The Dallas Mavericks suffered a painful defeat against feared opponents the New York Knicks. Jayson Tatum and Giannis Antetokounmpo are outstanding for their teams and the Phoenix Suns are already qualified for the playoffs after a convincing performance in the big game in Miami.
Charlotte Hornets (32-35) – Boston Celtics (40-27) 101:115 (BOXSCORE)
- The Hornets are still in free fall and must slowly tremble for the play-in if they continue to play like this. Boston didn’t play a good game by any means, but ultimately clinched a comfortable victory. This was mainly due to another gala by Jayson Tatum, who could do whatever he wanted. In the end there were 44 points (16/24 FG, 6/9 threes, 6/6 FT, 5 rebounds, 3 steals).
- In the middle of the third quarter, the hosts were still leading in this game after the bench around ex-Celtic Isaiah Thomas had forgotten the weak start. LaMelo Ball spent much of the game on the bench and only managed 15 points in 28 minutes. Boston looked lethargic, which was particularly evident from Jaylen Brown (15, 6/16), who was invisible for the first 30 minutes.
- But then the forward woke up and started the turnaround with seven quick points. Between the third and fourth periods, the Celtics managed a 14-0 run for a good two minutes – with the friendly support of stupid fouls from Montrezl Harrell (10, 7 boards) and Kelly Oubre Jr. (9) – after that it was for the Hornets the air out. Tatum sank four more triples in the final section and had 28 points in the second half alone.
- Six players scored in double digits for Boston, including Marcus Smart (12, 9 assists), Rob Williams (11, 11 rebounds) and Al Horford (10, 10 boards). For the Hornets, PJ Washington (17) was the top scorer while Miles Bridges (17, 5/14) and Terry Rozier (14, 5/17) trailed behind. Daniel Theis only played 4:39 minutes for the Celtics and had 2 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist and 1 block.
Detroit Pistons (18-48) – Chicago Bulls (40-26) 108:114 (BOXSCORE)
- It was far from convincing, but if you have a DeMar DeRozan in your roster, you can win games like this. The All-Star heaved the Bulls to a dirty win with 36 points (12/25 FG, 12/13 FT) and 8 rebounds, while scoring 28 points in the second half. Detroit found no answers to the forward, even top rookie Cade Cunningham simply couldn’t stop DeRozan in a one-on-one.
- Just under nine minutes before the end, the Pistons had led by seven points thanks to Cunningham. The No. 1 pick showed one of his most efficient games with 22 points (9/15) and 6 assists, but in the end he didn’t succeed anymore either. The Bulls turned the game around with a 17-2 run over seven minutes and were able to rely on their stars.
- Along with DeRozan, Zach LaVine (25, 7/14) scored eight points in the final period, and the All-Star also marched to the free throw line 11 times. This was ultimately the key, the Bulls sank 31 of their 35 freebies (Detroit: 13/17 FT) and were able to afford an ice-cold evening from downtown (only 3/15 threes). Two of those triples came from Coby White (8).
- Nikola Vucevic (21, 8/11), on the other hand, dominated in the zone, also because Detroit was missing Isaiah Stewart. Ex-No.2 pick Marvin Bagley (10) started for the first time, but he was overwhelmed with this task. Veteran Kelly Olynyk (12) did much better.
- And another curiosity: You don’t see a basket like that every day in the NBA. We congratulate the ex-Ulmer Javonte Green on this masterpiece.
Miami Heat (44-23) – Phoenix Suns (53-13) 90:111 (BOXSCORE)
- It’s amazing how the Suns win game after game, including the Eastern Conference leaders. In addition, the playoff participation was secured, of course as the first team. Chris Paul was still missing, but Devin Booker (Corona) returned after a four-game break and integrated himself directly into the collective. 23 points (7/12), 8 rebounds, 9 assists and that buzzerbeater at the end of the third quarter were proof enough.
- The third quarter was decisive, when the Suns clearly pulled away with a 34:19 section and, somewhat surprisingly, completely dominated the boards. Alone JaVale McGee (11, 15 boards), who also with this, uh, beautiful Dirk tribute noticed, grabbed 7 offensive rebounds, the duel under the baskets decided the guests more than clearly with 64:46.
- Jimmy Butler was absent from Miami (ill) and that was noticeable. The Heat could think of little against the solid defense of the Suns, only just over half of the attempts went through the trap. The hosts’ best scorers were Duncan Robinson (22, 6/11 threes), Bam Adebayo (17, 6 boards) and Tyler Herro (17, 7/20), but there was far too little behind them. Kyle Lowry (5) played 10 assists (including this beauty), but also only took three throws.
- The Suns were able to let it slide so easily, six players scoring at least 11 points. Behind top scorer Booker, Mikal Bridges (21, 9/13, 9 rebounds) was in really good shape, but Deandre Ayton (19, 9/10, 10 rebounds) was in no way inferior to the forward. Cameron Payne (11, 10 assists) posted a double-double.
