What you missed while wondering if snails can glow in the dark…
Amar’e Stoudemire being .02 late and the Celtics winning in MSG is our game of the night.
Heat 101, Cavaliers 95: It was the first meeting with the Heat that seemed to throw Cleveland into a funk. This game against the Heat seemed to break them out of it as it was their best performance in weeks. It was close but Dwyane Wade went off for 17 in the fourth quarter and the Cavaliers countered with… well, the guy they used to counter with is playing next to Wade. The Heat remain hot — 10 in a row now — and they get the Knicks on Friday.
Lakers 109, Pacers 94: This was a blowout early, the Lakers played one of their more complete games and that overwhelmed a Pacers team where the rotations are apparently done by lottery. By the way, Lakers fans are all over the “2-0 with Bynum” thing but until the Heat on Christmas the only teams on the schedule are teams the Lakers should beat easily (well, maybe not the Bucks, who are figuring things out).
Bulls 110, Raptors 93: If Joakim Noah was going to have one game to play before his thumb surgery, tearing apart the sad interior defense of the Raptors is the perfect choice. He got a double-double in 26 minutes with one hand. This was a laugher.
Sixers 105, Clippers 91: This was close for a half, then the Clippers shot 32 percent in the third quarter and 29 percent in the fourth. It was a combination of poor Clipper play by their young guards Bledsoe and Gordon and some improving Sixers defense.
Hornets 94, Kings 91: This one has to hurt the Kings more than most (and they have plenty of experience losing this season) — Sacramento had a 23 point lead after a 9-2 run to open the third quarter. But Marcus Thornton sparked the comeback, which was fueled by 10 second half Kings turnovers. Paul Westphal is giving DeMarcus Cousins some key minutes and he looked better but was part of the turnover problem.
Thunder 117, Rockets 105: The Thunder were knocking down everything, shooting 57.7 percent overall and hitting 7 of 11 from three. Plus they hit 28 of 29 free throws (they remain on pace to set a record high team free throw percentage for a single season). The Rockets played well, particularly Kevin Martin and Luis Scola, but they couldn’t keep pace.
Grizzlies 113, Bobcats 80: We have an O.J. Mayo sighting — he hit 10 of 15 (3 of 6 from beyond the arc) off the bench to score 24. That kind of bench production makes the Grizzlies hard to beat.
Spurs 92, Bucks 90: Manu Ginobili. The man is cold blooded. The Spurs led by as much as 18 but the Bucks battled back in all the way to being tied, then Manu happened at the buzzer. The Spurs had the last possession and ran pure isolation for Manu, he drove left, got to the elbow, traveled and hit a step back two as the red light went on. Cold hearted. (Side note, Tim Duncan with seven blocks in this one.)
Suns 128, Timberwolves 122: Blistering fast pace in this one — 104 possessions. That made it entertaining if a bit sloppy at times. Steve Nash finished with 19 assists — when he is setting up people for easy buckets you can’t beat the Suns.
Mavericks 103, Trail Blazers 98: Dirk Nowitzki can just be amazing — he had 12 in the fourth and took over the game late as the Blazers fought back. He shut the door. Just amazing to watch. However, Lamarcus Aldridge put up 35 on the Mavericks and once again exposed their interior defense. A bad trend for Mavs fans.
