NBA On A Friday Night
The NBA on a Friday night is usually always exciting and it was no different on this 11 game night in the association featuring 2 of the hottest teams in the league facing off, some big time scoring out West and a matchup of 2 premiere point guards in the East.
Boston Celtics at Indiana Pacers. Pacers beat Celtics 107-103 in Overtime.
Boston Celtics came into the game minus 2 parts to their team as reports surfaced prior to the game that their star forward, Jeff Green, was reportedly involved in a trade that would send him to the Memphis Grizzlies. Green did not take the floor with the C’s. Brandan Wright was also involved in a trade to the Phoenix Suns. You would think it’s the NBA trade deadline with all these deal happening, but it’s still a little over a month away. The NBA All-Star game hasn’t even happened yet and these deals are flying around.
The Pacers were at relatively full strength when they took the floor as they were led by big man Roy Hibbert who scored 19 points on the night and grabbed 11 rebounds. C.J. Watson got the start at point guard and scored 15 points while pulling down 8 rebounds and David West scored 11 points and grabbed 6 rebounds of his own. C.J. Miles came off the bench to score 17 points, Luis Scola joined him off the bench to score 14 and Donald Sloan finished off the trio of bench players scoring with 10 points.
Avery Bradley scored 23 points on the night to lead the Celtics, Jae Crowder got the start for the missing Green and scored 11 points, grabbing 7 rebounds and Jared Sullinger matched Crowder’s scoring output with 11 points and 5 rebounds. Brandon Bass came off the bench for 17 points, Kelly Olynyk scored 13 points with 6 rebounds off the bench and Marcus Smart joined them off the bench as well to score 10 points.
Boston Celtics are 12-22. Indiana Pacers are 15-23.
Philadelphia 76ers at Brooklyn Nets. 76ers beat Nets 90-88.
Sixers came into Brooklyn looking to steal a win from a division rival and they did just that. Led by Robert Covington’s 20 points on the night to go along with Luc Richard Mbah A Moute’s 16 points. Nerlens Noel score 16 points and put down a go-ahead dunk with 3.6 seconds remaining on the clock to give the Sixers the win. Hollis Thompson came off the bench to score 12 points.
Brook Lopez led the Nets in scoring with 18 points and grabbed 6 rebounds while Mason Plumlee dropped 15 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. Jarrett Jack scored 14 points, handed out 10 assists and Joe Johnson scored 13 points.
Philadelphia 76ers are 6-29. Brooklyn Nets are 16-20.
Atlanta Hawks at Detroit Pistons. Hawks beat Pistons 106-103.
The two teams came into the game riding some great win streaks. The Pistons came in on a 7 game win streak and the Hawks came in on a 6 game winning streak so something had to give in the Motor City.
The Atlanta Hawks came out on top led by Al Horford’s 19 points and 16 rebounds. Paul Millsap scored 17 points, Jeff Teague dropped 14 points with 11 assists, DeMarre Carroll dropped 13 and Kyle Korver had 11 points on the night. Kent Bazemore came off the bench to score 12 points.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope led the Pistons in scoring with 20 points, Kyle Singler scored 16 points, grabbed 6 rebounds and handed out 5 assists. Greg Monroe scored 15 points with 12 rebounds and Brandon Jennings scored 14 points while handing out 8 assists. Anthony Tolliver came off the bench to score 15 points.
Atlanta Hawks are 28-8. Detroit Pistons are 12-24.
Memphis Grizzlies at New Orleans Pelicans. Pelicans beat Grizzlies 106-95.
In a matchup between 2 teams involved in a proposed 3-team deal, also involving the Celtics, saw the Pelicans take on the Grizzlies in New Orleans.
Pelicans came out with a big win over the Grizzlies led by Jrue Holiday’s 23 points and 8 assists. Anthony Davis scored 20 points and grabbed 9 rebounds, Ryan Anderson came off the bench to score 20 as well. Eric Gordon scored 13 points and Tyreke Evans has welcomed his new role off the bench to score 21 points.
Grizzlies were led by Mike Conley and Marc Gasol’s 19 points with Conley handing out 7 assists. Zach Randolph came back from injury to scored 11 points and grab 11 rebounds.
Memphis Grizzlies are 25-11. New Orleans Pelicans are 18-18.
Utah Jazz at Oklahoma City Thunder. Thunder Defeat Jazz 99-94.
Thunder found a way to win at home, despite a fantastic trick shot by Jazz forward Trevor Booker early on in the game. Thunder were led by Kevin Durant’s 32 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds and his partner in scoring, Russell Westbrook, dropped 25 points with 12 assists. Serge Ibaka scored 12 points and grabbed 7 rebounds while the newest member of the Thunder, Dion Waiters, scored 15 points and a 3 late in the game to seal the win for the Thunder.
Gordon Hayward dropped 27 points on the night, Derrick Favors scored 22 points with 11 rebounds and Trey Burke scored 20 points for the Jazz.
Utah Jazz are 13-24. Oklahoma City Thunder are 18-19.
Chicago Bulls at Washington Wizards. Wizards defeat Bulls 102-86.
