The NBA Roundup: March 21, 2013

This series of daily Roundups will be different from our regular NBA posts, which focus more on the Hoop Nuts’ opinions, feature stories, and listings/rankings. The NBA Roundups will focus exclusively on daily recaps (credit to the Sports Network) and will attempt to give the day’s best and worst.

Needless to say, for all NBA diehards, this series will be reminiscent of the Daily Dime or the Daily Zap.

Let’s start with the games from yesterday, March 21, 2013 (all times are Manila time):

Day’s Best:

LeBron James’s triple-double against his former team – 25-12-10. MVP this early?
Duncan continues to defy Father Time. The Big Fundamental dropped 25 and 13 to go with 6 dimes and 4 blocks. #oldmancan
CP3 remains to have my vote for the planet’s top PG. 19 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists, and 5 thefts? Man.

It's not too early. LBJ might already be the MVP.
(image by Tony Dejak/AP)

Day’s Worst:

OKC and MEM played a really tight game. It was great for hoops purists, but for the NBA’s nouveau fans who are wont to like high-scoring affairs, this was not ideal – both clubs combined to shoot under 36%!!! I LOVE OKC, but tonight they were… bleh.
Boston shot 32% and was outrebounded 30-12 in the second half against NOH. The result? You guess. #droppedtheball
Monta Ellis shot the Bucks out of their game against ATL. Ellis made just 2 of 14 FGs, wasting the monster double-double effort of Larry Sanders – 19 and 14.

Final Score: Charlotte 107, Toronto 101

Charlotte, NC (Sports Network) - Byron Mullens scored 25 points and Gerald Henderson added 21 points, seven rebounds and five assists to lead the Charlotte Bobcats to a 107-101 win over the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday. Josh McRoberts had 12 points and 12 rebounds and Kemba Walker added 14 points, seven rebounds and eight assists for the Bobcats, who have won back-to-back games for the first time since November. Rudy Gay scored 25 points, DeMar DeRozan had 19 and Kyle Lowry and Jonas Valanciunas finished with 18 points apiece for the Raptors, losers in three of their last four games.

Final Score: Miami 98, Cleveland 95

Cleveland, OH (Sports Network) - LeBron James recorded a triple-double that helped trigger a huge second-half comeback and extend the Miami Heat's winning streak to 24 consecutive games with a 98-95 decision over Cleveland at a charged-up Quicken Loans Arena. James racked up 25 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in sparking the Heat's rally from a 27-point third-quarter deficit. Nineteen of those points came after halftime. Five other Miami players finished in double figures to aid in the Heat's lengthening of the second-longest winning run in league annals. Despite being without its top two scorers in Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters, Cleveland was in front by a wide margin for much of the way before wilting down the stretch and being dealt its fourth straight loss and eighth and 10 outings. Wayne Ellington paced the Cavs with 20 points, while Tristan Thompson had 18 and Tyler Zeller compiled 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Final Score: Atlanta 98, Milwaukee 90

Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) - Jeff Teague paced the Hawks with 27 points and 11 assists and Atlanta fended off a late rally to top the Milwaukee Bucks, 98-90, at Philips Arena. Al Horford totaled 26 points and 15 rebounds, while Josh Smith added 12 points, 16 boards and six assists for the Hawks, who bounced back from a home loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Monday. The Bucks had their two-game winning streak snapped despite Larry Sanders filling the box score with 19 points, 14 boards and four blocks. Brandon Jennings scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half, while J.J. Redick had 18 points off the bench in the setback.

Final Score: New York 106, Orlando 94

New York, NY (Sports Network) - The sputtering New York Knicks got their star back and tallied their first season sweep of the Orlando Magic in 15 years. Carmelo Anthony returned from a three-game absence and had 21 points and eight rebounds in the Knicks 106-94 win over Orlando. J.R. Smith added 22 points for New York, which has won two straight on the heels of a four- game skid. Tobias Harris and Andrew Nicholson netted 14 points apiece, while Kyle O'Quinn chipped in 12 points and 14 boards for the Magic, who have dropped five consecutive contests.

Final Score: Brooklyn 113, Dallas 96

Dallas, TX (Sports Network) - Brook Lopez couldn't be stopped down low and Deron Williams stepped up in the second half, as the Brooklyn Nets downed the Dallas Mavericks, 113-96, at American Airlines Center. Lopez scored a season- high 38 points and pulled down 11 rebounds, and Williams scored 26 of his 31 points after the break in helping the Nets improve to 2-0 on their eight-game road trip. Brooklyn won the battle on the glass by a 45-34 margin thanks in large part to Reggie Evans cleaning up 22 boards in a winning effort. Dirk Nowitzki and Chris Kaman led Dallas with 16 and 14 points, respectively, as the Mavs opened their six-game homestand on a sour note.

