Boston and
Milwaukee are locked as the seventh and eighth seeds respectively out East,
while the Clippers underscored their dominance of the Grizzlies with a big win
today. Also, Ricky Rubio scores a career-high as the T-Wolves rattled the Suns.
Today’s Best:
- Ricky Rubio, the once-controversial Spanish sensation, scored a career-high 24 points to go along with 10 assists, 5 rebounds, and 5 steals for Minnesota, which will finish the season last in the Northwest Division.
- How about seldom-mentioned Josh McRoberts leading the Bobcats in a resounding win over Playoffs-bound Milwaukee? McRoberts scattered an almost-triple-double line – 18 points, 9 boards, and 9 dimes.
- Let’s not forget DeAndre Jordan, who scored all 16 of his points in the first half of the Clips’ big victory over their probable first round opponent – the Memphis Grizzlies. Jordan also hauled down 12 rebounds and blocked 3 shots.
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| Ricky Rubio is developing into one of the league's top playmakers. (image David Sherman/Getty Images) |
Today’s Worst:
- Memphis’s Jerryd Bayless continues to struggle, hitting just 3 of his 10 field goal attempts against the Clippers. He is making just 37% of his shots this month.
- Sometimes Monta Ellis is a joy to watch. This was not exactly one of those times. Ellis missed 11 of his 18 shot attempts tonight as the Bucks continue to limp towards the postseason.
- Another guy who didn’t do too well for Milwaukee? How about relatively new acquisition JJ Redick, who shot 2-of-11 from deep and didn’t do much else. They got him for his shooting, but he had a tough one tonight.
Final Score: Boston 120, Orlando 88
Orlando, FL
(Sports Network) - Courtney Lee scored 20 points and the Boston Celtics handled
the Orlando Magic with ease, 120-88, on Saturday. Lee was one of seven Boston
players to score double-digits. Jeff Green and Jordan Crawford had 17 and 16
points, respectively. Kevin Garnett, Brandon Bass and Avery Bradley scored 14
points apiece, with Garnett also grabbing nine boards. Paul Pierce tallied 12
points for the Celtics, who were coming off a 109-101 loss at Miami on Friday.
The Celtics, who beat the Magic for the eighth straight time, clinched the
seventh seed in the Eastern Conference standings with two games left on the
schedule. They will face Indiana at home on Tuesday before finishing the
regular season in Toronto on Wednesday. Tobias Harris scored 22 points and Nik
Vucevic recorded a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Magic,
who have lost six of their last seven games.
Final Score: Charlotte 95, Milwaukee 85
Charlotte,
NC (Sports Network) - Josh McRoberts filled out the stat sheet with 18 points,
nine rebounds and a career-high nine assists and Bismack Biyombo recorded a
double-double with 13 points and a game-high 17 boards as Charlotte downed
Milwaukee, 95-85, on Saturday to hand the Bucks a ninth straight road loss.
Kemba Walker scored 21 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists
and tied Brevin Knight's (2005-06) franchise record for steals in a season with
157 for the Bobcats, who saw a four-game losing streak come to an end. Mike
Dunleavy had 19 points and Monta Ellis added 16 for the Bucks, who already
clinched a spot in the playoffs, but have dropped four straight and 11 of 14
overall. John Henson supplied eight points and 11 rebounds in defeat for
Milwaukee, which hasn't found victory on the road since a March 10 win over
Sacramento. The Bucks are now guaranteed the eighth spot in the Eastern
Conference and will play top-seeded defending champion Miami in the first
round.
Final Score: LA Clippers 91, Memphis 87
Memphis, TN
(Sports Network) - Chris Paul made 1-of-2 shots from the free throw line with
18.3 seconds remaining as the Los Angeles Clippers held off Memphis, 91-87 to
snap the Grizzlies' 13-game home winning streak. Paul, who finished with 13
points and five assists, put the visitors ahead 89-87. After Los Angeles forced
a turnover on a pass from Memphis' Mike Conley, Blake Griffin went to the
charity stripe to extend the lead, but missed both shots. He was fouled on a
clear path violation, however, which gave the Clippers the ball back and Jamal
Crawford made two free throws with 2.2 seconds left to secure the win. DeAndre
Jordan scored 16 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and Griffin added 12 points and
nine boards for the Clippers, who have won five straight. Marc Gasol had
game-high 18 points and 15 rebounds and Zach Randolph chipped in 16 points and
12 boards for the Grizzlies, who had a three-game winning streak come to an
end. They sit in fifth place in the Western Conference, one spot behind the
Clippers. Memphis was handed its first setback at home since Feb. 5 against
Phoenix.
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| DeAndre Jordan was a force against Memphis. (image Mark Humphrey/AP) |
Final Score: Minnesota 105, Phoenix 93
Minneapolis,
MN (Sports Network) - Ricky Rubio had 24 points and 10 assists and led the
Minnesota Timberwolves to a 105-93 win over the Phoenix Suns. J.J. Barea scored
16 points off the bench while Derrick Williams and Andrei Kirilenko had 15 and
14 points, respectively, for the Timberwolves, who snapped a three-game losing
streak. Though the Timberwolves are out of playoff contention for the ninth
straight season, the victory gives them 20 wins at the Target Center for the
first time since the 2006-07 season. With a win over Utah on Monday the
Timberwolves could finish above .500 at home for the first time since the
2005-06 season. Markieff Morris had a team-high 20 points and nine rebounds
while Jared Dudley tallied 16 points for the Suns, who snapped a 10-game losing
streak on Wednesday with a 102-91 win at Dallas. Luis Scola had 14 points and
nine rebounds, but also recorded eight turnovers while Goran Dragic had a
double- double with 10 points and 14 assists in the setback.
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