In the first of 2 ESPN games on a NBA Friday night, the Washington Wizards took the Chicago Bulls to school in the nation’s capitol. Marcin Gortat led the Wizards in scoring with 21 points while grabbing 13 rebounds in the process, Bradley Beal dropped 17 points and John Wall scored 16 points and handed out 12 assists. Nene scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Rasual Butler came off the bench for 13 points.
Derrick Rose led the Bulls with 19 points, Pau Gasol dropped 12 points with 13 rebounds, Jimmy Butler scored 10 points and Aaron Brooks came off the bench for 16 points.
The Wizards never trailed.
Chicago Bulls are 25-12. Washington Wizards are 25-11.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Milwaukee Bucks. Bucks beat T-Wolves 98-84.
Brandon Knight led the way for the Bucks scoring 14 points, Khris Middleton had 10 points with 7 rebounds and Giannis Antetokounmpo dropped 10 points and grabbed 7 rebounds. John Henson scored 12 points coming off the bench and O.J. Mayo joined him off the bench to score 10. Kenyon Martin made his Bucks debut after signing with the team earlier this week and scored 6 points in 8 minutes.
Andrew Wiggins had another 20 point game, his sixth straight, with 7 rebounds and 5 assists on the night. Thaddeus Young and Shabazz Muhammad scored 12 each for the T-Wolves.
Minnesota Timberwolves are 5-30. Milwaukee Bucks are 20-18.
Phoenix Suns at San Antonio Spurs. Spurs defeat Suns 100-95.
The Spurs ‘Core Four’ struggled on the night but Danny Green held up the Spurs scoring 20 points, with Tim Duncan scoring only 12 on the night and grabbed 7 rebounds. Patty Mills came off the bench to score 15 and Cory Joseph came off the bench for 11 points to help the Spurs get the win.
The Suns may have made a deal earlier in the day to sure up their bench depth by acquiring Brandan Wright from the Boston Celtics but it was the 3-headed point guard monster that led the way for the Suns. Eric Bledsoe score 19 points, Goran Dragic scored 17 points and Isaiah Thomas dropped 11 coming off the bench. Gerald Green also came off the bench and scored 16 points.
Phoenix Suns are 22-17. San Antonio Spurs are 22-15.
Denver Nuggets at Sacramento Kings. Nuggets defeat Kings 118-108.
When 6 players score in double figures you expect to win. Especially with 2 players dropping 22 a piece, which was the case for the Nuggets in their win over the Kings. Ty Lawson and Arron Afflalo dropped 22 each for the Nuggets with Lawson handing out 8 assists. Jusuf Nurkic scored 16 points and grabbed 8 rebounds, Kenneth Faried scored 12 points but grabbed 13 rebounds and Darell Arthur scored 11 points. J.J. Hickson came off the bench to score 16 points on the night.
DeMarcus Cousins had the line of the night scoring 32 points, grabbing 13 rebounds, handing out 4 assists, swatting 4 shots away and swiping 3 steals but he did have 7 turnovers. Rudy Gay scored 22 points, Darren Collison had 15 points and handed out 7 assists and Nik Stauskas came off the bench to score 13.
Denver Nuggets are 17-20. Sacramento Kings are 15-21.
Cleveland Cavaliers at Golden State Warriors. Warriors beat Cavs 112-94.
The Splash Brothers were in full affect as they combined to score 47 points, Stephen Curry scored 23 points and handed out 10 assists and Klay Thompson, despite catching an elbow to his head that required him to get 7 stitches, scored 24 points. Marreese Speights scored 12 points, Harrison Barnes dropped 11 points and Draymond Green scored 10 points with 11 rebounds and 8 assists while Justin Holiday came off the bench to score 14 points.
Cavaliers were led by one of the newest members of the Cavs, J.R. Smith, with 27 points, Kyrie Irving scored 23 points, Kevin Love dropped 17 points and grabbed 14 rebounds and Tristan Thompson scored 11 points. Another new Cavalier, Timofey Mozgov, scored 9 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in 27 minutes of work coming off the bench.
Cleveland Cavaliers are 19-18. Golden State Warriors are 29-5.
Orlando Magic at Los Angeles Lakers. Lakers beat Magic 101-84.
The Kobe-less Lakers saw 6 players score in double figures led by Jeremy Lin coming off the bench to score 18 points with 6 assists. Ryan Kelly started and scored 13 points while grabbing 8 rebounds, Ed Davis had a double-double in the third quarter when he scored his 10th point and grabbed his 10th rebound, which is what he finished with on the night. Jordan Hill scored 11 points with 9 rebounds, Tarik Black came off the bench to score 14 points and grab 9 rebounds with Carlos Boozer joining him off the bench to score 12 points while he grabbed 14 rebounds of his own.
Victor Oladipo led the Magic with 17 points, Nikola Vucevic scored 14 points and grabbed 11 rebounds while Tobias Harris scored 15 points. Luke Ridnour scored 12 points and Evan Fournier scored 11 points as both players came off the bench.
Orlando Magic are 13-26. Los Angeles Lakers are 12-25.
