RACE FOR THE 8^TH SEED IN THE EASTERN CONFERENCE

Nets 127, Bulls 116 (2 OT)

I can’t quite come up with the words that I should, so let me just start by saying this: I was at this game, and it was AWESOME!

Going into the game, I knew it’d be tough for the Nets because the Bulls are fighting for the eighth seed in the East. The Raptors were also playing on Friday night (turns out they lost too), so the Bulls had a chance to move into the playoff picture. The game remained pretty close as the Bulls and Nets couldn’t hold slim leads. However, the game truly came down to the Nets have a 7 point lead with less than 2 minutes left, and it was GONE with only seconds remaining.

Lucky for me (and the Nets), Derrick Rose is overrated. He missed KEY free throws that could have sealed the game, but it left NJ with a chance. With just seconds left, Courtney Lee missed a jumper, which was immediately put back on a dunk by Brook Lopez with 0.1 seconds left! The Bulls called for offensive goaltending, but the refs didn’t budge. From where I was (in the last row of the upper deck), I thought it was clean, but VERY close. Then again, I’m a little biased, haha.

The first OT was not looking good; the Nets couldn’t hit anything and the Bulls went out to a 7-point lead. Derrick Rose strikes again. He missed more clutch free throws and had a key turnover in the backcourt which allowed the Nets to tie it up and force a second OT.

In the second OT, Rose fouled out and the Nets dominated with a 15-4 advantage. T-Will wrapped up his first career triple-double with a full court pass to Lopez for a dunk. Funny thing is, Williams had text messages from unnamed Raptors thanking him for the win. HA! I want to know who it was, seriously!

Hawks 107, Raptors 101

Like I mentioned above, the Raptors lost (again) on Friday night, and remain tied with the Bulls for the 8^th seed. Lucky for Toronto, they own the tie breaker over the Bulls, BUT they have a HUGEEEEEE game on Sunday versus Chicago. The winner could take control of the last playoff spot out East.

Meanwhile, the Hawks keep progressing and have won 50 games for the first time in 12 seasons. They are now one game ahead of Boston for the third seed in the East.

RESTING (HEALTHY) SUPERSTARS

Pacers 116, Cavs 113

The Cavs lost, but with LeBron James, Antawn Jamison, Shaq, Mo Williams, and Daniel Gibson in the lineup. It’s the second straight game LeBron has sat for Cleveland. And apparently Mike Brown is considering sitting LeBron the rest of the regular season.

Didn’t he see what happened with Peyton Manning and the Colts this past NFL season??

Lakers 97, T’Wolves 88

No Kobe. No problem.

Wait, that’s what it should be for the Lakers against the hapless T’Wolves. Pau Gasol had 29 points and 15 boards for LA in the win.

Kobe will likely continue to rest his right index finger, but he would definitely be playing if these games mattered.

GAMES WITH PLAYOFF IMPLICATIONS

Thunder 96, Suns 91

The fifth and sixth seeds in the West squared off in OKC on Friday, and the sixth seed Thunder got the best of the Suns. The Thunder will likely now end up with the sixth seed (and no worse), but they could still range from the fifth to the eighth seed.

Grizzlies 107, Spurs 99

Could this be an eighth seed season for the Spurs? After a loss to the Grizz, they very well could be. I mean, they are right now, so why would they move up? Spurs are boring, so obviously what I write about them is too.

Mavericks 83, Blazers 77

The Mavs have clinched the Southwest Division title with much help to Dirk Nowitzki, who had 40 points and 10 rebounds. He was also 17 of 17 from the foul line! This will likely help them grasp the second seed in the West, but they are still technically tied with the Nuggets.

Wizards 106, Celtics 96

This game doesn’t really have any playoff implications, but I just like seeing the Celtics lose to a HRBL team.

-Shooter