Aminu, Mavs stop Rockets Rally

On the second night of a back to back and awaiting Amar'e Stoudemire's debut, the Dallas Mavericks steamrolled to a 20 point lead in the 3rd quarter over the Houston Rockets. The Rockets would pull to within 5 points midway in the 4th, but the Mavericks, lead by Al-Farouq Aminu and Devin Harris, pulled away securing a 111-100 victory. Both finished with 17 points and Aminu contributed 12 rebounds in the effort.  

Rajon Rondo worked with Dirk Nowitzi's shooting coach, Holger Geschwinder, this week and it showed. He shot 6-9 from the field and drained 4 straight in the 3rd. James Harden did James Harden things and dropped 26 points, 11 of them coming from the line. Chandler Parsons left the game late due to an ankle injury and wouldn't return. Meanwhile his backup Aminu went for 17 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 blocks, along with his usual stellar defense. Makes you wonder whether Rick Carlisle might try him out in the starting line up? He appears to be playing extremely well. The Mavericks highest paid player (Parsons) might find himself coming off the bench if Aminu's dominate play continues.

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Bulls Drop Road Game in Houston, 101-90

The Chicago Bulls lost its third game in a row and fell into a tie with the Cleveland Cavaliers for the lead in the Central Division.  Despite Cleveland's earlier woes, the Bulls could not build a big enough lead.  When Chicago started to lose some games, Cleveland went on a winning streak and here we are.  With 2+ months to go in the season, its duke it out time for the best playoff seeding.

The Bulls didn't help its cause Wednesday night. Shooting an anemic 34.8 % from the floor, Chicago failed to show real punch in the offense and the defense let up easy baskets in the low post.  Chicago was outscored 30-21 in the second quarter and James Harden had 15 points to jump-start the Rockets.

Harden had a payback night against Jimmy Butler, scoring 27 points, 22 in the first half.  Houston did not have a good floor game but won anyways, 101-90. The Rockets hit less than 42% of its shots but got a strong game from Trevor Ariza, who scored 20 points. In Houston, the Rockets went to the charity stripe 23 times as opposed to 5 attempts in Chicago. The Rockets made 17 shots which helped.

Jimmy Butler led the Bulls with 27 points, and Pau Gasol had another double-double, with 16 points and 12 boards.  The problem with the Bulls is that two starters combined only for 4 points, Noah 1, and Hinrich 3. Mike Dunleavy missed another game and is expected to be back soon.

Let's face it, the Bulls are in a quandary. Gasol and Noah appear to be having a difficult time meshing in the first unit in the front court.  Noah needs to carve out his own role, passing, rebounding, and getting 2nd chance shot opportunities.  He needs to find his role on the court soon. He is too good of a player to be ineffective on offense.  Taj Gibson came off the bench to score 12 and haul in 10 rebounds.

This is the first 3 game losing streak of the season. Chicago has lost 4 of 5 games. There are a lot of questions about this team, and the Bulls need to start finding the answers.  Forget about overtaking Atlanta, Chicago has its hands full facing Cleveland.

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Bulls Storm Back in 4th Quarter to Beat Rockets, 114-105.

The Chicago Bulls are for real.  Monday night they took on the league's leading scorer in James Harden and the dangerous Houston Rockets and used a stirring 4th quarter rally to defeat Houston, 114-105.

The Bulls outscored Houston 19-5 in the final 3:19 of the game to tie, and take the lead.  Again, Chicago had outstanding efforts from Pau Gasol who scored 27 points and grabbed 14 boards for his 18th double-double of the season. Gasol seems to be playing his way into All-Star consideration.  And, another possible All-Star is Jimmy Butler who had 22 points and did a great job defensively on Harden, who had 20 points, below his 27.2 average per game. 

Derrick Rose had 19 points including 2 big free-throws late on secure a 107-103 lead.  Harden then missed on a 3 point attempt and Nikola Mirotic, who is making a name for himself, hit a clutch trey, to give Chicago a 110-103 advantage with 39.6 seconds remaining.  It was enough to send the Bulls fans home and happy.

Chicago did not have Mike Dunleavy who sat with an injured ankle.  But the Bulls prevailed on their home court to bring their Home record to 11-6.  They've been hot at home, winning most of the games in the past few weeks. Chicago has won 13 of 15 games to climb 6 games in front of the Cleveland Cavaliers, who lost on the road to the '76ers.

Josh Smith, newly acquired from Detroit, had 21 for the Rockets. F Donatas Moliejunas contributed with 16 points. Dwight Howard had 12 points, and 14 rebounds.

