points and 13 rebounds for Los Angeles. Mel Daniels had 15 points, 15 rebounds, and four blocks to pace Indiana, while Freddie Lewis scored 13 points and George McGinnis finished with 12 points and eight rebounds.
Mark Aguirre banked home the game-winner with 20 seconds to go, and Michael Jordan missed a 13 foot game winner with two seconds left as the Pistons remain the tournament's lone unbeaten team. Aguirre finished with 22 points and five rebounds, James Edwards added 16 and five off the bench, and Isiah Thomas chipped in 13 points, five rebounds, six assists, and four steals for Detroit. Jordan finished with 28 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and four steals to lead the Bulls, Horace Grant added 20 points and 15 rebounds, and Scottie Pippen had 11 points, six rebounds, and eight assists.
'69 Oakland Oaks 142, @ '70 New York Knicks 118
The Oaks forced 22 turnovers and shot 52.3 percent from the floor to grab their sixth win and move up to third place in the group. Rick Barry dropped 27 points and eight rebounds, Warren Jabali added 20 and 14, Ira Harge logged 17 and 12, and Jim Eakins chipped in 20 and 10 off the bench for Oakland. Dave DeBusschere had 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Knicks, Willis Reed added 21 and nine, and Walt Frazier finished with 15 points, five rebounds, and five assists.
@ '75 Golden State Warriors 111, '85 Los Angeles Lakers 100
The Warriors hit six of 11 threes and won the rebounding battle to steal the upset at home and knock the Lakers down to fourth place. Rick Barry led the way with 32 points and seven assists for Golden State, Jamaal Wilkes had 16 points and five rebounds, and Clifford Ray finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds. James Worthy paced Los Angeles with 20 points and six rebounds, Magic Johnson added 15 points and seven assists, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar finished with 17 points, 12 rebounds, and six blocks.
Group F
@ '89 Detroit Pistons 107, '86 Boston Celtics 98
The Celtics drop their second in a row to fall out of first place after sending Detroit to the foul line 30 times compared to 14 trips on their side. Mark Aguirre went off for 28 points and eight rebounds, Isiah Thomas had 19 points and 11 assists, and Dennis Rodman logged 12 points and 17 rebounds for the Pistons. Joe Dumars and Bill Laimbeer also logged double-doubles. Dennis Johnson led Boston with 22 points, Robert Parish put up 16 points and 16 rebounds, and Kevin McHale finished with 17 and seven.
'79 Seattle Supersonics 107, @ '01 Los Angeles Lakers 90
The Lakers shot just 39.8 percent from the floor and struggled from beyond the arc in a continued theme of struggles atop the group. Jack Sikma led the way for Seattle with 18 points and 15 rebounds, Dennis Johnson scored 20 points, and Gus Williams recorded 11 points and five steals. Shaquille O'Neal led the Lakers with 29 points, 14 rebounds, and seven blocks, while Kobe Bryant added 13 points and six rebounds and Derek Fisher chipped in 10 and seven.
The Bulls shot just 37.4 percent and managed only 11 third quarter points in falling to 4-5 while falling too much in love with the three, missing 15 of their 17 attempts. Chauncey Billups had 21 points and five assists to lead Detroit, while Rasheed Wallace added 14 points and 16 rebounds and Ben Wallace was a menace with 11 points, 14 rebounds, six blocks, and four steals. Michael Jordan scored 19 points, Scottie Pippen added 11 points and five assists, and Dennis Rodman pulled down a game-high 20 rebounds to go with his six points for Chicago.
@ '84 Boston Celtics 139, '52 Minneapolis Lakers 101
The Celtics' sandwich game between byes was close after one quarter, but Boston dropped 41 points in the second quarter to turn this game into a blowout and moves them into a tie for first place. Larry Bird had an excellent all-around game with 22 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists, while Robert Parish dropped 25 points and 12 rebounds and Kevin McHale put up 25 and 10 off the bench for the Celtics. The Lakers did get 26 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists out of George Mikan, while Vern Mikkelsen scored 14 points and Slater Martin added 13.
Group A
@ '83 Philadelphia 76ers 110, '70 Indiana Pacers 96
Philly keeps within striking distance of the group leaders thanks to a 30-15 first quarter edge and would lead by 26 after three quarters, at which point they called off the dogs. Moses Malone went off for 30 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Sixers, Julius Erving added 19 points and eight rebounds, and Andrew Toney finished with eight points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists. Mel Daniels paced Indiana with 18 points and 13 rebounds, Bob Netolicky scored 16 points, and Freddie Lewis recorded 12 points and six rebounds.
