Garden Of Oden: RELOADED | NLSC Draftees??

Western Conference 1st Round Game 1: Portland @ Oklahoma City


Team.

Portland 104, Oklahoma City 97

April 28, 2012; Oklahoma City, OK - Good game. Blazers fans around the globe can finally relax - we escaped.

It was all Portland from the start, with tight defense helping us get out to a 9-1 start. Despite consistent scoring from Kevin Durant, the Thunder were not able to get it done in the first, and entered the second down 8.

Oklahoma threatened a run early in the second, but then Portland took over, thanks to solid play across the board. Everyone was shooting well, and despite foul trouble for Aldridge, the score read Portland 59, Oklahoma 38 at the half. Interviewed at the half, Wesley Matthews echoed the sentiments we all wanted to suppress. "It ain't over. This is the best team in basketball. We gotta keep pushing"

Sure enough, Oklahoma opened up the second half with a 10-0 run, and eventually got it to single digits. Then, we got a man down. Nicolas Batum fell awkwardly after scoring our first three points of the half, and will miss the rest of the series with a lower back strain. From there, the game was a chess match. The Thunder would never get closer than 6 points in the third, and a pair of clutch threes by Matthews and Gerald Wallace gave them a double digit lead going into the fourth.

The fourth saw Portland try to stay afloat, despite the persistence of Kevin Durant, as well as Serge Ibaka. In this high scoring quarter, the lead fluctuated between six and fifteen points, and it wasn't until LaMarcus Aldridge scored a dunk to make it 103-95 with 24 seconds left could we breathe easy. Portland would go on to win it, 104-97 to take a 1-0 lead in this best of seven.


This game saw Kevin Durant take on a team. With Westbrook being a facilitator first and Portland getting production from all eight rotation players (later seven), he got his (40 points!), but took 33 shots to do it, and his team lost. Wesley Matthews had a great game, filling up the scoreboard, while Gerald Wallace was our high point man with 22. Aldridge was contained to 20 points and 5 boards by foul trouble, but Matthews, Felton and Roy's combined 50 points, 24 assists, 10 rebounds and 5 steals made up for it offensively.

The win gives us a 1-0 lead in the series. In 2010, we took game 1 in Phoenix, but went on to lose the series in six. Game 2 will be in Oklahoma City, before switching to Portland for the next two games. Game 5 (if necessary (it will be)) would be in OKC.

Two days of rest and celebration!

29 30 17 28 104 | PTS: Wallace (22); REBS: Oden, Wallace, Landry, Matthews (7); ASTS: Matthews (10)
21 17 27 32 97 | PTS: Durant (40); REBS: Ibaka (13); ASTS: Westbrook (16)

Portland notables
Wesley Matthews: 16 pts, 10 asts, 7 rebs, 3 stls, 5-9 FG, 3-5 3pt (PotG)
Gerald Wallace: 22 pts, 7 rebs, 9-13 FG
Raymond Felton: 16 pts, 7 asts, 2 stls, 7-12 FG

Oklahoma City notables
Kevin Durant: 40 pts, 6 rebs, 14-33 FG, 3-4 3pt, 9-11 FT
Russell Westbrook: 10 pts, 16 asts, 7 stls, 5 TO's
James Harden: 5 pts, 3 rebs, 2 TO's, 1-7 FG (Shitass)

Blazers in 7
Spurs in 5
Rockets in 6
Mavericks in 6
Bulls in 5
Heat in 6
Cavaliers in 7
Hawks in 5

MVP: Lebron
DPOY: Gerald Wallace
6MOY: Jason Terry

Blazers in 7
Spurs in 6
Rockets in 5
Grizzlies in 7

Bulls in 4
Celtics in 7
Magic in 4
Hawks in 6

MVP: Derrick Rose
DPOY: Dwight Howard
6th Man: Brandon Roy

AROUND THE LEAGUE
Other Game 1's

Warriors 128, Spurs 126
GSW leads 1-0

GSW: Curry: 20/4/12 (PotG); Ellis: 30/1/1; Lee: 20/8/2
SAS: Ginobili: 34/6/10, 8-14 FG, 15-16 FT; Jefferson: 24/9/0, Partker: 0/3/7, 0-6 FG, 6 fouls (Shitass)

In a thrilling game, the Warriors edge out the Spurs despite an incredible performances by Manu Ginobili. The game was close throughout, with both teams shooting lights out, but the Warriors ended up getting the upper hand behind their killer backcourt duo.

