NBA Roundup March 9 - Los Angeles Lakers, Golden State Warriors and Philadelphia 76ers win (part 1)
Los Angeles Lakers 101 – Atlanta Hawks 87
Los Angeles Lakers surpassed Atlanta Hawks 101-87 on Tuesday night at Philips Arena, Atlanta. Kobe Bryant spearheaded the Lakers attack with 26 points, six rebounds, four assists, one steal and one rebound. With this performance
Bryant (27,423 career points) achieved the sixth spot in NBA’s all time scoring list, eclipsing Moses Malone’s record of 27,409 career points.
Barring the first seven minutes of the game, the Lakers never relinquished their lead. After leading by 57-49 in the first half, the two times reigning champions continued to pile on the pressure and carved out an 18-5 run in the
second part of the third quarter to take a 81-59 lead, their biggest of the game.
The Hawks, keyed by Jamal Crawford, however responded with a 23-9 surge, bridging the third quarter and the first four minutes of the fourth, to cut the deficit to 90-82. Bryant however nipped the Hawks flight as he got a rebound
and hit a trey over Hawks’ Josh Smith stretched arm to make it 96-82 lead with 3:20 left in the game. It proved to be Hawks' last breath, as Lakers finished the proceedings by winning the game with 14 points.
Andrew Bynum made a double-double by hitting 16 points and grabbing 16 rebounds for the Lakers.
From Hawks Al Horford scored 17 points, nine rebounds, three assists and one steal. His teammate Smith added 16 points.
Golden State Warriors 95 - Cleveland Cavaliers 85
Monta Ellis powered Golden State Warriors to win over Cleveland Cavaliers by 95-85 at Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland. Ellis nailed six 3-pointers in the second half and finished with a game high 24 points. He also provided seven
assist, seven rebounds, three steals and two blocks.
Cavaliers led the first quarter 18-30, as they outscored the Warriors 8-17 in last six minutes of the first frame. The Warriors made a fierce comeback in the second section, thanks to the duo Ellis and Stephen Curry who combined
over second and third segment to go 7-for-7 on three-pointers and scored 37 points. On the other hand, the Cavaliers' whole team made 35 points in the same period. Ellis made 19 points and Curry had 18 as the Warriors twisted a 12 point deficit into an 11
point lead.
The Cavaliers cut Warriors’ lead to 78-74 with eight minutes left in the final part, but the Warriors replied strongly with nine straight points over the next 2:07 minutes. Cavaliers felt another jolt when their centre J.J. Hickson
dislodged his left little finger. After that, Ellis stole the ball in 7:18 and hit a smashing three pointer to spark the Warriors at 83-74, a play that dented the spirits of the Cavaliers. Warriors eventually raped up the game by 10 points.
Ellis backcourt mate and point guard Curry added 23 points for the Warriors and together they outscored Cavaliers 77-55 in the last three segments. Baron Davis led the Cavaliers with 19 points off the bench. Including, five rebounds,
six assists, three steals and one block.
Philadelphia 76ers 110 - Indiana Pacers 100
Philadelphia 76ers rushed to their third straight victory by defeating Indiana Pacers 110-100 at Conseco Field house, Indianapolis. Thaddeus Young scored 18 points off the bench leading the pack, in which seven players made it
to the double figures. It was Pacers’ fourth loss in a row and sixth out of the last seven.
The Sixers led the first quarter by 34-23 as they reeled off a 22-9 run early. This was the seventh time in the last eight games Pacers fell into a double digit hole in the first quarter. The 76ers stretched the lead in the second
section and led the first half by eight points 65-53. After fending off an offensive assault by the Sixers early in the second half, the Pacers made spurt late in the frame but still failed to close in the gap. The 76ers finished the quarter ahead by 84-70.
At one stage in the final frame, the Pacers were trailing by 100-93 and had the possession. A.J. Price however missed the three pointer to spur the Sixers on. Holiday intercepted a pass from Hibbert and hit a three pointer and
Jodie Meeks then hit another three. Meeks ended the final part by hitting five free throws back to back and led his team to the victory stand by 10 points.
The 76ers shot 51 percent from the field in the entire game and pushed the Pacers into 20 turnovers. Andre Iguodala scored 16 points and 10 assists coming off from back to back triple-double. Holiday made 16 and Meeks had 15 for
the 76ers.
Tyler Hansbrough finished with 26 points, one short of his career high. He hit 11 out of 14 shots as a reserve.
Tags: