Cavaliers 94, Nets 86

In a Saturday matinee, the Cavs wore their white/home jerseys despite playing in New Jersey. Oh, and the crowd was rooting for the Cavs, despite playing in New Jersey.

It’s normally a trend for ‘Nets’ crowds to favor the road superstars because of the lack of exiting play from the home team, but every time LeBron and Co. did anything exciting, the crowd ‘ooo’d and aw’d’ like they were at the circus.

The only thing that can be resembled from a circus is Anderson Varejao and his Sideshow Bob hair. Nevertheless, he had another great game for Cleveland with 15 points, 12 rebounds, and some tremendous defense.

The story in this game though was Cleveland’s 16 offensive rebounds. It was very frustrating as a Nets fan to watch this poor display of defensive rebounding. There were specifically three times that LeBron missed a layup, but the Nets failed to grab the rebound resulting in an immediate two points each time for the Cavs. If you’re lucky enough to get James to miss a layup (without getting a bailout foul called), then you MUST grab that board!

The Nets had a chance to pick up a VERY rare win, but they didn’t take advantage of the opportunities the lackadaisical Cavs gave them. Hence, the Nets lost their 30^th game of the season.

Click here for some extra coverage of this game – my opinion of seeing LeBron James in person for the first time.

Bobcats 107, Heat 97

The Charlotte Bobcats are really bad on the road; I mean, they’ve lost to the Nets on the road this year, and they only had one road win through 2009. So it’s not shock that they would overcome a 19-point deficit, right? Among other reasons, this is why I don’t gamble on sports.

Stephen Jackson led the fourth quarter barrage with 13 of his 35 points in the quarter. The Bobcats shot 85% in the final 8 ½ minutes! Dwyane Wade tried to keep his team in it, but his 15-point fourth quarter wasn’t nearly enough.

Heat F Michael Beasley had 14 points, 6 rebounds and one ugly ‘fro in the loss.

Shooter of the Game: DJ Augustin. I could have easily chosen Quentin Richardson (six three-point FG), but Augustin nailed some big shots down the stretch. He shot 5-7 overall and 3-4 from long-range.

Spurs 97, Wizards 86

Not much to say about this game other than Gilbert Arenas was good, but Tim Duncan was better.

Arenas, fresh off reports of drawing a gun on teammate Javaris Crittenton, came out ‘firing’ with 23 points on 10-25 shooting. Duncan was an efficient 10-16 FG with 23 points and seven rebounds.

The Wizards led by one entering the final period, but the Spurs stopped the Wiz Kids in the 4^th with a 27-15 point advantage.

Shooter of the Game: Roger Mason. I could have gone with a cheap joke by choosing Gilbert Arenas, but I took the high road, haha. Mason shot 7-10 from the field, including 4-4 from three!

Celtics 103, Raptors 96

This game is exactly the reason why Chris Bosh will not stay in Toronto. Besides the fact that he plays in TORONTO, the Raptors lost to a weak Celtics team that was missing three big time starters.

Boston was without Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Rajon Rondo due to various injuries, and yet the Raptors STILL couldn’t win the game. Ray Allen, the lone member of the big 3 (or even 4), led the way for the C’s with 23 points. Rasheed Wallace stepped in with 16 points, six rebounds, and four assists.

Bosh, who will be a free agent at the end of the year, had 25 points and nine boards for Toronto. His performance, matched with his team’s loss is one of the many reasons I don’t see him back in Toronto next year. Sorry Raptors fans.

Bulls 101, Magic 93

Watch out Eastern Conference, the Bulls are back (for now)!

Derrick Rose scored 30 points for the Bulls, who are playing better each game since reports of Vinny Del Negro’s coaching status was questioned. I don’t know why they’re doing it now, but maybe Del Negro inspires this team, who was simply underachieving earlier in the season.

The Bulls have now won four straight games, thanks much to a 20-2 run between the second and third quarters. Quite an impressive win against one of the best in the NBA.

Shooter of the Game: Matt Barnes. For the second straight night, Barnes was on target and had a big game for the Magic. Despite the loss, Barnes shot 5-6 from three-point range for 23 points to lead the Magic.

Pacers 122, Timberwolves 111

In Indy, the Pacers led by as many as 29 points but were able to hold on for an 11-point victory. The T’Wolves were able to get it down to five points with 1:50 left, but their defense was so bad that they really had no chance to come back.

Luther Head and Roy Hibbert led the Pacers in scoring with 21 points each and Brandon Rush (Kansas!) added 16 off the bench.

-Shooter