Lakers 96, Rockets 90
LAL leads 1-0

LAL: Gasol: 20/9/1, 6-13 FG (PotG); Bryant: 20/2/6; Bynum: 14/10/5 blks
HOU: Martin: 28/2/5 TO's, 11-26 FG; Lowry: 13/4/9/6 stls; Scola: 3/9/2 TO's, 1-6 FG (Shitass)

Despite being at home and the higher seed, the Rockets were the underdogs. Thanks to Kevin Martin's efficient scoring, the Rox managed to lead by 8 at the half. However, everyone not named Kevin Martin went cold, and LA used their size to come back and win it 96-90.

Grizzlies 125, Mavericks 118
MEM leads 1-0

MEM: Randolph: 20/13/3, 8-13 FG (PotG); Gay: 17/9/4; Mayo: 24/1/1
DAL: Nowitzki: 47/9/1, 13-25 FG, 18-20 FT, 3-6 3pt; Terry: 20/2/2; Kidd: 8 pts, 4 asts, 5 TO's, 2-7 FG (Shitass)

Despite a legendary night from Dirk, the Grizzlies outlasted the Mavs 125-118. The reigning finals MVP was on fire all night, but got middling help as the Grizzlies could not miss.

Bulls 116, Knicks 76
CHI leads 1-0

CHI: Rose: 25/2/10, 10-12 FG (PotH); Deng: 29/11/0; Boozer: 25/8/3
NYK: Douglas: 15/2/4; Stoudemire: 4/3/5 fouls, 2-7 FG; Anthony: 6/5/4 TO's, 2-12 FG (Shitass)

Held to just 19 (!) points in the first half, the Bulls annihilated the Knicks from start to finish. Melo and Amar'e got in foul trouble and would combine for just 10 points.

Miami 100, Boston 84
MIA leads 1-0

MIA: Wade: 28/5/5 (PotG); James: 25/8/4; Bosh: 14/7/0
BOS: J. O'Neal: 19/9/2; Rondo: 13/5/4; Pierce: 4/1/2, 1-9 FG

After a competitive first half, the Heat pulled away in the second by shutting down the Celtics shooters and the big three dominating. The Celtics looked clearly outmatched in this game.

Orlando 110, Cleveland 105
ORL leads 1-0

ORL: Howard: 14/15/3 blks (PotG); Nelson: 19/1/3; Anderson: 18/5/0
CLE: Davis: 27/5/4; Irving: 22/4/6; Kirilenko: 5/3/3 TO's, 1-6 FG (Shitass)

In a very competitive game, the Magic overcame big games from the Cavs' backcourt to pull out the victory. The Cavs did their work at the line, posting a +14 in free throws made, but could not overcome woeful shooting from the field.

Atlanta 121, Indiana 108
ATL leads 1-0

ATL: Josh Smith: 21/13/7, 4 blks 8-12 FG (PotG); Horford: 21/8/1; David West: 17/4/1, 7-9 FG
IND: Hickson: 17/8/2, 7-10 FG; George: 21/6/0; Hibbert: 8/8/5 TO's, 1-7 FG (Shitass)

The Hawks won comfortably in game 1, thanks to some excellent offense. Shooting just under 55%, Atlanta blew the Pacers out of the building, despite 21 from promising sophomore Paul George.

Western Conference | Eastern Conference

0-1 | 1-0
1-0 | 0-1
0-1 | 1-0
1-0 | 1-0

Almost a TD for Matthews Nice to see him contribute. And Crash... well...

Just saw this thread. And as I expected, it's great story again coming from you, I've always admire your humor and writing. Great win by the way! Looking forward for the remaining games, I am rooting for your team of course

Thunder Blow Out Blazers To Knot Series
Durant's 19 first quarter points led the way


Durant continues to look like a better pick than Oden.

Oklahoma City 106, Portland 94

April 30, 2012; Oklahoma City, OK - Following the Blazers' shocking win in game 1, most expected the Thunder to come out strong in game 2. Well, this game went nearly exactly as expected - with Oklahoma City showing why they were the top seed.