The game was back and forth until the fourth quarter when the Bulls got hot and inched away from the Rockets. Butler hit a key trey to put Chicago on top, 105-103 with less than 2:00 to go. Rose, who hasn't been shooting the ball well of late, did come through in crunch time with his 2 FT's.  The Bulls converted 27 of 30 free throws while Houston was only 3 of 5. 

"We just didn't execute down the stretch." said Josh Smith

Chicago had a moment of silence before the game for sports anchor Stuart Scott of ESPN who passed away Sunday from cancer.

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Do Any Teams Down 2-0 Have a Chance to Win Their Series?

The NBA Playoffs have lived up to the billing thus far, with --- games going into overtime through two games in all of the series. Some series have gone back-and-forth, but there are also a couple teams are staring down 0-2 holes. 85 percent of teams go on and win once they open up a 2-0 lead; only 16 teams have come back from an 0-2 deficit in an NBA playoff series, most recently being done by the Memphis Grizzlies last season against the Los Angeles Clippers. Will any of the teams facing that deficit become the 17^th team to do it? Here are their chances of breaking through and taking control of the series.

Chicago Bulls – The Bulls came into the playoffs riding high, as they rode their chemistry and defense to the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. Both things have abandoned the Bulls in the postseason thus far, as they are in an 0-2 hole to the Washington Wizards, despite having the home court advantage.

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Coming into the series, many people believed the Bulls held a serious advantage in the paint, as the trio of Joakim Noah, Carlos Boozer and Taj Gibson has been the backbone of the team all season. No one told the Wizards this, as they have actually been the ones benefiting from the play of their big man, with the resurgent Nene leading the way. Nene has gone for 24 points, eight rebounds, three assists and 17 points, eight rebounds and three assists in the first two games. He has been able to affect the game of Noah, disrupting Noah with his brute strength.

The Bulls should still feel comfortable that in the end Noah and their other big men will get the most of the Wizards bigs, but the problem they face then is slowing down the Wizards perimeter players. John Wall and Bradley Beal make up one of the best young backcourts, and are thought of by many as potentially the best backcourt in the NBA within the next few seasons.

Wall has yet to get going, combining for only 10 field goals in the two games, while turning the ball over eight times. The Bulls will regret not getting at least one, if not both of these games at home, as they cannot pin their playoff hopes on Wall putting up underwhelming games four more times.

Not in the Bulls favor is that Beal looked much more comfortable in Game 2, leading the way for the Wizards with 26 points. He made big time shots in the fourth quarter as well, canning two of his four three point makes to keep the Wizards deficit at a manageable margin in the fourth quarter. Beal, like Wall and Nene, give the Wizards a player that create offense for himself and get a basket when they need it most. That is something the Bulls lack, as D.J. Augustin was the player keeping them in the game tonight.

Even worse for the Bulls, the Wizards are now heading home with all of the momentum and a 2-0 lead. The Bulls have proven they play well in the face of adversity, but this is a task that seems too tall to climb. The Bulls became the 24^th team in NBA history to go down 0-2 starting the series at home, and only three teams previously came back to win the series. The Bulls should avoid the sweep, but becoming the fourth team to come back from that kind of series deficit does not look to be in their future.

Charlotte Bobcats – The Bobcats gave the Miami Heat everything they could in Game 2, yet the result was the same as Game 1; a loss. The end score was closer, but in the postseason morale victories are useless, and that is all the Bobcats came away with from the first two games of the series is a morale victory.

Lynne Sladky-AP Photo

When you get 22 points from Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who hadn’t scored more than 11 in game since November 15^th, you are thinking positively. Add in the fact that Al Jefferson had 18, Kemba Walker with 16 and Gerald Henderson scored 15, and you would say the Bobcats had a pretty good shot at the victory.

Unfortunately for them, the Heat have the best player in the world in LeBron James and he put up a monster game of his own, scoring 32 points with eight assists and six rebounds.

With big man Jefferson injuring his left foot in Game 1, the Bobcats miniscule chances of pulling off the big upset became nonexistent. Couple that with the fact that the Heat are a perfect 17-0 against the Bobcats since James and Chris Bosh joined Dwayne Wade, getting a victory in this series would be something to celebrate for the Bobcats. A win on their home court in the playoffs would be nice for the fans, and the best they should expect, as the Heat have the Bobcats number and the Bobcats are without a lot of firepower with Jefferson hobbled.

Houston Rockets – Coming into the postseason, this was a series circled by many to be the most entertaining of the first round. Matched up with the Portland Trail Blazers, this was a series many people picked to go seven games. Both teams were extremely similar, posting identical regular season records and playing similar styles. Unfortunately for the Rockets, they do not have LaMarcus Aldridge.

