Grizzlies force Game 7 on OKC Thunder

Not going down without a fight.

The surprising playoff run by the Memphis Grizzlies continues as they rallied back to force a rubber match against the OKC Thunder back at Oklahoma in a game that will decide who faces the well rested Dallas Mavericks in the West Finals after their 95-83 victory last night in front of the rowdy Memphis crowd.

Zach Randolph erupted for 30 points and 13 rebounds after struggling badly the previous games due to the smothering defense by the Thunder. The Grizzlies' game plan of starting OJ Mayo worked wonders for them as the spacing improved in the offensive end.

The leading scorer in the NBA Kevin Durant, was held to just 11 points, his lowest output since scoring six points in 8 minutes back in February 27 2009.

Russell Westbrook led OKC with 27 points but they relinquished a 54-41 lead just before halftime and got outscored 51-29 in the second half leading to this blown opportunity to close out the series.

Game 7 in Oklahoma will be the first Game 7 in the first round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs.

Injured Rondo inspires Celtics to win Game 3

The Boston Celtics clinched their first win in the 2011 Eastern Conference Semifinals by beating the Miami Heat 97-81 and avoid falling to a 0-3 hole that no team in NBA history has ever overcome last night in their homecourt at "Bean Town"

Celtics' point guard Rajon Rondo dislocated his left elbow during a collision with Dwayne Wade late in the third quarter and had to be carried out of the court yet he came back to start the fourth quarter much to the applause of the Boston crowd.

Rondo contributed 6 points and 11 assists after playing the 4th quarter with literally one arm to compliment stellar performances from Kevin Garnett who scored 28 points with 18 rebounds and Paul Pierce added 27 for the defending East Champions.

Shaquille O' Neal saw action for the first time this series but he was a non factor scoring only two points and no rebounds in 8 minutes of play but his presence alone ignited hope in the heart of the team after losing the first 2 games in Miami.

Wade led the Heat with 23 points while LeBron James scored 15 points but they combined to hit just 14 out of 35 shots. James even missed three of four free throws in a span that the Celtics started to pull away.

Game 4 will be in Boston, Monday night where the C's will try to even out the series while Miami tries to get a commanding 3-1 lead before heading back to Miami.

Mavs rally back to win Game 3 and take astounding 3-0 lead

Phil Jackson's last coaching season is in danger of ending in a horrible way.

The Dallas Mavericks are one win away from sweeping the Los Angeles Lakers and eradicating their aspirations on a three-peat of the championship before their long time head coach Phil Jackson retires from coaching.

Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, and 4th quarter hero Peja Stojakovic worked hand in hand to lead the Mavs' comeback after the Lakers took an 8 point lead with less than 7 minutes remaining and seal the victory. Nowitzki scored 32 points and 9 rebounds, Terry tallied 23 points and Stojakovic added 15, including 11 in the fourth quarter.

The Lakers sorely missed the services of Ron Artest as he was suspended due to a "clothesline" he gave JJ Barea at the final minutes of their Game 2 loss. They started with Odom at the small forward position which gave them success pounding the ball to the interior but they had trouble covering the Mavs from the outside.

Phil Jackson has never been down 0-3 on a series until now and he and his team are in great danger of being sent home by a series sweep, something Jackson has never experienced in his decorated 20 year coaching career.

Game 4 will be held Sunday, still at Dallas Texas where the home team will be cheered on by a jam packed crowd as they try to sweep the Lakers and end their 3 year reign as Western Conference champions.

Rose power Bulls to 2-1 lead over Hawks

2011 MVP living up to expectations.

The Chicago Bulls took the driver seat of their Eastern Conference semifinals match up with the Atlanta Hawks after a 99-82 road win last night at the Phillips Arena in Atlanta led by their MVP Derrick Rose.

Rose flared up the Hawks with a career high 44 points seasoned with 7 assists and 5 rebounds to regain homecourt advantage in the series and push the Hawks to a seemingly "must-win" situation this coming Game 4 to be held once again in Atlanta.