Kevin Durant was absolutely unstoppable in the first quarter. Despite Portland playing decent on both ends, the Thunder opened up a double digit lead courtest of Durant's scoring tear - in which he scored 19 points in the quarter (on 8 field goal attempts). The Thunder built on this in the second quarter, and the game began to look like a blowout. Despite LaMarcus Aldridge's 20 first half points, Portland found themselves trailing 64-49 at the half.

The third quarter saw both teams lock down and the scoring slow down a bit. After getting the lead down to ten points, the Thunder had a 7-0 run to go back up by 17. The Thunder continued to push, and led 87-68 going into the fourth quarter. Doubt was cast on the prospect of another comeback like last year's game 4 against the Mavericks.

With Aldridge on the bench, the Blazers opened the fourth with a nice run, and led by an incredibly efficient night from Gerald Wallace, saw Portland come within 7 points. The Thunder adjusted and quickly got the lead back up to double digits. Portland kept shuffling players - giving Patrick Mills a shot, small ball, big ball, etc. etc. but they couldn't close the gap, and lost 106-94.

Kevin Durant had another dominant performance for the Thunder, and is second in playoff scoring with 38 per game. Aldridge matched him with 31 ponts, and also had an impressive 7 blocks, but had just 2 boards and 2 fourth quarter points. Gerald Wallace and Raymond Felton were very efficient for Portland with a combined 30 points, 12 boards and 11 assists on 8-11 shooting. Take that LeBron! Meanwhile, OKC was fortunate to have Thabo Sefolosha and Nate Robinson be unlikely heroes with hot shooting to keep them in the game. The Thunder won in spite of another poor performance by Russell Westbrook, who had 8 points, 11 assists and 5 turnovers on 4-18 shooting from the field. The Thunder will need him in later rounds, if not this one to be playing up to par.

The win ties the series for the Thunder, who will travel to Portland for the next two games. Both Nate McMillan and Scott Brooks described the magnitude of game three the same way: "massive".

Series tied 1-1.

26 23 19 26 94 | PTS: Aldridge (31); REBS: Wallace (9); ASTS: Felton (9)
37 27 23 19 106 | PTS: Durant (36); REBS: Ibaka (9); ASTS: Westbrook (11)

Oklahoma City [1-1] notables
Kevin Durant: 36 pts, 7 rebs, 4 asts (PotG)
Thabo Sefolosha: 18 pts, 4 rebs, 8-12 FG
Russell Westbrook: 8 pts, 11 asts, 5 TO's 4-18 FG (Shitass)

Portland [1-1] notables
Gerald Wallace: 20 pts, 9 rebs, 3 blks, 6-7 FG
LaMarcus Aldridge: 31 pts, 7 blks, 2 rebs
Raymond Felton: 10 pts, 9 asts, 3 stls, 3 rebs, 2-4 FG, 6-6 FT

Meh, just a loss. I don't think anyone expected you to take both games on the road, at least now pressure's on them in taking a road game. Great games for Wallace and LMA, surprising to see him get 7 blocks.

AROUND THE LEAGUE
Other Game 2's

Warriors 131, Spurs 95
GSW leads 2-0

GSW: Curry: 29/5/6, 9-13 FG,, 3-3 3pt, 8-8 FT (PotG); Ellis: 19/6/6; D. Wright: 18/10/2
SAS: Parker: 21/0/9; DUncan: 15/11/1; Ginobili: 4/2/3, 1-4 FG, 5 fouls (shitass)

It's time to start considering the Warriors. The surprising division winners were not favored against the lower seeded Spurs, but have followed up the narrow game 1 win with a dominating game 2 win. Led by Stephen Curry, the Warriors were absolutely unstoppable offensively, scoring 131 points on the Spurs in a 36 point win.

Rockets 104, Lakers 95
Series tied 1-1

HOU: Lowry: 20/2/7, 6-10 FG, 4-4 3pt, 4-4 FT (PotG); Martin: 18/8/0; J. Hill: 12/8/2 blks
LAL: Bryant: 35/4/5; Gasol: 19/15/4 blks; Odom: 6/10/3, 2-14 FG

Despite huge games from Kobe and Pau, the Rockets managed to tie the series, led by their backcourt. Kyle Lowry scored a season high 20 points to lead the Rockets to a narrow victory against their rivals. After the game, Kobe criticized Odom for shooting so poorly, and lauded Lowry and the Rockets, comparing them to the 04 Pistons.

Grizzlies 103, Mavericks 102
MEM leads 2-0

MEM: Randolph: 21/8/1, 10-11 FG (PotG); Mayo: 19/1/1; Gay: 12/12/2
DAL: Terry: 27/1/0; Nowitzki: 20/16/4, 6-18 FG; Kidd: 7/7/4/3 TO's, 1-7 FG (Shitass)

The defending champion Mavericks suffered another tough loss that sees them come closer to losing in the first round. A Rudy Gay buzzer beater gave the Grizzlies a 103-102 win in what has been the most tightly fought series so far. The Mavs were unfortunate to get a 6-18 shooting performance out of Dirk, and will now face a 2-0 deficit going home.

Bulls 122, Knicks 87
CHI leads 2-0

CHI: Rose: 30/4/17, 10-17 FG, 8-8 FT (PotG); Boozer: 22/6/1; Deng: 23/0/2
NYK: Anthony: 26/9/2, 9-13 FG; Billups: 10/1/5, 4-16 FG; Stoudemire: 4/1/3 TO's, 5 fouls (Shitass)

The Bulls have won the first 2 games by a combined 85 points. Think about that one for a while, Knicks fans. MVP favorite Derrick Rose led the way with 30 points and 17 dimes. Melo had an excellent game offensively, but Amar'e Stoudemire was limited to 14 minutes with more foul trouble. LOL.

Celtics 105, Heat 76
Series tied 1-1

BOS: Pierce: 19/5/5, 6-9 FG (PotG); Garnett: 19/8/2; J. O'Neal: 16/13/0
MIA: James: 23/10/5; Bosh: 18/12/4 TO's; Chalmers: 0/2/6/5 TO's, 0-4 FG (Shitass)

After a convincing win in game one, the Heat expected a similar result as they faced the "old, broken down" Celtics in game 2. Flashbacks of LeBron's 2010 Cavaliers must have flashed through his head as the Celtics annihilated the Heat, winning 105-76 to knot the series.

Magic 98, Cavaliers 89
ORL leads 2-0

ORL: Arenas: 18/4/5 stls (PotG); Nelson: 13/5/8; Howard: 14/12/0
CLE: Irving: 30/9/4; Varejao: 5/15/3; Sessions: 2/2/4 TO's, 0-5 FG (Shitass)

Despite a huge game from Kyrie Irving, the Magic were once again able to defeat the Cavs to take a 2-0 lead. Orlando got got play down the roster, while only Varejao and Irving gave Cleveland significant contributions.

Hawks 105, Pacers 89
ATL leads 2-0

Josh Smith: 20/10/5/5 blks (PotG); Horford: 17/13/0; Johnson: 16/4/6
Collison: 17/3/9; George: 14/6/2; Granger: 13/2/3 TO's, 2-15 FG (Shitass)

Thanks to great play from their big three, the Hawks blew out the Pacers for a 2-0 lead. the Hawks led by 13 at the half, and the Pacers, who have gotten little from Danny Granger these playoffs, never got close.

Western Conference | Eastern Conference

1-1 | 2-0
2-0 | 1-1
1-1 | 2-0
2-0 | 2-0

Western Conference Quarterfinals Game 3: Thunder @ Blazers


Westbrook returning to form is worrying for Portland.

Oklahoma City 112, Portland 97

May 2, 2012; Portland, OR - For the first two and a half quarters, it looked like the Blazers might just take a 2-1 lead over the favored Thunder. They were up 10, and LaMarcus Aldridge was on fire. However, what's a 10 point lead against the Thunder?

With Durant continuing his dominant ways, and James Harden finally showing up, the Thunder were a major handful in the second half. Despite LaMarcus Aldridge's constant scoring (his 41 points was just one off his career high), the Thunder shut down the Blazer offense in the fourth. Oklahoma City would go on to win the game by a significant margin, 112-97.

Both teams shot very well in the game, but 12 missed Portland free throws had coach Nate McMillan fuming. "We made a lot of mistakes. This was not our best play," said McMillan in the postgame interview. In addition to Aldridge, the Blazers got solid offensive output from everyone they played not named Carl Landry. They could not stop the Thunder's dominant offense however.