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Aldridge has been a monster through two games, scoring 89 combined points between Game 1 and 2. The Rockets have had no answer for Aldridge, as he has dominated all over the court. He is 17-26 from the paint, 16-31 from the rest of two point shots, and 2-2 from three point line. These are not all open shots, but Aldridge has supreme confidence right now and does not look like he will be slowed down anytime soon. He is the reason why the Blazers are up 2-0 in a playoff series for the first time since 1977, coincidentally the same year they won their only championship.

The Rockets blew a golden opportunity to tie this series up, as Aldridge was the only player who shot the ball well for the Blazers in Game 2, and Dwight Howard finally showed up. He scored 32 points to go with 14 rebounds, yet that was not enough to get the Rockets a victory. Houston even dominated the paint, outscoring the Blazers by 38 in the paint, yet they still found a way to lose the game.

Things are not looking up for the Rockets right now, and have the deck severely stacked against them. The one thing that can get the Rockets back on track is James Harden. All season they have relied on Harden to lead their up-tempo attack, but through two games in the post season he has struggled. The struggles have caused the Rockets to change how they play, running the offense through Howard on the interior in Game 2 instead of getting out in transition.

The Rockets need Harden to play how he played throughout the regular season if they are to have any chance of making this a series again. With how similar the teams are, the Rockets have the best chance of coming back from the 2-0 deficit they face of any team on this list. That is not saying much, as teams down 2-0 are in a big hole, but when you have firepower of the level of the Rockets anything is possibly. It just is not very likely, but for the fans sake hopefully they get it going as the two games in this series have made for the most entertaining series thus far in the post season.

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Aldridge, Lillard Come Up Huge, Blazers Take Game 1 in Houston

Remember that old saying, "experience plays a huge factor"? It did not come into play last night, not one bit. The 2014 playoffs have gotten off to a roaring start and out of all the first round series out there, this one might be the most entertaining. Houston and Portland both finished their 2013-14 campaigns with a record of 54-28, with Houston earning the tie-breaker and home court advantage. Game 1 was an instant classic, with Portland rallying from a 10 point deficit with six minutes to play, as well as a six point deficit in overtime, to steal a 1-0 lead in this best-of-seven series. The two most lasting images from last night: LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard.

The game began fast paced as usual, staying close throughout the first half, until the Rockets got hot in the third and seemed as if they were about to pull away. James Harden was pulling up in transition and the fans were going crazy, but it's not over, until the buzzer sounds, and Houston forgot that. LaMarcus Aldridge played the best game of his career, scoring a career high/franchise playoff record 46 points(22 in the 4th quarter/OT), on 17-for-31 shooting, also going 2-for-2 from beyond the arc(wow). He also grabbed 18 rebounds and blocked two shots, and scored the tip-in that wound up sending the game to overtime. He would go on to foul out, but no doubt his impact was felt. Second year player Damian Lillard was equally impressive with 31 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, and only 1 turnover, including the game tying 3 pointer with under 30 seconds remaining. After Aldridge fouled out in overtime, Lillard was the man Portland relied on down the stretch and did he ever come through. He scored 5 points in the final minute of OT, including an and-one and calmly sinking two pressure free throws. This was the first time a duo of players had scored 45 and 30 respectively, since Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen accomplished the feat in 1992, over 20 years ago.

On the flip side, James Harden had a very sub-par game to his standards. He wound up with 27 points, but he ended up taking one more shot(28) than points he scored. Overall Harden was 8-for-28 on field goals(28%). Dwight Howard's numbers may hide the fact he was not effective down the stretch, where Portland began to hack-a-Dwight, and to their delight, it paid off. Howard finished with 27 points and 15 boards, but messed a lot of potentially big plays up in the 4th quarter(to his credit, he was 4-for-5 from the free throw line in OT). Howard was hit with a questionable sixth foul later on, but he had a pretty solid night in some areas.

It's not time to panic in Houston, nor is it time to celebrate in Portland. Both of these teams are equally capable of winning this series, and both have dynamic duos they can rely on down the stretch. Overall, Portland came out blazing and the Rockets ended up failing to launch down the stretch. The only thing the Rockets can not afford to do, is to lose Game 2 and head to the northwest down 0-2. Game 2 will be in Houston on Wednesday at 9:30 ET on TNT.

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NBA Playoffs: Western Conference 1st Round Preview

San Antonio Spurs (1) vs Dallas Mavericks (8)

The Spurs have ignored the murmurs of them being too old to contend for the Championship once again, and not only have they secured the top seed in the West, but also home court advantage throughout the playoffs. They have also accomplished this while managing the minutes of every player on the team, with no-one playing an average of more than 30 minutes per game. This is a great testament to the coaching of Gregg Popovich, who continues to get the most out of his team no matter who is on the court.

