The Philippine Online Chronicles

Tuesday night saw two record-breaking performances - one good and one bad - in the NBA. The highest scoring output of the season was made, while a certain team from New Jersey continued to add to the franchise record for most losses in a single season. The Spurs appeared rejuvenated for Playoff time, while Lebron James and Kobe Bryant had an intriguing statistical showdown despite having played in different games. All this and more in today's rundown of NBA action:

Charlotte Bobcats 94, Indiana Pacers 99

The Charlotte Bobcats 6-game winning streak was snapped as they lost to the Indiana Pacers, 99-94. Charlotte had been playing well, coming off a huge win at Orlando, but faltered against Indiana, which had previously lost 14 of their last 17 games. The Pacers’ Troy Murphy scored 16 points, pulled down 13 rebounds, and dished out 5 assists. Danny Granger had 26 points, although he shot 9 of 25 from the field, and added 8 rebounds, as the two forwards led the Pacers in the upset over the Bobcats. Stephen Jackson scored 20 points for the Bobcats, with Jackson adding 9 rebounds and 6 assists. Boris Diaw also had 20 points, adding 5 rebounds and 4 assists, but had a costly turnover in the final minute, throwing the ball to Indiana’s Murphy with 20 seconds to play and wasting a 7-0 run that had gotten them within three. Indiana made two free throws for the final margin. Charlotte All-Star forward Gerard Wallace missed his second straight game due to a sprained ankle.

San Antonio Spurs 88, Miami Heat 76

Don’t look now, but the San Antonio Spurs are surging once again. The Spurs became winners of eight of their last nine games with a rout over the Miami Heat, 88-76. The Spurs had already built a 25-point lead, and still led by 17 to begin the fourth period, before the Heat went rang off 11 straight points to cut the lead to 6. Manu Ginobili wouldn’t let this game escape their grasp, however, stemming the bleeding with a huge trey, and jumpstarting a 14-4 run to tip the balance decisively in the Spurs’ favor. Ginobili finished with 22 points and 5 rebounds. Richard Jefferson had 15 points and 8 rebounds, and Tim Duncan added 12 points and 11 rebounds for San Antonio, which has won four straight games. Miami, which was coming off a three-game win streak, was led by Dwyane Wade’s 28 points and 5 assists.

Atlanta Hawks 108, New Jersey Nets 84

Playing without Joe Johnson for the first time this season, the Atlanta Hawks rode on the hot shooting of Jamal Crawford to power them past the New Jersey Nets, 108-84. Crawford scored 15 points in the second quarter, breaking open a game that was deadlocked at 22-all in the first quarter. Atlanta never looked back, ending the third period up by 20, and letting the starters rest early. This was Atlanta’s third straight win, and they go into their next game at Toronto possibly still missing Johnson, who is resting Achilles’ tendinitis. Crawford finished with 25 points on 11-of-18 shooting, and Al Horford had 15 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists to lead the Hawks starters. Brook Lopez scored 20 points for the Nets, who lost for the 60^th time in 67 games, and needs three wins in its last 15 games to avoid tying or breaking the NBA mark for futility of fewest wins in a season (9, set by the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers).

Cleveland Cavaliers 113, Detroit Pistons 101

What was once a fierce rivalry has certainly fallen apart in the past couple of seasons. James finished with his fourth triple double of the season, scoring 29 points and adding 12 rebounds and 12 assists, to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers over division rivals the Detroit Pistons, 113-101. The Pistons actually kept the game close throughout the first three periods, even leading by 1 at the end of the third. The fourth quarter saw James and Mo Williams explode, with James scoring 15 points, and Williams adding 11, including three treys. Williams finished with 20 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 assists, and Antawn Jamison had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who won their fourth straight. The Pistons, losers of three straight, had all five starters score in double figures, but it wasn’t enough to stop James and the Cavaliers late, as they got outscored 38-25 in the final quarter, including a 19-7 run by the Cavs to end the game.