Final Score: Houston 100, Utah 93

Houston, TX (Sports Network) - James Harden scored 29 points and Jeremy Lin added 24 points and six assists to lead the Houston Rockets to a 100-93 win over the Utah Jazz on Wednesday. Chandler Parsons had 10 points and eight rebounds and Omer Asik finished with nine points and 12 boards for the Rockets, winners in six of their last nine games. Gordon Hayward scored 27 points and Al Jefferson added 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Jazz, who trail the Los Angeles Lakers for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Final Score: Memphis 90, Oklahoma City 89 (OT)

Memphis, TN (Sports Network) - Marc Gasol's tip-in of a missed layup from Zach Randolph at the buzzer proved to be the difference as the Memphis Grizzlies came through with a thrilling 90-89 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder at FedEx Forum. Both players recorded double-doubles for Memphis, which blew a 10-point third-quarter lead before ultimately earning its eighth victory in 10 games by prevailing in extra time. Randolph finished with 15 points and 18 rebounds, with Gasol compiling 14 points and 15 boards. Mike Conley contributed 24 points for the Grizzlies, with Jerryd Bayless aiding the cause with a 20-point effort off the bench. The Thunder lost consecutive games for only the fourth time this season despite 32 points out of Kevin Durant and 20 from Russell Westbrook. Kevin Martin added 17 points for Oklahoma City, which was coming off Tuesday's 114-104 setback to red-hot Denver, while Kendrick Perkins pulled down 16 rebounds.

Final Score: New Orleans 87, Boston 86

New Orleans, LA (Sports Network) - Anthony Davis tipped in an Eric Gordon miss with 0.3 seconds left, lifting the New Orleans Hornets to an 87-86 come-from-behind victory over the visiting Boston Celtics. Ryan Anderson scored 14 of his team-high 21 points in the second half to lead the Hornets back from a 13-point deficit early in the third quarter and enable New Orleans to halt a four-game losing streak. Gordon added 18 points in the triumph, with Greivis Vasquez tallying 13 along with seven rebounds and six assists. Returning from a two-game absence caused by a thigh injury and a bout with the flu, Kevin Garnett put up 20 points in 29 minutes for Boston. Paul Pierce dropped in a game-high 28, though it wasn't enough for the Celtics to be dealt a second consecutive narrow defeat.

Final Score: San Antonio 104, Golden State 93

San Antonio, TX (Sports Network) - Tim Duncan had 25 points, 13 rebounds and six assists in the Spurs' 104-93 win over the Warriors. San Antonio downed Golden State in the Alamo City for the 29th straight time. It's the longest active home winning streak for any NBA team against another. Tiago Splitter added 17 points and seven boards for the Spurs, who are 6-2 since starting point guard Tony Parker went down with a left ankle sprain. Manu Ginobili chipped in 16 points and seven assists off the bench in the triumph. Stephen Curry netted 24 points to lead Golden State, which had won four of its previous five tilts coming in.

Final Score: Washington 88, Phoenix 79

Phoenix, AZ (Sports Network) - John Wall had 19 points and eight assists in the Washington Wizards' 88-79 win over the Phoenix Suns. Nene added 17 points and eight rebounds for Washington, which tallied just its sixth road win of the season. Bradley Beal re-injured his sprained left ankle during the fourth quarter. He missed six games earlier this month due to the injury. Goran Dragic and Wesley Johnson netted 18 points apiece for the Suns, who have dropped five of their last six tilts.

Final Score: LA Clippers 101, Philadelphia 72

Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Chris Paul and the Los Angeles Clippers put a surprising loss behind them with a dominating 101-72 win over the road- weary Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday. Paul, after committing seven turnovers in a setback in Sacramento on Tuesday, totaled 19 points, nine assists, six rebounds and five steals in the resounding triumph. Caron Butler added 14 points, while Willie Green and Jamal Crawford chipped in 13 and 12, respectively, for a Clippers attack that connected on 53 percent of their shots. Jrue Holiday epitomized Philadelphia's struggles, as the All-Star point guard was 1-of-8 from the field for two points. Spencer Hawes put up 16 points, seven boards, seven assists and four blocks in the loss. The Sixers were coming off a successful 3-1 homestand but continued their struggles on the road, where they have lost 14 straight.