The Mavs were able to sneak into the playoffs after beating the much improved Phoenix Suns in a battle for the eight spot. Dirk Nowitzki has been instrumental once again in his team making the playoffs, with his 21.7 points per game landing him joint 12th in the league in scoring. He has been aided by an unlikely Sixth Man of the Year candidate, Vince Carter, who has provided some much needed offense off the bench.

This battle of Texas has the potential to be a walkover. The Spurs are well rested and will be looking to get this series over with as quickly as possible so they can get an extra few days rest before the next series. The Spurs swept the season series 4-0, and I expect the same result here. Despite the potential sweep, it will be great to see arguably two of the greatest power forwards of all time, Nowitzki and Duncan, lock horns once again in the playoffs. Duncan currently has a slight 14-12 advantage over Nowitzki in playoff games played against each other, expect that margin to grow.

Winner: Spurs in 4.

Oklahoma City Thunder (2) vs Memphis Grizzlies (7)

The Thunder secured the second seed in the Western Conference despite not having Russell Westbrook for 35 games due to injury. This has been, in large part, due to the play of Kevin Durant, who will surely win the Most Valuable Player award this season, after leading the league in scoring with a monstrous 32 points per game. At one point in the season, Durant had a streak of 41 games with 25 points or more, truly astounding numbers.

The Grizzlies are a team that the Thunder would probably have liked to avoid. Their big men of Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol will punish the Thunder inside, and will look to slow the game down so that they can keep up with the young and athletic Thunder. Tony Allen and Tayshaun Prince will have to be at their best defensively, as they will no doubt shoulder the unenviable task of taking it in to turns to guard Kevin Durant.

This is a re-match of last season’s Western Conference semi-finals, in which the Grizzlies prevailed against the Thunder, who were missing Russell Westbrook due to injury. These two teams do not like each other, with Randolph and Perkins getting in a verbal altercation on the court last season. That is the type of physicality we can expect to see in this series. Ultimately, the Thunder should have enough to get past the Grizzlies, as they will have no answer to the offense that Westbrook and Durant can create.

 Winner: Thunder in 6.

LA Clippers (3) vs Golden State Warriors (6)

The Clippers are an exciting team to watch and are almost impossible when running on the fast break. Chris Paul orchestrates this team perfectly, getting everyone involved, which makes things a lot harder for the opposition defense. Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordon’s athleticism is going to be very tough for the Warriors to deal with, as they are not blessed with athletic big men. The Clippers made solid acquisitions during the season and look more than ready for a deep run into the playoffs.

It is baffling that there were rumors during the season that Mark Jackson was on the verge of being released from his position, despite him leading the Warriors to the playoffs for the second season in a row, the first time Golden State have done this in over 20 years. The Warriors have the ability to bury any team when their shooting is on form, with Stephen Curry being almost impossible to stop when shooting off the dribble, and Klay Thompson is not a bad second option either.

This should be an exciting series, with two high scoring teams who will be playing at a fast pace. The Warriors will need their shooting to be on top form in this series, because if Andrew Bogut does have to miss this series due to a broken rib, the Clippers will have a much easier job of dominating in the paint with their athletic big men. Again, this should be an exciting series, so enjoy it, as it could be over quickly.

                                                                   Winner: Clippers in 5.

Houston Rockets (4) vs Portland Trailblazers (5)

This could be the best chance that Dwight Howard has had so far to win a Championship. The Rockets are built perfectly to play an inside-outside game, allowing Howard to go to work in the post and passing the ball out to a shooter if he is double-teamed. It was this style of play that saw him make the NBA Finals with the Orlando Magic. James Harden and Chandler Parsons make a lethal pairing on the wings, and will be very difficult for the Blazers to stop.

The Trailblazers got the season off to an incredible start, leading the way in the Western Conference with a 31-6 record. They fell off slightly in the second half of the season, but did enough to finish in 5th place. LaMarcus Aldridge has had a season that deservedly put him in the MVP discussion, and will be hoping to repeat his 31 points and 25 rebounds performance he had against the Rockets in December throughout this series. Damian Lillard has continued the form that saw him win Rookie of the Year last season, scoring over 20 points per game this season. His match-up against Beverley will be very interesting to watch.

These teams are two of the highest scoring teams in the league, averaging 107.7 and 106.7 points per game respectively, with Houston scoring slightly more. The Rockets have had injuries to Dwight Howard and Patrick Beverley in the last month or so, and they will need to be back to their fittest to help negotiate this tricky first round match-up. The Blazers should make things difficult for the Rockets, but player for player, Houston has the superior talent on their side.

Winner: Rockets in 6.

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