We have just over 100 games left on the docket for this stage of play as we narrow down the 72 teams we started with down to 32. There are still 29 spots in the Elimination Stage up for grabs, so every game today and for the next week is vital. We've had 14 teams see their meaningful seasons come to an end at this point, however, so it's not like we haven't established clear lines between the haves and the have-nots.
Today's schedule features returns for Group D and F after they took yesterday off, while Groups C and E are back to the court after two days to recuperate. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Here's today's results.
Group F
'04 Detroit Pistons 97, @ '86 Boston Celtics 86
The Pistons deal a huge loss to the Celtics to grab their sixth win and hang on for dear life in Group F. Rip Hamilton had 20 points and five assists to lead Detroit, Chauncey Billups added 18 points and eight assists, Rasheed Wallace finished with 12 points and nine rebounds, and Ben Wallace chipped in seven points, 13 rebounds, and four blocks. Larry Bird recorded 18 points, six rebounds, and seven assists to pace the Celtics, Danny Ainge scored 15 points, and Robert Parish recorded 12 points and six rebounds.
@ '01 Los Angeles Lakers 99, '84 Boston Celtics 94
The Lakers put Boston's clinching dreams on hold while moving into a tie with the '86 Celtics, though that Boston team holds the head to head tiebreaker for third place. In this game though, the Lakers came back from an 11 point deficit after one quarter. Shaquille O'Neal had a great game with 24 points, 13 rebounds, and seven blocks, Kobe Bryant added 27 points, eight rebounds, and six assists, Horace Grant posted 12 points and eight rebounds, and Isaiah Rider scored 13 points off the bench for Los Angeles. Larry Bird put up 24 points and 11 rebounds for Boston, Robert Parish contributed 23 and 12, and Dennis Johnson finished with 14 points, five rebounds, and five assists.
@ '89 Detroit Pistons 102, '68 Boston Celtics 85
Make it an oh-fer for the Celtics of Group F as Detroit held them to just 31.2 percent shooting from the floor and went 32-39 at the free throw line to grab their eighth win. Joe Dumars had 27 points and five assists for the Pistons, while Dennis Rodman chipped in 13 points and 15 rebounds, Mark Aguirre added 13 and eight, and Bill Laimbeer finished with eight points, 13 rebounds, and five blocks. Bailey Howell had 19 points and nine rebounds, John Havlicek added 17 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, and Bill Russell put up a quadruple-nickel with eight points, 16 rebounds, five assists, and seven blocks for the Celtics.
The Bulls went deeper into their bench and needed some late dramatics to grab the victory. Ron Harper tied the game with a minute to go in regulation, and each team had a couple chances to win the game, but neither could take advantage. Chicago opened overtime on a 10-2 run though to put the game away, grab their sixth win, and try to stay alive for the Elimination Stage. Michael Jordan exploded for 41 points, including 14 in the fourth quarter and overtime, Scottie Pippen added 16 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists, Toni Kukoc chipped in 10 points and seven assists, and Ron Harper, Steve Kerr, and Scott Burrell each scored eight points for the Bulls. They spoiled a 34 point, 18 rebound, six block night for George Mikan, while Vern Mikkelsen added 14 points, 20 rebounds, and six assists, and James Pollard chipped in 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Lakers.
Group D
The Celtics trailed by as many as nine in the fourth quarter, but climbed back into it, with Tommy Heinsohn converting a three point play with 4:35 left to play to give Boston the lead, and they wouldn't let it go the rest of the way. He finished with 32 points and 17 rebounds to lead Boston, Bill Russell added 14 points, 23 rebounds, and four blocks, Satch Sanders added 15 points and nine rebounds, and Sam Jones scored 14 points. Kobe Bryant put up 25 points, eight rebounds, and nine assists for the Lakers, Pau Gasol added 20 points, 14 rebounds, and four blocks, and Derek Fisher scored 16 points.
@ '88 Los Angeles Lakers 126, '78 Washington Bullets 121
The Lakers shot 54.2 percent from the floor and steal the '09 Lakers' spot in the Elimination Stage while forcing 18 Washington turnovers [and eliminating the Bullets from contention]. Magic Johnson destroyed the Washington defense with 24 points, seven rebounds, 20 assists, and five steals for good measure, while Byron Scott scored 25 points, James Worthy added 21 points, nine rebounds, and six assists, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar chipped in 22 points and five rebounds for Los Angeles. Elvin Hayes put up 24 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Bullets, Bob Dandridge added 21 and seven, Phil Chenier scored 28 points, and Wes Unseld finished with 12 points, 19 rebounds, and six assists.
@ '96 Chicago Bulls 97, '07 San Antonio Spurs 80
The Bulls appear to have righted the ship, earning a split with the Spurs after jumping out to a 35-15 lead after one quarter and holding San Antonio to 34.7 percent shooting for the game. Michael Jordan had 28 points, seven rebounds, and six assists, Toni Kukoc scored 16 points, and Dennis Rodman chipped in seven points and 20 rebounds for Chicago. Manu Ginobili paced the San Antonio attack with 19 points, Tim Duncan logged 14 points and 14 rebounds, and Tony Parker was held to just nine points and five assists.
@ '16 Cleveland Cavaliers 101, '76 Boston Celtics 90
The Cavaliers finally clinch their berth in the Elimination Stage right before their double bye despite losing the rebounding battle and shooting under 40 percent. They held the Celtics under that mark as well though, including a 2-13 day from beyond the arc. Kyrie Irving paced Cleveland with 26 points and seven assists, LeBron James added 16 points, five rebounds, and 11 assists, Kevin Love logged 12 points and nine rebounds, and Tristan Thompson chipped in seven and 13. Charlie Scott paced Boston with 20 points, eight rebounds, and five assists, Dave Cowens had 10 points and 20 rebounds, and John Havlicek scored 13 points.
