JMarkJohns
12-15-2004, 01:19 PM
From InsideHoops.com
Baller of the Day for Tuesday's games is Mike Bibby, who in a Kings win over the Bucks had 27 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists and four steals. The Kings won the game thanks to a three-pointer by Chris Webber, but if it wasn't for Bibby's great play all game long the Kings wouldn't have been in position to win at all. So, Bibby gets it.
The Seattle SuperSonics placed guard Mateen Cleaves on the injured list and activated rookie guard Ibrahim Kutluay. If the Sonics want to keep winning they probably will use Kutluay very little.
The AP reports: The Charlotte Bobcats activated forward Theron Smith before Tuesday night's game against New Orleans and placed forward Tamar Slay on the injured list. Smith missed the first 18 games of the season after knee surgery on Nov. 8. He played in just three preseason games and averaged 7.3 points and 5.0 rebounds.
Ticker reports: Rookie guard Antonio Burks is expected to miss six to eight weeks for the Memphis Grizzlies after fracturing a right pinkie finger. Burks, 24, suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of Monday night's game against Cleveland. He will undergo surgery on the finger Wednesday at the Campbell Clinic, and is expected to be placed on the injured list for the second time this season.
Fanball reports: Spurs' point guard Tony Parker is questionable for Wednesday's game against the Magic. He is nursing a groin injury that he suffered on Saturday against the Cavaliers. Parker has been unable to practice the last two days.
The AP reports: Seven-time NBA rebounding champion Dennis Rodman signed Tuesday to play two games in January with the Long Beach Jam of the American Basketball Association after being granted his release by the league's Orange County Crush. Rodman will play homes games Jan. 23 against Utah and Jan. 28 against Tijuana. He played the first two minutes of Orange County's 124-123 victory over Las Vegas last Thursday, several days after injuring his right hamstring in practice and a day before undergoing knee surgery.
Fanball reports: Andrei Kirilenko is still in a brace that limits movement in his injured right knee and is not expected to begin rehab until after Christmas, the Salt Lake Tribune reported. He is likely out at least another month, but the team will not know a more specific time frame until he begins testing the knee during rehab.
The AP reports: Hornets guard Alex Garcia will miss the rest of the season because of a torn knee ligament, the latest injury to hit a team reeling with a 1-18 record. He twisted his left knee Sunday against Washington and left the game in the third quarter. The tear of the anterior cruciate ligament was diagnosed Monday by the Charlotte Bobcats' team doctor, the Hornets said. Garcia had an MRI in Charlotte, where the Hornets were to play the Bobcats on Tuesday night.
TUESDAY'S RESULTS
GOLDEN STATE 111, DALLAS 107 - Ticker reports: Clifford Robinson helped the Golden State Warriors end a long drought in Dallas and the Mavericks eclipse last season's home loss total. Robinson gave the Warriors the lead for good with seven of his season-high 25 points during an early run as Golden State ended a 12-game skid in "Big D" with a 111-107 victory over Dallas, which suffered its sixth loss in 13 games at American Airlines Arena... Troy Murphy and Mickael Pietrus each scored 20 points and Speedy Claxton had 18 and 10 assists for Golden State, which has won four of its last six games. Stackhouse scored 27 points, Finley added 24 and Josh Howard had 12 and 10 rebounds for the Mavericks.
SACRAMENTO 89, MILWAUKEE 86 - Ticker reports: Chris Webber made a 3-pointer that didn't count, then made one that did. Seconds after sinking a practice shot, Webber sank a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Sacramento Kings an 89-86 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Webber scored 23 points for the Kings, who rallied from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit and gave away a lead before improving to 8-0 against the Eastern Conference. With the game tied, the Bucks used an extra foul to deny the Kings a shot. Webber ended up with the ball and fired a 3-pointer that went in. On the ensuing inbounds play, Webber took a pass and sank the game-winning 3-pointer before sprinting off the court. The Bucks held an 85-81 lead before Stojakovic hit a 3-pointer with 30 seconds left and added a driving layup with nine seconds remaining to give the Kings an 86-85 edge. Bibby stole the ball from Michael Redd to set up Stojakovic's layup. Webber fouled Mike James, who sank 1-of-2 free throws with four seconds left, setting the stage for the Bucks to lose for the 12th time in 15 games.
