NBA Daily Highlights and Recap - 10 April, 2013
Here are the highlights from all the games played in the NBA today. With the playoffs looming, each game is a must win for the Lakers. The MVP race is also tightening up with Carmelo Anthony posing a serious challenge to LeBron James. They were both in action today. Check out these highlights and more.
1. Indiana Pacers 99 – Cleveland Cavaliers 94
Indiana Pacers overturned a 20 points deficit in the final 9 minutes to clinch a 99-94 victory over the Cavaliers. George Hill finished with 27 for Indiana, while Kyrie Irving scored a game-high 29 for Cleveland.
2. Brooklyn Nets 104 – Philadelphia 76ers 83
Behind their big men Brook Lopez and Reggie Evans, the Nets blew out the 76ers 104-83 at home. Reggie Evans finished with 17 points & 24 rebounds. The Sixers were led by Nick Young, who scored all 18 of his points in the second half.
3. New York Knicks 120 – Washington Wizards 99
The Knicks extended their winning streak to 13 games and clinched their first Atlantic Division title in 19 years with a 120-99 win over Washington. The winning streak is the Knicks’ longest since the 1993-94 team that won the last Division title. Carmelo Anthony scored 36 points and added six assists, eight rebounds and zero turnovers. It was Anthony’s 29th 30-plus point game of the season. He is making a serious case for an MVP. John Wall got to the rim often and finished with 33 points. Chris Copeland finished with 17 points for the Wizards.
4. Miami Heat 94 – Milwaukee Bucks 83
Despite playing without Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, the Heat made easy work of the Bucks in a 94-83 victory Tuesday at American Airlines Arena. LeBron James led the way with 28 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for Miami. The Heat received strong play from Udonis Haslem, Ray Allen and Norris Cole, who combined for 32 points. With the victory, the Heat won the regular-season series 3-1. The Bucks were led by Brandon Jennings’ 30 points and four assists. James ought to have the MVP award in the bag unless the voters want to vote for someone else for a change.
5. Toronto Raptors 101 – Chicago Bulls 98
DeMar DeRozan scored 20 points, Rudy Gay had 19 and Amir Johnson and Kyle Lowry each contributed a double-double to lead the visiting Toronto Raptors a 101-98 victory over the Chicago Bulls. Johnson had 13 points and 11 rebounds while Lowry had 13 points and 10 assists. Jimmy Butler, playing in place of injured forward Luol Deng, had a career high with 28 points for the Bulls.
6. Memphis Grizzlies 94 – Charlotte Bobcats 75
The starters for the Grizzlies played a lackluster three quarters. Consequently, coach Lionel Hollins turned to his reserves in the fourth quarter and they responded by outscoring the Bobcats, to lead the Grizzlies to a 94-75 victory at home. Mike Conley had a game-high 20 points and seven assists.
7. Houston Rockets 101 – Phoenix Suns 98
Jermaine O’Neal will find it difficult to live this one down. He committed a goal-tending violation, touching the ball as James Harden’s last-second 3-point attempt made contact with the rim and remained inside the cylinder, to give the Rockets the win. Harden led all scorers with 33 points to go with six rebounds, six assists and a season-high nine turnovers.
8. Oklahoma City Thunder 90 – Utah Jazz 80
Utah Jazz’s 90-80 loss to Oklahoma City wasn’t enough for them to concede the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference to the Los Angeles Lakers. But as the Lakers ended up winning today, they moved up to the 8th spot. The Thunder, meanwhile, continued their push to claim the top overall seed in the Western Conference, with Russell Westbrook scoring 25 points and Kevin Durant adding 21 to fuel the victory. They are only half a game behind the Spurs.
9. Los Angeles Lakers 104 – New Orleans Hornets 96
Kobe Bryant paced himself really well today. Although he tried to get Jodie Meeks and Steve Blake going, both of them shot poorly. Forcing passes to Howard resulted in a bulk of Kobe’s five turnovers today. But he got Gasol going and in the fourth quarter, he exploded for 23 points to bury the Hornets. Tomorrow, the Lakers play the Blazers in another must win game. With this win, the Lakers moved on to the 8th spot in the West.
10. Golden State Warriors 105 – Minnesota Timberwolves 89
Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry combined for 54 points and the Golden State Warriors clinched their second playoff berth in 19 seasons with a 105-89 win today. Thompson had 25 of his game-high 30 points in the first half and added a career-high five steals for the Warriors, while Curry took over after the break with 13 points in the third quarter as part of a 24-point, 10-assist performance.