Mark your calendars, folks: on Day 21 of Group Play, the 1965 Boston Celtics became the first team to be eliminated from contention. Seven Rockets scored in double figures, led by 21 points, eight rebounds, and five assists for Clyde Drexler, while Hakeem Olajuwon added 16 points, 16 rebounds, and four blocks, and Vernon Maxwell came off the bench to chip in 17 points, five rebounds, and five assists for Houston. Bill Russell had 14 points and 18 rebounds to lead the Celtics, Tommy Heinsohn logged 18 and seven, and Sam Jones added 17 and seven. The Rockets, meanwhile, remain just a half game out of the Elimination Stage.
@ '91 Chicago Bulls 117, '74 Boston Celtics 113
The Bulls retain their tie for first place in Group A after shooting a hair over 50 percent for the game and surviving thanks to eight missed Boston free throws. Michael Jordan had 27 points and five assists, but Scottie Pippen led the way for the Bulls with 20 points, 15 rebounds, six assists, and four blocks, and Horace Grant added 21 points and seven rebounds. Jo Jo White paced the Celtics with 30 points, five rebounds, and seven assists, while Dave Cowens logged 16 points, 18 rebounds, five assists, and four steals, and John Havlicek chipped in 19 points and five assists.
@ '72 Los Angeles Lakers 119, '06 Miami Heat 102
The Lakers remain atop the group after shooting 51 percent and pulling down 21 offensive rebounds to Miami's six. Jim McMillian had 29 points and nine rebounds to pace Los Angeles, Wilt Chamberlain recorded 12 points and 19 rebounds, and Jerry West put up 20 points and seven assists. Dwyane Wade finished with 19 points and 12 assists to pace the Heat, Shaquille O'Neal notched 14 points and eight rebounds, and Jason Williams scored 13 points.
Group G
@ '64 Boston Celtics 101, '72 Indiana Pacers 99
The Celtics only shot 40.6 percent from the floor, but forced 17 turnovers and won the rebounding battle to pick up their second win of the tournament. Sam Jones scored 22 points for Boston, Bill Russell added 16 points, 20 rebounds, six assists, and four steals, and Tommy Heinsohn chipped in 15 points and nine rebounds. Six Pacers scored in double figures, led by 18 points and 14 rebounds from Bob Netolicky while Mel Daniels logged 17 points and 11 rebounds and George McGinnis put up 12 points and 11 rebounds off the bench.
The Mavs put up 50 points in the third quarter to not only grab their seventh win but also to eliminate the Hawks from contention. The Mavs went deep into their bench from the get-go and more than got away with it, shooting 60 percent for the game, only the third time a team has reached that mark in the tournament. Dirk Nowitzki had 20 points and 11 rebounds in just 27 minutes for Dallas, while Tyson Chandler added 16 and nine, and Jason Kidd logged 15 points, six rebounds, and 14 assists. Bob Pettit had 22 points and 14 rebounds for St. Louis, Cliff Hagan added 12 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists, and Jack McMahon scored 14 points.
'66 Boston Celtics 130, @ '76 New York Nets 121
The Celtics opened the fourth quarter on a 7-2 run and never looked back to move into fourth place with the tiebreaker against New York secure. Sam Jones scored 30 points and John Havlicek notched 27 to lead the offensive side for Boston, while Bill Russell oversaw the game with a quadruple-nickel of 18 points, 20 rebounds, five assists, and eight blocks. Julius Erving led the Nets with 23 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists, and four blocks, Brian Taylor added 23 points and six assists, and John Williamson chipped in 15 and five.
'97 Chicago Bulls 119, @ '67 Philadelphia 76ers 98
The Bulls shot 52.1 percent and won the rebounding battle to stay half a game ahead of the Mavericks for first place in Group G. Michael Jordan led the Bulls with 29 points and five assists, Scottie Pippen added 20 points, six rebounds, and eight assists, and Luc Longley exploded for 23 points. Wilt Chamberlain recorded 14 points, 15 rebounds, and seven assists for the Sixers, Chet Walker managed 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Billy Cunningham scored 16 points off the bench.
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