Group C
@ '12 Miami Heat 100, '99 San Antonio Spurs 83
Miami guarantees itself home court advantage in the first round of the Elimination Stage with its twelfth win after forcing 21 turnovers and hitting seven of 18 threes. LeBron James led the way with 19 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists, Udonis Haslem put up 16 points and 11 rebounds off the bench, Chris Bosh scored 15 points, and Dwyane Wade chipped in 11 points and six rebounds for the Heat. Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 18 points and 15 rebounds, David Robinson added 12 and 18, Sean Elliott chipped in 10 points and five assists, and Mario Elie scored 14 points.
Boston clinches a berth in the Elimination Stage with a 56.6 percent shooting day, including a 6-14 mark from three point range. Paul Pierce had 22 points, five rebounds, and six assists, Kevin Garnett added 21 points and eight rebounds, Ray Allen scored 17 points, and Rajon Rondo chipped in 13 points and six rebounds for the Celtics. Kobe Bryant notched 25 points and five assists to lead the Lakers, Shaquille O'Neal added 22 points and eight rebounds, and Glen Rice finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds.
@ '81 Boston Celtics 116, '56 Philadelphia Warriors 108
The Celtics move a half game ahead of the 2000 Lakers for fourth place after shooting 52.3 percent, though they got the benefit of Philly missing 11 free throws and turning the ball over 21 times. It helped more so that Larry Bird went off for 24 points, 15 rebounds, and six assists, while Robert Parish added 21 points and eight rebounds, Cedric Maxwell chipped in 14 and eight, and Rick Robey scored 16 points off the bench for Boston. Paul Arizin paced the Warriors with 24 points and six rebounds, Joe Graboski added 22 and eight, Jack George had 19 points and nine assists, Tom Gola logged 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Neil Johnston chipped in 14 and 10.
@ '75 Kentucky Colonels 118, '68 Pittsburgh Pipers 114
The Colonels missed 11 free throws, but shot 10 more than the Pipers did while Pittsburgh missed seven freebies in a game that wasn't quite as close as the final score suggests. Bird Averitt came off the bench for the first time in Group Play and scored 25 points to lead Kentucky, Artis Gilmore went off for 21 points and 22 rebounds, Dan Issel added 22 and 10, and Ted McClain, who started for Averitt, only scored four points but chipped in six rebounds and 10 assists. Connie Hawkins had 24 points, 15 rebounds, and five assists for the Pipers, Chico Vaughn added 28, five, and seven, and Art Heyman chipped in 26 points and seven rebounds.
Group E
Golden State used a 9-0 run spanning roughly two minutes to flip the flow of the game and pulled away late to grab its eleventh win and clinch a berth in the Elimination Stage. Steph Curry led the way with 25 points, seven rebounds, 11 assists, and four steals, Klay Thompson scored 22 points, Draymond Green added 16 points, seven rebounds, and five assists, and Andrew Bogut added 11 points and 12 rebounds for the Warriors. Bill Walton paced Portland with 23 points and 25 rebounds, Maurice Lucas added 17 and 13, and Bob Gross chipped in 10 points and five assists.
@ '71 Utah Stars 106, '53 Minneapolis Lakers 94
The Lakers hit eight of 14 threes, but got thoroughly outclassed on the glass, and Utah hit 24 of 27 free throws to pull out their seventh win. Zelmo Beaty led the way with 27 points and 20 rebounds, Glen Combs scored 21 points, and Willie Wise added 11 points and 12 rebounds for the Stars. Vern Mikkelsen led Minneapolis with 14 points and 10 rebounds, Slater Martin scored 14 points, Robert Harrison poured in 13 off the bench, and George Mikan finished with 11 points and 16 rebounds.
@ '82 Los Angeles Lakers 113, '69 Boston Celtics 81
The Lakers climb back to within a game of Portland, stay a game ahead of Utah, and eliminate the '69 Celtics by holding them to 31.7 percent shooting and hitting 52.2 percent of their own shots in their eighth win. Jamaal Wilkes had 20 points and six rebounds, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar put up 19 and seven, Mike McGee scored 12 points off the bench, and Magic Johnson finished with 10 points, 16 rebounds, and five assists for Los Angeles. Bill Russell was limited to four points and 12 rebounds, John Havlicek put up 16 and five, and Sam Jones scored 14 points for Boston. With the win, the '82 Lakers also knock the idle 1960 Boston Celtics out of contention.
'92 Chicago Bulls 113, @ '61 Boston Celtics 99
The Bulls extended their rotation a little bit with a crucial home-and-home coming up, and still shot 51.6 percent from the floor, though a 14-28 day at the line is cause for alarm. Nonetheless, they forced 18 turnovers and held Boston under 40 percent shooting to clinch their berth in the Elimination Stage. Michael Jordan led Chicago with 25 points, five assists, and four steals, Horace Grant put up 14 points and 18 rebounds, Scottie Pippen added 11 points, eight rebounds, and four steals, and Bill Cartwright finished with 10 points and 14 rebounds. Bill Russell led the Celtics with 12 points and 21 rebounds, Tommy Heinsohn chipped in 18 and eight, and Bob Cousy logged 16 points and five assists.
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