Chicago Bulls 97, Memphis Grizzlies 104

The Memphis Grizzlies nearly lost a big lead, but managed to hold on for the win against the undermanned Chicago Bulls, 104-97. The Grizzlies led by as many as 25, seemingly breaking the game open in the second and third quarters. O.J. Mayo scored 13 of his team-high 24 in the second quarter. However, the Bulls fought back in the fourth, using late flurry to get within as close as four. The Grizzlies were able to hold on though, but missing 10 of their last 12 shots certainly made the game closer than it appeared. Pacing Memphis were Mike Conley, who had 19 points, 10 assists, and 5 steals; and Zach Randolph, who added 18 points and 12 rebounds. The undermanned Bulls were without their top four scorers: Derrick Rose, Luol Deng, and Joakim Noah were out with injuries, and Kirk Hinrich as serving a one-game suspension for bumping a referee. Flip Murray led the Bulls with 25 points and 5 steals. Chicago lost their 8^th straight, and fell one and a half games behind the idle Toronto Raptors for the eighth playoff spot in the East.

Washington Wizards 87, Denver Nuggets 97

The Denver Nuggets rewarded ailing coach George Karl with what he told them would be the best medicine, with a win over the slumping Washington Wizards, 97-87. Karl had been absent for a week while receiving treatment for throat and neck cancer. As he returned to the sidelines, the Nuggets didn’t seem to be particularly inspired or focus, as the Wizards fought hard and sported a 6 point lead going into the second half. Denver turned it on in the second half, though, catching up to the Wizards. J.R. Smith then went on a personal 9-4 run in the fourth, setting up the stage for Carmelo Anthony to push the lead to double figures with a little over a minute left, sealing the outcome. Anthony finished with 29 points and 12 rebounds, and J.R. Smith had 17 off the bench. Andray Blatche had 23 points and 8 rebounds for Washington, before leaving in the fourth when he twisted his ankle. Undrafted rookie Alonzo Gee, who had been called up from the NBDL, had 13 points and 10 rebounds off the bench for the Wizards, who lost their ninth straight.

LA Lakers 106, Sacramento Kings 99

The LA Lakers are rounding into championship form, pounding the ball inside and scoring 60 points in the paint on their way to their fourth straight win, a 106-99 decision over the Sacramento Kings. Kobe Bryant led the team with 30 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists, while the Lakers big men took care of the rest of the scoring. Andrew Bynum had 21 points and 12 rebounds, and Pau Gasol had 28 and 12. The Lakers had a relatively easier time in this, the third of their four meetings this season. LA had previously needed two overtimes, and then a buzzer-beating three-pointer from Bryant in their previous two wins against the Kings this season. Kings rookie guard Tyreke Evans, one of the favorites for Rookie of the Year honors, nearly had another triple double, scoring 25 points and adding 11 rebounds and 9 assists. Carl Landry and Jason Thompson each had double doubles for the Kings.

Minnesota Timberwolves 114, Phoenix Suns 152

Put the team with the best offense versus the team with the worst defense, and what do you expect? A high-octane, high-scoring basketball game, such as hasn’t been seen this season. The Phoenix Suns didn’t disappoint, scoring a whopping 152 points and routing the Minnesota Timberwolves, who managed “only” 114 points. Steve Nash orchestrated the offense to perfection from the get-go, dishing 9 assists in the first period alone. He finished with 13 points and 14 assists. Jason Richardson scored 27 points, making 6 treys, and Amare Stoudemire had 25 points. None of the Suns starters played more than 30 minutes, as they had big games from their bench. Lou Amundson had a career-high 20 points and 7 rebounds, while Goran Dragic and Channing Frye also had double-digit scoring efforts off the bench. Corey Brewer scored 21 points, including a ferocious dunk over the Suns’ 7-foot center Robin Lopez, for Minnesota, one of the few fun moments in this game for the team who has lost their tenth straight.

Screencap taken from "LeBron James Goaltending Not Called", originally uploaded by arizarocket.