CHARLOTTE 94, NEW ORLEANS 93 (OT) - Ticker reports: Rookie Emeka Okafor posted his 11th straight double-double and hit two free throws with 5.7 seconds left in overtime to give the Charlotte Bobcats a 94-93 victory over the reeling New Orleans Hornets. In their first appearance in their original home since moving to New Orleans two seasons ago, the Hornets lost their 11th straight game. They are a league-worst 1-19. The Hornets tied the second-longest losing streak in franchise history and is one shy of the all-time mark set January 19-February 14, 1990. Junior Harrington, who scored 18 of his career-high 22 points in the second half and overtime, hit a 3-pointer to give New Orleans a 93-92 lead with seven seconds remaining. But after Okafor's free throws, he missed a shot at the buzzer. Okafor, who entered the game shooting just 57% (32-of-56)from the foul line this season, made 6-of-8 free throws. Okafor scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and has the most consecutive double-doubles by a rookie since Shaquille O'Neal collected 15 straight in 1992-1993. Wallace had 17 points and 11 rebounds while Keith Bogans scored 11 points and Jason Kapono10 for the Bobcats, who ended a four-game slide.
PHILADELPHIA 110, DENVER 102 - Ticker reports: Things were looking pretty blue for the Philadelphia 76ers until Jim O'Brien inserted Willie Green. Green scored 13 of his season-high 17 points in a seven-minute span of the second half and sparked a stunning turnaround as the 76ers roared back from an 18-point deficit for a 110-102 victory over the Denver Nuggets, their third straight win... Iverson had 31 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists and Iguodala scored 16 points for Philadelphia, which was swept by Denver last season. Carmelo Anthony scored 29 points and Kenyon Martin added 25 for the Nuggets, who fell to 2-2 on their season-high seven-game road trip. The Sixers played without forward Kenny Thomas, who had flu-like symptoms. The Nuggets were without center Nene, who had a bruised right hip. As a result, Denver was outrebounded, 44-36, and surrendered 20 second-chance points.
INDIANA 108, ATLANTA 97 (OT) - Ticker reports: It took overtime, but the Indiana Pacers finally put one in the win column. Returning from injury, Jamaal Tinsley matched his season high with 29 points and the Pacers scored the first 10 of overtime en route to ending their seven-game losing streak with a 108-97 triumph over the Atlanta Hawks. Winless since an 82-77 victory over Charlotte on November 26, Indiana controlled the extra session as Fred Jones made four free throws during the opening spurt and Tinsley added five points in the final 1:06 to tie his best output of the season set November 23 against Boston... Reggie Miller added 19 points and David Harrison 12 and 10 rebounds for the Pacers, who played without forward Austin Croshere due to a sprained left ankle. Reserve Tony Delk scored a season-high 22 points on 10-of-17 shooting for Atlanta, which has lost six straight to Indiana.
NEW YORK 87, NEW JERSEY 79 - Ticker reports: Coach Lawrence Frank might want to consider having his New Jersey Nets do extra shooting drills during its next practice. The New York Knicks held the Nets without a basket for more than 15 minutes bridging the final two quarters en route to an ugly 87-79 victory, snapping a seven-game road losing streak in the series. Jamal Crawford scored 30 points and Kurt Thomas added 14 and 12 rebounds for New York, which beat the Nets for just the third time in their last 15 regular-season meetings... Richard Jefferson collected 22 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for New Jersey but shot just 7-of-18. Williams chipped in 21 points for the Nets, who had not lost at home to the Knicks since February 2, 2001. Jason Collins grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds but was just 2-of-12 from the floor as the Nets lost for just the second time in six games. They are 3-2 since Kidd returned. New Jersey jumped out to an early 18-7 lead before Kidd went to the bench midway through the first quarter. New York dominated the rest of the first half while Kidd remained on the bench, engineering a 17-point turnaround.
