The Miami Heat have clinched an important victory in the playoff race thanks to a Dwyane Wade game winner. LeBron James writes history for the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Washington Wizards win an important game in Milwaukee.
The Hornets are pushing for another playoff spot, the Bulls are just in time. 53.7 percent of their throws hit the hosts from the field and provided clear conditions, especially in the second half. Charlotte was again led by Kemba Walker, who scored 31 points (11/19 FG, 6/10 threesomes) for the guests.
But Dwight Howard also delivered a good performance with 24 points and 6 rebounds. After the first quarter, the center was in a bad shape because he had to fight with his back again, as coach Steve Clifford explained. Howard didn’t want to know about it. According to him, it was a rib that tampered with him.”My back is fine. I’ve fallen hard a few times, it’s already happened,”D12 explained.
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While Charlotte won the fifth game in a row, the Bulls had to take the fifth place in a row, even though coach Fred Hoiberg was not dissatisfied:”We had some good phases, we just couldn’t keep up this level,”the coach analyzed. Still at the break, the game was balanced (51:51), after that 13 ball losses and a weak defence were the main problem for the guests.
Best scorer of the Bulls was Zach LaVine (21), who returned after his break. Coming from the bank, Bobby Portis scored 12 points and 10 rebounds, a double-double, while Lauri Markkanen scored 11 points and 7 boards. Paul Zipser, on the other hand, was again missing due to an injury to his foot.
LeBron James achieved several milestones that evening. The forward scored 31 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for his 67th birthday. Triple-Double of the career and comes so in the month February on a Triple-Double on the average. In addition, he is now the first player in history to have scored 30,000 points, 8,000 rebounds and 8,000 assists in his career.
“If you look at the history of the league and see the guys like Jason Kidd, Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson or Russell Westbrook playing triple doubles, then my name has to be mentioned.”
The game itself was hard work for the Cavs, who never had a double-digit lead at any point in the game (even the Nets didn’t do this either). Jarrett Allen (13) put Brooklyn in the lead with two converted free throws just over a minute to go, but Jordan Clarkson (14) countered from the outside. The lead changed again after a runner from Allen Crabbe (13), but a three-point game by Rodney Hood (14) put the Cavs on the winning track (123:121). LeBron and the strong George Hill (26,9/17 FG) brought the game home from the free-throw line.
The best scorer of the guests was D’ Angelo Russell (25), often used by playmaker Spencer Dinwiddie (11,11 Assists). Caris LeVert (18) kept the Second Unit running. The cavs also had strong reservists. Kyle Korver (18) pocketed four threesomes and Larry Nance Jr. (10,10 Rebounds) got a double-double.
Father Prime is finally back on South Beach. Dwyane Wade showed in this game that he still has something left in his tank. 27 seconds before the end, the shooting guard was fouled at the threesome and Wade remained icy cold and scuttled all attempts to equalize 100:100. After that, D-Wade Ben Simmons (11.6 Assists) deliberately fouled and the Australian, known to be a weak free-throwing player, made an attempt.
This was followed by the next big performance of Wade, who first danced around the perimeter and then scored a heavy jumper over Simmons to win. The Sixers still had 6 seconds left, but no time out, so it had to be fast. The Spalding went to J. J. Redick, but his threesome missed the mark.
Wade was the man of the day who scored 15 of the last 17 heat points,”he was simply unbelievable at the end of the day,”Redick had to admit,”he’s like that, he’s already doing his entire career,”said Sixers coach Brett Brown. With a total of 27 points (10/16 FG), Wade was also the top scorer of his colours in 25 minutes, with Goran Dragic (21) providing valuable support.
Joel Embiid scored 23 points and 8 rebounds in Philly, while frontcourt colleague Dario Saric scored 21 points. Marco Belinelli helped the Second Unit with 13 points (4/8 FG). The Sixers finally stumbled over an old problem. 23 ball losses were simply too much, otherwise the guests could have decided this game earlier.
Page 1: Outstanding calf meets game winner – LeBron historic
Page 2: Wizards win the Bucks – Clippers win Crimea in Denver