Russell Westbrook bounced back from his struggles with a near triple double. Durant had his third straight 35+ point scoring game in the win. Ibaka and Harden also gave them 16 points apiece.

Game 4 will be played Sunday in Portland. The winner of this series will face the winner of the Spurs/Warriors series, which currently has the Warriors up 2 games to 1.

Thunder lead series 2-1.

21 28 34 29 112 | PTS: Durant (35); REBS: Ibaka (10); ASTS: Westbrook (10)
24 27 28 18 97 | PTS: Aldridge (41); REBS: Oden (7); ASTS: Roy (10)

Oklahoma City [2-1] notables
Kevin Durant: 35 pts, 5 rebs, 14-26 FG (PotG)
Russell Westbrook: 13 pts, 10 asts, 8 rebs
Serge Ibaka: 16 pts, 10 rebs, 6-9 FG

Portland [1-2] notables
LaMarcus Aldridge: 41 pts, 4 rebs, 2 blks, 18-32 FG
Greg Oden: 8 pts, 7 rebs, 3-4 FG
Carl Landry: 1 pt, 5 rebs, 2 TO's, 0-5 FG (Shitass)

It seems typical Mavs again after that championship run

AROUND THE LEAGUE

Kyrie Irving Named 2012 Rookie Of The Year



Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving may be no LeBron James but he has one-upped the self-titled king in one aspect: his Cavs made the playoffs in season 1. Irving averaged 16.4 points, 6.6 assists and 5 rebounds per game for the 15-14 Cavaliers, who finished last in the conference the previous year. He is set to receive his award prior to game 3 against the Hawks in Cleveland. Irving earned the majority of first place votes to beat out the Raptors' Jonas Valanciunas and the Wolves' Ricky Rubio.

Other Game 3's

Spurs 107, Warriors 98
GSW leads 2-1

SAS: Ginobili: 21/12/9 (PotG); Duncan: 20/13/2 blks; Parker: 17/2/7
GSW: Ellis: 32/4/2; Lee: 17/9/1; Daye: 4/1/3 TO's, 1-5 FG (Shitass)

Thanks to huge games from the Spurs big three, as well as some defense at last (Golden State held to 40 second half points), the Spurs took game 3 to make it a 2-1 series. San Antonio was +10 from the free throw line.

Lakers 112, Rockets 98
LAL leads 2-1

LAL: World Peace: 18/4/4 stls, 5-6 FG, 6-7 FT (PotG); Bynum: 18/16/0; Odom: 10/9/2
HOU: Kevin Martin: 27/4/0; Scola: 19/11/2; Flynn: 5/2/2 TO's, 2-8 FG (shitass)

With Pau injured, and a struggling Kobe in foul trouble, the Rockets looked to have a real opportunity here. Unfortunately for them, it was former Rocket Ron Artest - uh - Metta World Peace who led the Lakers supporting cast to a big win.

Grizzlies 110, Mavericks 109
MEM leads 3-0

MEM: Randolph: 33/6/2, 15-24 FG (PotG); Gay: 20/10/2; Conley: 10/6/11
DAL: Nowitzki: 40/6/2, 15-22 FG, 9-9 FT; Chandler: 12/4/3 blks; Terry: 12/6/4 TO's, 5-15 FG (Shitass)

You have to feel for Dirk and the Mavs. It's a tough way to go out in the first round as the defending champs, especially with such close losses. Despite another 40 point game for Dirk (on ridiculous efficiency of course), the could not stop the Grizzlies, who escaped with the 3-0 lead.

Knicks 103, Bulls 100
CHI leads 2-1

NYK: Stoudemire: 22/10/2 (PotG); Billups: 14/2/7, 4-6 FG; Douglas: 17/4/5
CHI: Rose: 33/2/6, 7 TO's; Deng: 26/11/3; Boozer: 7 pts, 4 rebs, 2-14 FG (Shitass)

After being vaporized in the first two games, the Knicks went back home to gut out a narrow victory over the Bulls. This was thanks in part to Amar'e Stoudemire finally staying out of foul trouble to have a big game.

Heat 108, Celtics 89
MIA leads 2-1

MIA: James: 40/8/5 (PotG); Bosh: 19/13/4 blks; Wade: 20/6/7
BOS: Pierce: 23/6/1; ROndo 14/4/5; J. O'Neal: 8/5/3 TO's, 3-13 FG (Shitass)

After the blowout in game 2, the Heat returned the favor by dominating the Celtics in game 3. Boston had no answer for LeBron, who exploded for 40 points.