MINNESOTA 100, PORTLAND 89 - Ticker reports: Wally Szczerbiak finally got involved in the offense. Szczerbiak scored seven of his season-high 28 points in a decisive fourth-quarter run to lift the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 100-89 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers, who began a six-game road trip... Szczerbiak picked up the slack for Latrell Sprewell, who scored just five points in 25 minutes. Kevin Garnett had 19 points and 19 rebounds and Sam Cassell added 19 and 13 assists for Minnesota, which has won eight of its last 10 games. The Wolves also got a boost from reserve Eddie Griffin, who continued his strong play with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Griffin helped Minnesota shoot 50% (45-of-90) and enjoy a 51-39 advantage on the glass. Darius Miles scored 17 points off the bench and Zach Randolph added 16 and 14 boards for the Trail Blazers, who have lost four straight road games.
UTAH 93, LA CLIPPERS 91 - Ticker reports: Mehmet Okur made the Los Angeles Clippers regret deliberately fouling him twice in the final moments. Okur had his second straight double-double and hit three critical free throws in the final nine seconds to help the Utah Jazz hold off the Clippers, 93-91. Okur, who has seen his playing time increase following injuries to Andrei Kirilenko and Jarron Collins, scored 19 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and made 3-of-4 late free throws to ice the victory... Coach Jerry Sloan became the 10th person in NBA history to coach 1,500 games. He is 927-573 in 20 seasons, including 17 with the Jazz. Marko Jaric scored 18 points and had six assists for the Clippers. Brand added 19 points on just 4-of-12 shooting before leaving with 23 seconds remaining with an eye contusion. He is listed as day-to-day.
SEATTLE 108, LA LAKERS 93 - Ticker reports: With most eyes trained on the supposed friction between Kobe Bryant and Ray Allen, Rashard Lewis stole the show to get the Seattle SuperSonics back into the win column at home. Lewis scored 17 of his season-high 37 points in the first quarter when the Sonics opened a big lead, helping his club cruise to a 108-93 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. It was the first meeting between the teams since a preseason matchup in Los Angeles, after which Sonics All-Star guard Allen questioned Bryant's ability to lead the revamped Lakers... Allen scored 26 points for Seattle, which improved to 10-1 at home by rebounding from its first loss this season at KeyArena - a 98-84 setback to Boston on Saturday. Lewis and Allen spearheaded a 12-of-27 team effort from the arc. Bryant nearly matched Lewis in the first half, scoring 21 of his 35 points before the break. He got little support from his teammates, however, as only two other Lakers scored as many as 12 points and Los Angeles shot just under 40% (32-of-81) from the floor.
WEDNESDAY SCHEDULE
All times Eastern. Local and national television info to right of each game:
Denver @ Boston 7:00pm FSNE / Altitude
Minnesota @ Toronto 7:00pm KSTC, SCORE
Miami @ Washington 7:00pm CSN / Sunshine
Portland @ Cleveland 7:00pm FSOhio / FSNW
Detroit @ New York 8:00pm MSG / FSN Det ESPN
Chicago @ Memphis 8:00pm FSO / CSN-CHI
Golden State @ New Orleans 8:00pm -- --
Atlanta @ Houston 8:30pm FSNSW / WPXA
Orlando @ San Antonio 8:30pm FSNSW / WRBW
Utah @ Phoenix 10:30pm FSAZ / KJZZ ESPN
TODAY IN NBA HISTORY
December 15, 1984: Gus Williams of the Washington Bullets recorded his 1,404th steal during a 109-103 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers to become, at the time, the NBA’s all-time leader in that category.
December 15, 1994: Recognizing that three-point field goals were becoming more frequent at a shorter distance, the NBA announced that it was changing the statistical minimum, from 50 to 82, of three-point baskets needed in order for a player to qualify for the three-point field goal percentage title.
December 15, 1995: Toronto’s Alvin Robertson picks up three steals in the Raptors’ 122-103 loss at Boston, becoming the third NBA player to move past 2,000 career steals.
December 15, 1997: Chicago plays Phoenix in front of their 500th consecutive home sellout. At the time, it was the longest active streak and third-longest in NBA history. Portland had 814 and Boston is next on the list with 662.
