In one of the most exciting games of the year thus far, the Bulls pulled out a grind-it-out overtime win over the Warriors. Elsewhere, the Raptors and Cavs continue to look good, and the Heat suffer another injury to Dwayne Wade.
Let’s get to the games:
Raptors 104 (30-15) – Pacers 91 (16-31)
The Pacers jumped out in the first quarter, but the Raptors rallied in the second to take the lead and never let it go on the way to a convincing victory. The win is the third-straight for the Raptors who seem to have righted the ship after a run of bad games and the return of DeRozen. DeRozen led the Raptors tonight with 24 and 6 rebounds, while Kyle Lowry added 19 and 8 assists. For the Pacers, Rodney Stuckey scored 22 and grabbed 7 boards, Solomon Hill had 15 points, and David West had 11 with 8 rebounds.
Cavaliers 103 (26-20) – Pistons 95 (17-29)
The Cavs continue to win, using a 2nd quarter advantage to distance themselves from the Pistons and keeping up the distance the rest of the way. Detroit is still looking for ways to overcome the loss of Brandon Jennings who is out for the season. For the Cavs, Kyrie Irving led all scorers with 38 and added 6 assists. LeBron James added 32 on 11-for-24 shooting. The Pistons were unable to take advantage inside and were led by D.J. Augustin with 19 and 9 assists, while Greg Monroe finished with 17 and 12 boards.
Bucks 109 (23-22) – Heat 102 (20-25)
A big 4th quarter by the Bucks was the difference in this close game that was won by the balance of the Bucks and lost by the injuries of the Heat. The Heat left out Chris Anderson and Luol Deng for this game, and lost Dwayne Wade late in the third quarter to another hamstring injury. The Bucks were led tonight by 7 players in double figures and featured Brandon Knight and Khris Middleton both with 17. The Heat got 26 from Chris Bosh and 21 from Mario Chalmers, while Hassan Whiteside continued his great play with 16 points and 16 rebounds.
Grizzlies 109 (33-12) – Mavericks 90 (30-16)
A second straight double-double by Zach Randolph helped the Grizzlies overcome the Mavericks, giving them their third straight loss. A big 2nd quarter from Memphis put too much of a distance between the teams and the Grizzlies held on to get the comfortable win. Randolph finished with 22 and 10 rebounds, while Marc Gasol had 15 and Courtney Lee added 13. For the Mavs, Chandler Parsons had 19, as did Monta Ellis, and Dirk finished with 11.
Bulls 113 (30-17) – Warriors 111 (36-7) OT
In a game without Jimmy Butler and Andrew Bogut, any number of conclusions could be drawn from this game. With Rose going 13-33 with one assist and the Warriors not hitting a single three-pointer in the second half, even more could be drawn. In the end, this was a gutsy grind-it-out victory for the Bulls. Much will be said about this game, but the Warriors are still the best team in the league, and Chicago starts it’s road trip off with a big win. Chicago was led by Rose with 30, while Noah and Gasol both had 18. The Warriors had a strong night from Klay Thompson with 30 and 10 rebounds and Stephen Curry with 21 and 9 assists.
Wizards 98 (31-15) – Lakers 92 (12-34)
It took a second half comeback, but the Wizards were able to get the win over a Lakers team with a surprising amount of tenacity. The Lakers, still looking for a leader with Kobe Bryant being declared out for the season, just couldn’t handle the guards of Washington. The Wizards were led by John Wall with 21 and 13 assists and Bradley Beal finished with 19. For Los Angeles, Wayne Ellington led the team with 28 and Jordan Clarkson had 18.