Four major playoff competitors fell on Saturday night’s small slate. Indiana, Chicago, Houston, and Portland all had opportunities to make serious steps towards a playoff spot and all failed. Conversely, Brooklyn, Phoenix, Memphis, and Golden State all enhanced their playoff portfolio
Let’s get to the games:
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Brooklyn Nets | 123 | (29-39) |
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Indiana Pacers | 111 | (30-39) |
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Brooklyn went on the road to Indiana and kept their playoff hopes alive by beating the Pacers. Brook Lopez had 26 points and Bojan Bogdanovic had 21 points to fuel the Nets. Six Pacers were in double figure points, led by George Hill with 18 points, but the Pacers allowed the Nets to shoot 61.3% from the field. Indiana looks to get on the right track against Houston and Brooklyn looks to stay hot against Boston.
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Chicago Bulls | 91 | (42-29) |
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Detroit Pistons | 107 | (25-44) |
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Chicago lost to lowly Detroit on the road on Saturday, continuing on their poor form in the past couple weeks. Reggie Jackson led the Pistons with 22 points and 11 assists, while Caron Butler had 20 points. Pau Gasol had a game high 27 points, but the Bulls only shot 42.9% from the field. Chicago looks to get on the right track against Charlotte and the Pistons look to stay in the Eastern Conference playoff race against Boston.
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Phoenix Suns | 117 | (37-33) |
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Houston Rockets | 102 | (46-23) |
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Phoenix and Houston played in a matchup of potential Western Conference playoff foes, with the Suns pulling out a huge road win. Eric Bledsoe led the Suns with 34 points and eight assists, while Marcus Morris added 17 points and 10 rebounds. James Harden only scored 16 points after scoring 50 points in his last game and Donatas Motiejunas led the Rockets with 18 points. Houston looks to get on the right track against Indiana while the Suns look to stay in the Western Conference playoff race against Dallas.
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Portland Trail Blazers | 86 | (44-24) |
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Memphis Grizzlies | 97 | (49-21) |
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Memphis continued to assert themselves as the second best team in the Western Conference, beating Portland on Saturday night. Mike Conley had 21 points and nine assists and Jeff Green led the Grizzlies with 23 points. Damian Lillard had a game high 27 points, but the Trail Blazers had 17 turnovers. Portland looks to regain their winning ways against Western Conference leaders Golden State and Memphis looks to earn their 50th win against New York.
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Utah Jazz | 91 | (31-38) |
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Golden State Warriors | 106 | (56-13) |
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The Golden State Warriors continued to build on the NBA’s best record, beating Utah on Saturday night in Oakland. Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 24 points and Leandro Barbosa had 19 points off of the bench for Golden State. Derrick Favors had 21 points and 11 rebounds with Trey Burke adding 20 points and five three point field goals made, but the Jazz only shot 43.8% from the field. Utah looks to regain their winning ways against Minnesota and Golden State looks to stay hot against Washington.