Baller of the Day for Tuesday's games is Mike Bibby, who in a Kings win over the Bucks had 27 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists and four steals. The Kings won the game thanks to a three-pointer by Chris Webber, but if it wasn't for Bibby's great play all game long the Kings wouldn't have been in position to win at all. So, Bibby gets it.
The Seattle SuperSonics placed guard Mateen Cleaves on the injured list and activated rookie guard Ibrahim Kutluay. If the Sonics want to keep winning they probably will use Kutluay very little.
The AP reports: The Charlotte Bobcats activated forward Theron Smith before Tuesday night's game against New Orleans and placed forward Tamar Slay on the injured list. Smith missed the first 18 games of the season after knee surgery on Nov. 8. He played in just three preseason games and averaged 7.3 points and 5.0 rebounds.
Ticker reports: Rookie guard Antonio Burks is expected to miss six to eight weeks for the Memphis Grizzlies after fracturing a right pinkie finger. Burks, 24, suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of Monday night's game against Cleveland. He will undergo surgery on the finger Wednesday at the Campbell Clinic, and is expected to be placed on the injured list for the second time this season.
Fanball reports: Spurs' point guard Tony Parker is questionable for Wednesday's game against the Magic. He is nursing a groin injury that he suffered on Saturday against the Cavaliers. Parker has been unable to practice the last two days.
The AP reports: Seven-time NBA rebounding champion Dennis Rodman signed Tuesday to play two games in January with the Long Beach Jam of the American Basketball Association after being granted his release by the league's Orange County Crush. Rodman will play homes games Jan. 23 against Utah and Jan. 28 against Tijuana. He played the first two minutes of Orange County's 124-123 victory over Las Vegas last Thursday, several days after injuring his right hamstring in practice and a day before undergoing knee surgery.
Fanball reports: Andrei Kirilenko is still in a brace that limits movement in his injured right knee and is not expected to begin rehab until after Christmas, the Salt Lake Tribune reported. He is likely out at least another month, but the team will not know a more specific time frame until he begins testing the knee during rehab.
The AP reports: Hornets guard Alex Garcia will miss the rest of the season because of a torn knee ligament, the latest injury to hit a team reeling with a 1-18 record. He twisted his left knee Sunday against Washington and left the game in the third quarter. The tear of the anterior cruciate ligament was diagnosed Monday by the Charlotte Bobcats' team doctor, the Hornets said. Garcia had an MRI in Charlotte, where the Hornets were to play the Bobcats on Tuesday night.
TUESDAY'S RESULTS
GOLDEN STATE 111, DALLAS 107 - Ticker reports: Clifford Robinson helped the Golden State Warriors end a long drought in Dallas and the Mavericks eclipse last season's home loss total. Robinson gave the Warriors the lead for good with seven of his season-high 25 points during an early run as Golden State ended a 12-game skid in "Big D" with a 111-107 victory over Dallas, which suffered its sixth loss in 13 games at American Airlines Arena... Troy Murphy and Mickael Pietrus each scored 20 points and Speedy Claxton had 18 and 10 assists for Golden State, which has won four of its last six games. Stackhouse scored 27 points, Finley added 24 and Josh Howard had 12 and 10 rebounds for the Mavericks.
SACRAMENTO 89, MILWAUKEE 86 - Ticker reports: Chris Webber made a 3-pointer that didn't count, then made one that did. Seconds after sinking a practice shot, Webber sank a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Sacramento Kings an 89-86 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Webber scored 23 points for the Kings, who rallied from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit and gave away a lead before improving to 8-0 against the Eastern Conference. With the game tied, the Bucks used an extra foul to deny the Kings a shot. Webber ended up with the ball and fired a 3-pointer that went in. On the ensuing inbounds play, Webber took a pass and sank the game-winning 3-pointer before sprinting off the court. The Bucks held an 85-81 lead before Stojakovic hit a 3-pointer with 30 seconds left and added a driving layup with nine seconds remaining to give the Kings an 86-85 edge. Bibby stole the ball from Michael Redd to set up Stojakovic's layup. Webber fouled Mike James, who sank 1-of-2 free throws with four seconds left, setting the stage for the Bucks to lose for the 12th time in 15 games.