Magic 119, Cavaliers 84
ORL leads 3-0

ORL: Howard: 24/15/4 blks (PotG); Turkoglu: 18/6/6; Arenas: 15/2/8, 5-9 FG
CLE: Jamison: 21/9/1; Irving: 15/3/1; Davis: 15/4/5 TO's, 5-18 FG (Shitass)

The series shifted to Cleveland where the Magic threw down the sledgehammer, winning by 35 points. The Magic were on fire, getting at least 9 points from seven players, while shutting down the Cleveland offense. They will go for the sweep in game 4.

Pacers 107, Hawks 99
ATL leads 2-1

IND: Granger: 22/6/2 (PotG); Hibbert: 15/9/4 blks; Collison: 15/2/5
ATL: Horford: 21/12/3 blks; Johnson: 23/5/5; David West: 2/6/2 TO's, 2-14 FG (Shitass)

Some hard-nosed defense and finally a big performance from Danny Granger puts the Pacers on the board in this series. The Hawks got little help outside of their big three, and couldn't stop the Pacers.

Western Conference | Eastern Conference

1-2 | 2-1
2-1 | 1-2
1-2 | 2-1
3-0 | 2-1

You've got to win the next two games to have a shot. Good luck. If you get bounced out of the first round are you going to blow the team up and rebuild?

It must be crazy painful for the Blazers having to watch Durant eff them up. Oh well, at least Oden is playing, I guess.

at least Oden is playing, I guess.

The main point

Blazers Rout Thunder To Even Series
Durant's shooting woes sink team


24 times out of 34, that one wasn't going in

Blazers 106, Thunder 89

May 4, 2012; Portland, OR - After a pair of double digit losses, it looked like the Blazers' game 1 win was an anomaly. Game 4 proved that this wasn't the case. A run sparked by an all-bench lineup led by Brandon Roy gave the Blazers a double digit lead in the first quarter they would not concede.

The game was close early on, but a pair of fouls for Felton and a 15-11 led seemed to set sometime off in Nate McMillan's mind, as he followed a game in which he played an eight man rotation with one where he played Mills, Roy, Batum, Landry and Turiaf at the same time. Amazingly, the Blazers closed out the quarter with this lineup on a 16-2 run.

The Thunder tried to keep it close in the second, but Durant was ice cold. Portland was able to enter the half up by double digits, and the same trend continued in the third. After a quiet, 6 point first half, Aldridge came up big in the second half, to help put the Thunder away. Oklahoma City never threatened to come back, and a lineup of Mills, Landry, Turiaf, Nolan Smith and Elliot Williams closed the 17 point win.


The victory ties the series at two games apiece. It will now be a best of three series with the next game being in Oklahoma City. Kevin Durant guaranteed a victory in game 5 after the game. "Man, I talk to God all the time man. And like, I read the bible, have you heard of the bible? The lord told me last night that we would win game 5 and let it be so."

Series tied 2-2.

17 19 27 26 89 | PTS: Durant (25); REBS: Perkins (12); ASTS: Harden, Westbrook (7)
31 21 29 25 106 | PTS: Roy (23); REBS: Aldridge (12); ASTS: Felton (7)

Portland [2-2] notables
Brandon Roy: 23 pts, 5 rebs, 4 asts (PotG)
Raymond Felton: 17 pts, 7 assists, 3 rebounds, 7-10 FG
LaMarcus Aldridge: 17 pts, 12 rebounds

Oklahoma City [2-2] notables
Russell Westbrook: 21 pts, 7 asts
James Harden: 13 pts, 8 rebs, 7 asts
Kevin Durant: 25 pts, 4 rebs, 10-34 FG (Shitass)

Great defense or maybe just bad shooting by the Thunder. Now grab the lead and finish em off.

Booo!

