Damian Lillard and the Portland Trail Blazers defy Kevin Durant and move the Golden State Warriors to second place at the Western Conference. The rockets benefit and march with just as much determination as the Jazz and Raptors. The Knicks are embarrassing themselves.
The initial euphoria had disappeared somewhat in Detroit after Blake Griffin won five victories and then lost three straight away. So a win was to come, and the weak Hawks came just in time – especially since they had three of the most important players with Dennis Schröder (back), Kent Bazemore (rest) and Ersan Ilyasova (shoulder). Nevertheless, Detroit had to tremble once again in the end.
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It looked like a long time after a walk. In the third quarter the pistons had a 17:2 run and sometimes even led with 30 points difference. Atlanta didn’t give up, however, and in the last quarter managed to narrow it down to 4 points after Detroit fouled several times in the final minutes – Stan Van Gundy couldn’t believe it – in the threesome. It was Ish Smith (22 points) who managed to avert the threatening shame with two free throws 10 seconds before the end.
Smith was also Detroit’s top scorer, while Blake Griffin (13 points, 12 rebounds, 9 assists) narrowly missed the triple double. Andre Drummond (13 points, 15 rebounds) also delivered the almost obligatory double-double and four other players landed in Double Figures. With Andrew White III (15 points) a two-way player was the top scorer at the Hawks.
So the Hornets can still win. After four bankruptcies at a time, Charlotte was right to beat her favourite opponent once again – after all, the Hornets had already won the last nine games in a row against Orlando. And now there was a tenth victory, even if it was almost out of hand.
Charlotte had taken a 9-point lead into the last round, but then it melted almost immediately and after a Bismack Biyombo layup, it even became a 96:97 gap 1:20 minutes to the end. But then it was Kemba Walker (20 points) who threesomely tore the Hornets out of their sleeping beauty. After the Magic failed with several attempts, Nicolas Batum (14) added a threesome and so the game was decided 11.3 seconds before the end, even if Marreese Speights with a triple with the siren still provided for result cosmetics.
The top scorer of the match was Dwight Howard with 22 points and 13 rebounds, even though he wasn’t really a factor in the last quarter. Jeremy Lamb also performed well with 17 points from the bank. With 21 points and 10 rebounds Mario Hezonja was the most conspicuous player in Magic.
What a game in Philadelphia – and what a victory for the Sixers! In the duel with a direct competitor for the play-off places, the young team showed a lot of heart and mentality. In the meantime Philly was 24 points behind, and Joel Embiid was the best player with ankle problems. And yet, in the end, it was barely enough:”That just shows what a team we are,”said Ben Simmons happily.”We’re fighting back and don’t let them shake us off.”
Of course, the rookie himself played a major role in this. With 18 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, Simmons put on his sixth triple double of the season and led his team to the fifth victory in a row. The Australian scored efficiently himself (8/15 FG) and also used his team mates consistently well – including newcomer Marco Belinelli, who made a good debut for the Sixers with 17 points, and Dario Saric (19 points).
The most important throw of the game, however, was scored by J. J. J. Redick. After Philly had eliminated the huge gap first and then in the last quarter at times even with 6 points, Miami also came back again. 19.4 seconds before the end Redick (14 points) then hit the decisive jumper to 102:99. Philly was once again in a tremor, although Robert Covington added two free throws, as a Tyler Johnson threesome brought Miami back to 2 points and then the Heat got another chance. However, a potential game winner by returnee Dwyane Wade (8) missed his goal, and Philly ended up with the eleventh consecutive home win in a row.
The Heat, on the other hand, have now lost seven of their last eight games, although James Johnson (22), Goran Dragic (18) and Hassan Whiteside (16,10 Rebounds) performed well and we’re able to cross the threshold again, and we’ll be able to do so,”said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra.
Page 1: Hawks bankruptcy without Schröder, Sixers with mega comeback
Page 2: Knicks gamble 27-point lead – Raptors march
Page 3: Rockets marching, Davis brachially
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