CHARLOTTE 94, NEW ORLEANS 93 (OT) - Ticker reports: Rookie Emeka Okafor posted his 11th straight double-double and hit two free throws with 5.7 seconds left in overtime to give the Charlotte Bobcats a 94-93 victory over the reeling New Orleans Hornets. In their first appearance in their original home since moving to New Orleans two seasons ago, the Hornets lost their 11th straight game. They are a league-worst 1-19. The Hornets tied the second-longest losing streak in franchise history and is one shy of the all-time mark set January 19-February 14, 1990. Junior Harrington, who scored 18 of his career-high 22 points in the second half and overtime, hit a 3-pointer to give New Orleans a 93-92 lead with seven seconds remaining. But after Okafor's free throws, he missed a shot at the buzzer. Okafor, who entered the game shooting just 57% (32-of-56)from the foul line this season, made 6-of-8 free throws. Okafor scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and has the most consecutive double-doubles by a rookie since Shaquille O'Neal collected 15 straight in 1992-1993. Wallace had 17 points and 11 rebounds while Keith Bogans scored 11 points and Jason Kapono10 for the Bobcats, who ended a four-game slide.
PHILADELPHIA 110, DENVER 102 - Ticker reports: Things were looking pretty blue for the Philadelphia 76ers until Jim O'Brien inserted Willie Green. Green scored 13 of his season-high 17 points in a seven-minute span of the second half and sparked a stunning turnaround as the 76ers roared back from an 18-point deficit for a 110-102 victory over the Denver Nuggets, their third straight win... Iverson had 31 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists and Iguodala scored 16 points for Philadelphia, which was swept by Denver last season. Carmelo Anthony scored 29 points and Kenyon Martin added 25 for the Nuggets, who fell to 2-2 on their season-high seven-game road trip. The Sixers played without forward Kenny Thomas, who had flu-like symptoms. The Nuggets were without center Nene, who had a bruised right hip. As a result, Denver was outrebounded, 44-36, and surrendered 20 second-chance points.
INDIANA 108, ATLANTA 97 (OT) - Ticker reports: It took overtime, but the Indiana Pacers finally put one in the win column. Returning from injury, Jamaal Tinsley matched his season high with 29 points and the Pacers scored the first 10 of overtime en route to ending their seven-game losing streak with a 108-97 triumph over the Atlanta Hawks. Winless since an 82-77 victory over Charlotte on November 26, Indiana controlled the extra session as Fred Jones made four free throws during the opening spurt and Tinsley added five points in the final 1:06 to tie his best output of the season set November 23 against Boston... Reggie Miller added 19 points and David Harrison 12 and 10 rebounds for the Pacers, who played without forward Austin Croshere due to a sprained left ankle. Reserve Tony Delk scored a season-high 22 points on 10-of-17 shooting for Atlanta, which has lost six straight to Indiana.
NEW YORK 87, NEW JERSEY 79 - Ticker reports: Coach Lawrence Frank might want to consider having his New Jersey Nets do extra shooting drills during its next practice. The New York Knicks held the Nets without a basket for more than 15 minutes bridging the final two quarters en route to an ugly 87-79 victory, snapping a seven-game road losing streak in the series. Jamal Crawford scored 30 points and Kurt Thomas added 14 and 12 rebounds for New York, which beat the Nets for just the third time in their last 15 regular-season meetings... Richard Jefferson collected 22 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for New Jersey but shot just 7-of-18. Williams chipped in 21 points for the Nets, who had not lost at home to the Knicks since February 2, 2001. Jason Collins grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds but was just 2-of-12 from the floor as the Nets lost for just the second time in six games. They are 3-2 since Kidd returned. New Jersey jumped out to an early 18-7 lead before Kidd went to the bench midway through the first quarter. New York dominated the rest of the first half while Kidd remained on the bench, engineering a 17-point turnaround.