AROUND THE LEAGUE

Bobcats' Augustin Wins Most Improved Player Award



The league announced today that the Bobcats' DJ Augustin is this year's recipient of the Most Improved Player award. Augustin, in his fourth year in the league, has become the Bobcats' leading scorer by committee following the departure of the team's core (Wallace, Felton, Jackson, coach Brown). The combo guard averaged 17.1 points and 5.7 assists per game for the 13-16 Bobcats, who exceeded expectations by nearly making the post-season. This award is likely to receive criticism as the Texas product averaged similar figures (14.4 points and 6.1 assists) last season. The Blazers' LaMarcus Aldridge came second in voting for this award for the third time in his career, and for the second consecutive season.

Other Game 4's

Spurs 106, Warriors 85
Series tied 2-2

SAS: Duncan: 25/12/3, 10-17 FG (PotG); Parker: 17/3/9, 8-12 FG; Ginobili: 22/7/5
GSW: Humphries: 14/12/2 blks; Ellis: 17/1/2; Curry: 10/5/7/4 TO's, 2-12 FG (Shitass)

After a dominant stand at home, the young Warriors were taught a lesson by the veteran Spurs in San Antonio, getting dominated in game 4 to knot the series at two games apiece. The teams will return to Golden State for game 5.

Rockets 96, Lakers 92
Series tied 2-2

HOU: Martin: 37/4/1, 9-20 FG, 4-5 3pt, 15-16 FT (PotG); Scola: 21/9/2; Lowry: 10/9/7
LAL: Bryant: 42/3/3, 12-23 FG, 16-16 FT; Odom: 9/15/2; Trey Johnson: 0 pts, 0 asts, 0-4 FG, 0-2 FT (Shitass)

Still without the services of Pau Gasol (is expected to return in game 5), the Lakers fall at home to the Rockets to lose homecourt advantage. The game saw Kobe outduel Kevin Martin 42 points to 37, but none of his Laker teammates scored in double digits.

Grizzlies 121, Mavericks 116
MEM wins 4-0

MEM: Randolph: 20/18/5, 8-13 FG (PotG); Gasol: 18/12/3 blks; Gay: 22/3/0
DAL: Nowitzki: 35/15/3; Marion: 19/11/3 blks; Terry: 26/0/0, 11-17 FG

That was it? In the most hyped Western Conference first round match-up, the Mavs once again lost in a heartbreaker despite a big night from Dirk. The defending champs are now out of the playoffs, losing the four games by a total of just 14 points. This game saw Dirk give it his all with 35 points and 15 boards, but a fourth quarter comeback forced OT, where the younger Grizzlies outlasted them. The Grizzlies will now face the winner of the tied Rockets/Lakers series in the conference semis.

Knicks 87, Bulls 73
Series tied 2-2

NYK: Stoudemire: 32/10/1 (PotG); Billups: 11/3/10; Camby: 2/15/3 blks
CHI: Deng: 24/12/1; Boozer: 18/6/2; Rose: 13/2/10, 6-26 FG (Shitass)

After the absolute slaughters in Chicago, Amar'e and the Knicks have shocked the world by tying up the series, thanks to a disasterous 6-26 shooting night from Derrick Rose. The Knicks once again were led by Stoudemire, who scored 32 on 16 shot attempts.

Celtics 113, Heat 92
Series tied 2-2

BOS: Rondo: 22/5/13 (PotG); Pierce: 29/5/3; Garnett: 14/13/2 blks
MIA: James: 24/7/8; Wade: 23/6/4; Miller: 2/4/3 TO's, 1-5 FG (Shitass)

In a series somewhat resemblent of the 2005 Spurs/Pistons finals, the defensive minded Heat and Celtics continue to swap blowouts. Behind a huge night from their starting five, the Celtics dominated game 4 to regain homecourt advantage and tie the series.

Cavaliers 122, Magic 89
ORL leads 3-1

CLE: Irving: 32/3/8, 12-19 FG (PotG); Baron Davis: 20/1/13, 8-10 FG; Kirilenko: 15/7/3 blks
ORL: Arenas: 22/2/3, 8-12 FG; Howard: 16/10/0; Turkoglu: 7/2/4 TO's, 2-7 FG (Shitass)

The Cavs played a phenomenal game of basketball to avoid the sweep against the Magic. They were led by Irving and Baron Davis, who combined for 52 points and 21 assists on 20-29 shooting from the field. The Magic got decent play from Arenas, but everyone else stunk it up, as they shift to Orlando to try and close out the #6 seed.

