Is there a new King in Cleveland? Likely not, but LeBron James has a prince in the running to take his title. Kyrie Irving exploded for 57 points to leave the Cavaliers past the Spurs. Another big name in the league, James Harden, saw his stat sheet regress for the second-straight game, while the Knicks earned new heights on the road.
Let’s get to the games:
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Memphis Grizzlies | 87 | (45-20) |
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Washington Wizards | 107 | (37-28) |
| Final | |||
A 16-2 first half run gave Washington the confidence it needed to top one of the league’s best teams. The Wizards rallied for a 20-point victory behind 22 points from Marcin Gortat. John Wall added 21 points and Paul Pierce chipped in with 17. Washington created 27 points off 23 Memphis turnovers. Gortat had three of the team’s 11 steals. Normal starters Zach Randolph and Pau Gasol sat for the Grizzlies as Jarnell Stokes and JayMychael Green led with 13 points apiece.
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Milwaukee Bucks | 103 | (34-31) |
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Indiana Pacers | 109 | (30-34) |
| Final – OT | |||
The Pacers outscored the Bucks, 13-7, in an overtime period to earn a crucial win in a battle for Eastern Conference positioning. Milwaukee still holds a three-game lead for sixth place in the conference, though Indiana has won nine of its last 10 games. Rodney Stuckey scored 25 points to lead the Pacers, who overcame a 31-19 deficit after the first quarter. Luis Scola and George Hill each added 17 points and C.J. Miles sunk four 3-pointers to finish with 14 points. All Milwaukee starters reached double figures, with Michael Carter-Williams leading with 28 points and Ersan Ilyasova adding 19.
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Houston Rockets | 91 | (43-22) |
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Utah Jazz | 109 | (28-36) |
| Final | |||
James Harden was outdone once again. Rudy Gobert and Gordon Hayward each out-performed the MVP candidate and the Rockets lost their second-straight game. Gobert scored 19 points and grabbed 22 of the team’s 57 rebounds, while Hayward led with 29. All five Jazz starters also reached double figures. Hayward also had seven of the team’s 23 assists. Harden was limited to just 15 points. Reserve Corey Brewer scored 25 points to lead Houston.
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Cleveland Cavaliers | 128 | (42-25) |
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San Antonio Spurs | 125 | (40-24) |
| Final – OT | |||
Kyrie Irving had the biggest game of the season and hit the biggest shot of the night. He drilled a 3-pointer to send the game with the Spurs to overtime, where the Cavaliers would outscore the hosts, 18-15. Irving’s grand total of 57 points his his career-high, the most by any player this season and a Cleveland record. Irving sunk all seven of his 3-pointer attempts and added five assists and four steals. LeBron James was not to be totally outdone by his teammate, it was his team record that was broken (56 points in 2006), but James still scored 31 points against San Antonio and added seven assists. Danny Green sunk five 3-pointers for the Spurs and finished with 24 points, while Kawhi Leonard scored 24, also, though he missed crucial free throws in regulation that ended up costing the Spurs the game.
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New York Knicks | 101 | (13-51) |
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Los Angeles Lakers | 94 | (17-47) |
| Final | |||
In a battle of East Coast-West Coast cellar dwellers, New York came out on top again. They swept the season series against the Lakers and ended a seven-game road losing streak at Los Angeles that dated back to 2007. Tim Hardaway, Jr. led New York with 22 points, while Alexy Shved scored 14 and pulled down 11 rebounds. Andrea Bargnani chipped in with 16 points. The Knicks only committed eight turnovers. Jordan Hill and Tarik Black each recorded double-double for Los Angeles. Hill had 19 points with 10 rebounds and Black scored 10 with 11 rebounds. The Lakers held a 51-33 advantage on the glass.