MINNESOTA 100, PORTLAND 89 - Ticker reports: Wally Szczerbiak finally got involved in the offense. Szczerbiak scored seven of his season-high 28 points in a decisive fourth-quarter run to lift the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 100-89 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers, who began a six-game road trip... Szczerbiak picked up the slack for Latrell Sprewell, who scored just five points in 25 minutes. Kevin Garnett had 19 points and 19 rebounds and Sam Cassell added 19 and 13 assists for Minnesota, which has won eight of its last 10 games. The Wolves also got a boost from reserve Eddie Griffin, who continued his strong play with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Griffin helped Minnesota shoot 50% (45-of-90) and enjoy a 51-39 advantage on the glass. Darius Miles scored 17 points off the bench and Zach Randolph added 16 and 14 boards for the Trail Blazers, who have lost four straight road games.
UTAH 93, LA CLIPPERS 91 - Ticker reports: Mehmet Okur made the Los Angeles Clippers regret deliberately fouling him twice in the final moments. Okur had his second straight double-double and hit three critical free throws in the final nine seconds to help the Utah Jazz hold off the Clippers, 93-91. Okur, who has seen his playing time increase following injuries to Andrei Kirilenko and Jarron Collins, scored 19 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and made 3-of-4 late free throws to ice the victory... Coach Jerry Sloan became the 10th person in NBA history to coach 1,500 games. He is 927-573 in 20 seasons, including 17 with the Jazz. Marko Jaric scored 18 points and had six assists for the Clippers. Brand added 19 points on just 4-of-12 shooting before leaving with 23 seconds remaining with an eye contusion. He is listed as day-to-day.
SEATTLE 108, LA LAKERS 93 - Ticker reports: With most eyes trained on the supposed friction between Kobe Bryant and Ray Allen, Rashard Lewis stole the show to get the Seattle SuperSonics back into the win column at home. Lewis scored 17 of his season-high 37 points in the first quarter when the Sonics opened a big lead, helping his club cruise to a 108-93 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. It was the first meeting between the teams since a preseason matchup in Los Angeles, after which Sonics All-Star guard Allen questioned Bryant's ability to lead the revamped Lakers... Allen scored 26 points for Seattle, which improved to 10-1 at home by rebounding from its first loss this season at KeyArena - a 98-84 setback to Boston on Saturday. Lewis and Allen spearheaded a 12-of-27 team effort from the arc. Bryant nearly matched Lewis in the first half, scoring 21 of his 35 points before the break. He got little support from his teammates, however, as only two other Lakers scored as many as 12 points and Los Angeles shot just under 40% (32-of-81) from the floor.
WEDNESDAY SCHEDULE
All times Eastern. Local and national television info to right of each game:
Denver @ Boston 7:00pm FSNE / Altitude
Minnesota @ Toronto 7:00pm KSTC, SCORE
Miami @ Washington 7:00pm CSN / Sunshine
Portland @ Cleveland 7:00pm FSOhio / FSNW
Detroit @ New York 8:00pm MSG / FSN Det ESPN
Chicago @ Memphis 8:00pm FSO / CSN-CHI
Golden State @ New Orleans 8:00pm -- --
Atlanta @ Houston 8:30pm FSNSW / WPXA
Orlando @ San Antonio 8:30pm FSNSW / WRBW
Utah @ Phoenix 10:30pm FSAZ / KJZZ ESPN
TODAY IN NBA HISTORY
December 15, 1984: Gus Williams of the Washington Bullets recorded his 1,404th steal during a 109-103 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers to become, at the time, the NBA’s all-time leader in that category.
December 15, 1994: Recognizing that three-point field goals were becoming more frequent at a shorter distance, the NBA announced that it was changing the statistical minimum, from 50 to 82, of three-point baskets needed in order for a player to qualify for the three-point field goal percentage title.
December 15, 1995: Toronto’s Alvin Robertson picks up three steals in the Raptors’ 122-103 loss at Boston, becoming the third NBA player to move past 2,000 career steals.
December 15, 1997: Chicago plays Phoenix in front of their 500th consecutive home sellout. At the time, it was the longest active streak and third-longest in NBA history. Portland had 814 and Boston is next on the list with 662.