The San Antonio Spurs took a good beating in the top game against the Houston Rockets and clearly beat the shorter one. The Celtics lose surprisingly clear against jazz and also complain about an injury by Daniel Theis. But Utah got even worse. Besides: The nuggets win against the Pels after OT and the Bulls series with Mirotic holds. Dennis Schröder loses the crisis duel with the Hawks.
Both teams are running rather moderately at the moment, you could have expected a game of questionable quality – but it didn’t get that bad. The openers got off to a good start and made sure that the lead changed hands.
After a few minutes, the hosts lost the rhythm again and again, while the heat hit their throws constantly. For three minutes the hornet fans didn’t see a single basket success of their team, so that the opponent was able to take off for the first time. Charlotte, however, did a quick fight and started her own small run, which kept her at least within reach.
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However, it was not enough for more, even if it became very narrow. Kemba Walker and Dwight Howard were close to 98:100, but the answer came in the form of a Fadeaway from Dion Waiters. The Hornets did not score any more.
The second unit from which Wayne Ellington and Tyler Johnson played 16 points each won the heat. Best starter was Waiters (12 points, 6 assists). On the other hand, Walker (25 points, 5 Assists) and Howard (15 points, 16 Rebounds) had too little support.
2:0 and 48:47 – these were the two tours the Pacers had to celebrate in the first half. Apart from that, the pistons dominated the action and didn’t let themselves be put off by the fact that they gave away a 14-point lead within a very short time. Coach Stan van Gundy used to go into the cabin – just because of this temporary break-in.
And apparently he found the right words, because the third quarter of his team was above all outstanding in the offensive. Led by Andre Drummond and later by a good bank formation, they made a 34:20 section, hitting 60 percent of their throws. The result: A 15-point lead after 36 minutes.
But the Pacers, who have already celebrated a comeback or two this season, were buoying up. Her defense stabilized and Victor Oladipo found his throwing rhythm better. This also brought the fans back into the match, at the latest when there was a One Possession Game two minutes before the end. The pistons opener was standing next to him at that time, but the defense made up for it. She prevented Indiana from losing several chances to equalize or even take the lead. Motor City thus brought the away win over time.
Andre Drummond ended up with 23 points and 13 rebounds, with Reggie Bullock contributing 15 points. On the other hand Oladipo (26 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists) and Myles Turner (24 points, 8 rebounds) took over responsibility.
Yes, the Blazers have become one of the best defensive teams in the league this season. The Orlando Magic, who bite out their guests’ teeth one by one, got to feel the same thing.
Almost the entire game they were trailing behind. But this was always in such a moderate frame that at least there was hope that the matter would somehow change its course. In the last quarter they came back from a 17-point deficit and cut back to 5 points three minutes before the end. The answer: A 12:0 run of the Blazers. That’s it!
“We’ve had one or two matches in the season where the defence was not so good,” said Blazers coach Terry Stotts,”but both today and against Miami I was very happy with his team, who had managed to stay under 100 points twice in a row.
Once again, the backcourt proved to be an offensive choice. Damian Lillard scored 21 points and 4 assists, C. J. McCollum played 20 points and also 4 dimes. Best man of the Magic was Nikola Vucevic with 26 points and 14 rebounds, D. J. Augustin contributed 14 points from the bank.
Page 1: Pistons prevent Pacers comeback, Blazers Defense dominated
Page 2: Rockets pound Spurs, Celtics lose game and Theis
Page 3: Raptors dupe Nets, Hawks lose crisis duel
Page 4: Bulls-Series with Mirotic continues, Nuggets with comeback victory in OT