Pacers 110, Hawks 101
Series tied 2-2

IND: Granger: 26/4/2 (PotG); George: 22/10/0; Collison: 14/1/10
ATL: Horford: 26/11/1; Smith: 15/13/5 blks; Johnson: 18/4/5 TO's, 7-22 FG (Shitass)

The Pacers have capitalized on the potential they showed in last year's playoffs by closing out the Hawks once again to knot the series. Big nights by swingmen Danny Granger Paul George paced Indiana offensively as they won it 110-101.

Western Conference | Eastern Conference

2-2 | 2-2
2-2 | 2-2
2-2 | 3-1
4-0 | 2-2

Sucks to lose like that -- talkin' about the Mavericks. A total 14 points? That plain sucks

Pretty intense postseason so far, every series except two are tied 2-2, and the only sweep so far was a bunch of close games. Sucks for Dallas to be swept like that.

Thierry •, -3.5 point differential against the best team in this association isn't turrible, but I was disappointed they couldn't win a single game. Guess they really were a 15-14 team after all though.

Axel., It's been fun to watch unfold. Lucked into a realistic bracket having played just a 29 game season. 2K11's sim engine really impressed me in this one.

lol @ Augustin winning MIP, nice win over the Thunder but I hate seeing the Bulls losing to the Knicks!!!

Blazers Stun Thunder To Take 3-2 Series Lead
Aldridge, Roy Lead Way As Portland Steals Game 5


Aldridge has been somewhat of a problem for OKC.

Portland 95, Golden State 85

May 7, 2012; Oklahoma City, OK - Is it time to be worried now? The eighth seed Blazers have once again defeated the Thunder in convincing fashion - this time in Oklahoma City to take a 3-2 series lead.

Despite committing 19 turnovers, the Blazers played exceptionally well on the offensive end, getting huge games out of LaMarcus Aldridge and the resurgent Brandon Roy. The team shot very well, and McMillan kept the Thunder defense on its feet with quick rotations. The offense was consistently solid all game long.

The real difference in the game was defense. After a high scoring first quarter, the Blazers buckled down on the Thunder. Once again Kevin Durant was dominating the ball (and rightfully so), but was defended extremely well by long swingman Nicolas Batum, who the Blazers are now 3-0 with in these playoffs. While Serge Ibaka and Russell Westbrook had themselves nice games, the Thunder were always kept in check offensively.

The turning point in the game was once again the Blazers bench. While McMillan reverted to an eight man rotation, the infusion of Roy and were huge. The two players had the highest +/- on the team with +8 and +7 respectively and sparked an 8-0 run to tie a 21-13 game that the Thunder wanted to end early.


LaMarcus Aldridge was a steady force for the Blazers, having an efficient 32 point, 7 rebound game in the most quiet way possible. He also teamed up with Greg Oden, Gerald Wallace and Carl Landry to make a very tough defensive frontcourt (that held the Thunder to just 38% shooting). Oklahoma City continues to get middling bench play, having lost the bench points battle 33 to 16 in this game.

The Blazers now take a 3-2 lead as this best of seven shifts back to Portland for a potential close-out game at home. Should the Blazers win this series, it would be the second consecutive year the #8 seed has advanced to the conference semifinals.

Blazers lead series 3-2.

26 20 28 21 95 | PTS: Aldridge (32); Aldridge, Matthews (7); ASTS: Roy, Felton (6)
26 14 24 21 85 | PTS: Durant (30); REBS: Ibaka (9); ASTS: Westbrook (12)

Portland [3-2] notables
LaMarcus Aldridge: 32 pts, 7 rebs, 3 stls, 2 blks, 14-24 FG (PotG)
Brandon Roy: 19 pts, 6 rebs, 6 asts
Wesley Matthews: 11 pts, 7 rebs, 4 stls, 6 TO's, 3-4 FG, 4-4 FT

Oklahoma City [2-3] notables
Kevin Durant: 30 pts, 3 rebs, 9-29 FG, 1-8 3pt, 11-11 FT
Serge Ibaka: 20 pts, 9 rebs, 9-10 FG
Russell Westbrook: 15 pts, 12 asts, 3 rebs, 3 stls
Nate Robinson: 3 pts, 1 ast, 1-12 FG (Shitass)

Nice win. Looks like you're on way to epic series against OKC. They're a tough squad, that's for sure.