Follow Tuesday’s NBA Results
Rondo assists ten as Celtics pass Cleveland
Boston improved their season record with win over now-minnowers Cleveland Cavaliers, while Lakers beat Utah Jazz soundly to grab seventh straight home win.
Celtics passed Cleveland 112-95 last night at the TD Garden to cement their top spot in the Eastern Conference. This was Boston’s 22nd home victory, 34th of the season. Paul Pierce was in charge with scoring, Rajon Rondo with the passes. The first one ended the night with 24 points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal, while Rondo completed his 44-minute intervention with ten assists, five rebounds, four steals and 11 points.
Ray Allen brought 18 points for the hosts. He converted three three-pointers plus four assists, two rebounds and one block. Kevin Garnett scored 10 points, grabbed five rebounds and delivered one assist, all of these within 18 minutes. Reserves Nate Robinson and Glen Davis added 11 points each, while Von Wafer came up with two three-pointers.
On the other side, JJ Hickson’s showing included… 17 rebounds, five assists, four blocks and 12 points. He’s done a very good job. His team-mates should have had the same attitude. Christian Eyenga scored 15 points, while Ramon Sessions and Antawn Jamis added 14, respectively 11 points. Jamison filled his performance also with seven rebounds, one assists and one block. Sessions assisted seven times and grabbed one rebound.
Cleveland Cavaliers conceded their… 18th straight defeat of the season
Cleveland suffered their 37th loss to stay foot of the table in the Eastern Conference with a 8-37 negative record. They won just five games at home and three on the road. Celtics are, by contrast, the leaders of the conference. Boston claimed their 22th home victory to improve the record to 34-10, the second best one in the league.
Coach Byron Scott didn’t look too disappointed although his team is going from bad to worse. “I don’t care about all that. We’ll have a breakthrough. I’m not looking at the number of losses and things like that. I’m looking at it game-by-game and seeing if we’re improving on both ends of the floor.”
Jamison looked worried instead: “To be where we’re at — one of the worst records in the league right now — that’s tough. We’ve just got to worry about trying to find a way to fix it. That’s about the only thing you can do.” Boston are to visit Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday, while the Cavaliers are expected to play Denver Nuggets on Friday.
Los Angeles Lakers 120 – 91 Utah Jazz
Pau Gasol scored 20 points for the hosts, while Andrew Bynum grabbed 11 rebounds and added 19 points. Kobe Bryant, who converted seven of eight free-throws, ended the night with 21 points, six assists, two steals and one rebound.
Reserve Lamar Odom came from the bench to finish with a 17-point contribution. He also had eight rebounds and four assists. Derek Fisher converted two three-pointers. Luke Walton and Steve Blake added nine points each.
On the other side, Deron Williams brought 17 points and had eight assists and two steals. Paul Millsap couldn’t bring more than 11 points. CJ Miles came up with 14 instead, completing his showing with five assists, four rebounds and three steals. Al Jefferson and reserve Jeremy Evans scored ten points each.
Los Angeles had a tremendous start, managing to grab the opener 37-22 and even start the second half with a 28-point advantage. The third quarter found them more relaxed. It went 27-27, the last round becoming just a simple formality. Utah conceded the last quarter 26-27, but also their 11th defeat away, 18th of the season.
Los Angeles improved their season-record to 33-13, staying second in the Western Conference with a .717 average. Jazz lie sixth with 27 wins and 18 defeats. Lakers will next meet Sacramento Kings, on Friday, while Utah are to face the same Kings tonight.
Dallas Mavericks 112 – 105 Los Angeles Clippers
Dallas passed Clippers at the American Airlines Center to build streak. Clippers had a superb start, overcoming the hosts 33-25 in the first quarter. Jason Terry came from the bench to score the most points for the Mavericks. He added 28 points, converting four three-pointers and assisting three times.
Another reserve scored 25 points after converting three three-pointers. His name was Jose Juan Barea, the one who finished his 33-minute showing also with four assists and one rebound. Dirk Nowitzki was also on the court. He added 20 points and grabbed five rebounds. Tyson Chandler played, too. He brought 21 points. It was the night the reserves played much better than the starters.
DeShawn Stevenson scored seven, while Jason Kidd scored just one point throughout his 33-minute intervention. On the other side, Blake Griffin kept the Clippers alive, especially in the first half. He scored 22 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and had four assists. Baron Davis added 21 and ended the night with six assists, three steals and two rebounds.
The break brought the visitors an eight-point advantage, one they couldn’t keep within the second one. But on the contrary, Dallas thwarted the Clippers 27-16 in the third quarter to grab a short lead. Concerning the last quarter, it found both sides going head-to-head until the last minute. But Dallas were the ones to play more aggressive. They edged the Clippers 31-27 to claim their 16th home win, 29th of the season.
Dallas sit third in the Western Conference table with 29 wins and 15 defeats, while the Clippers lie third from the bottom with 17 wins and 27 defeats. Both Dallas and Clippers are to face Houston. Mavericks meet the Rockets on Thursday, while Los Angeles this Wednesday.
Sacramento Kings 89 – 94 Charlotte Bobcats
Stephen Jackson scored 21 points for the Bobcats, but Charlotte’s man of fire was Kwame Brown. The starter grabbed 18 rebounds and scored 13 points in 35 minutes. Gerald Wallace scored 19 points, while DJ Augustin ended the night with 16 points.
On the other side, the Kings didn’t shine that bright. Carl Landry and Tyreke Evans scored 19 points each. Jason Thompson was the last to score more than nine points. He ended with 14, eight rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Sacramento lie second from the bottom with ten wins and 33 defeats, while the Bobcats are sit eighth in the Eastern Conference with a negative record of 18 wins and 25 defeats. Charlotte are to meet Phoenix tonight, while Sacramento play Los Angeles Lakers on Friday.11