Hawks had no answer for Rose since the opening tip-off allowing him to score 17 points in the 1st Quarter, much to the dismay of the home fans as the series shifted to the Phillips Arena for the first time.

Jeff Teague was the lone bright spot for the Hawks scoring 21 points but he was repeatedly punished in the defensive end by the wide arsenal of moves Derrick Rose showed throughout the game.

Chicago's bench was exceptional for this game as they sparked a pivotal second quarter push to pad the lead to double digits while their starters rested in the sidelines. CJ Watson, Taj Gibson and Ronnie Brewer did a good job starting the second quarter from both ends of the court, giving their team the spark they needed to stay comfortably ahead.

Josh Smith accounted for a respectable 17 points and 13 rebounds but he attempted a lot of long jumpers that did not get him much success and the frustrations from the crowd mounted as Game 1 heroes Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford was limited to 10 and 7 points respectively.

The Bulls head to Game 4 hoping to get a commanding 3-1 series lead while the Hawks hope to knot the series at 2-2 before heading back to the Windy City.

Mavs get another road win to take 2-0 lead over Lakers

Mavs came out and totally invaded the Staples Center.

The Dallas Mavericks are on the right track to erasing the reputation of being a playoff disappointment after capturing another win in the hostile confines of the Staples Center at the expense of the Lakers 93-81 earlier today (Manila Time) to take a commanding 2-0 series lead.

Dirk Nowitzki once again spearheaded the Mavs with 24 points and 7 rebounds as they put up an amazing defensive performance limiting the lakers to 81 points and an awful 2-20 shooting from beyond the arc.

Shawn Marion added 14 points while Jason Kidd provided steadiness with 10 points and 6 assists to catapult the Mavs to a 9-0 fourth quarter rally to seal the victory and head back to Texas with a two game lead no one even expected them to get.

Nowitzki scored 15 points in the first half with his famous impossible to block 7-foot fade away jumpers despite being defended by Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Ron Artest who took turns guarding him throughout the game.

The Lakers were ice cold all throughout the game especially in the fourth quarter showing for just 7-20 in the final period. Pau Gasol's struggles in the playoffs continue as he was once again a non-factor, even getting booed by the home fans several times.

Game 3 will be Friday night (Saturday, Manila Time) on Dallas where the Mavs look to take a commanding3-0 and bury the Lakers together with their aspirations of a three-peat in Phil Jackson's last coaching season as he already said that he will retire by the end of the season.

Thunder halt Grizzlies to even the series

Too much explosiveness.

The Oklahoma City Thunder clamped down on the Grizzlies' frontcourt and recieved a major lift from the bench to take a 111-102 victory to avenge their loss in the opener and tie the series at 1-1 Tuesday night in their homecourt at Oklahoma City.

Kevin Durant led the Thunder with 26 points and their bench tripled their Game 1 production led by James Harden with 21 to lead by as much as 21 points in the final quarter and hold off a late comeback attempt by the Grizzlies.

Game One hero Zach Randolph was limited to 15 points in a poor 2-13 shooting clip as he was bother all game long by the Thunder's double teaming defense. His performance in this game was a far cry from his 34 points in the opener.

Mike Conley scored 24 points and was a catalyst for the Grizzlies' late comeback aspiration, cutting a 21 point fourth quarter lead to just six in the final minute but the lead was just too big and they came up short.

Russell Westbrook also had a huge game for the Thunder as he scored 24 points and back-up point guard Eric Maynor added 15 markers. Power forward Serge Ibaka limped off the court with 2 minutes left in the game due to a leg injury and this could play a crucial factor as he is the main defender on Zach Randolph.

Despite the loss, the Grizz will head into Game 3 with the home court advantage after stealing the opening game on the road as both teams try to take the pivotal victory that would give the winner a 2-1 series lead.

Heat take Game 2 to gain 2-0 lead over Celtics

Miami only needs two more wins to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Behind a scorching performance by LeBron James who scored 24 of his 35 points in the second half, the Miami Heat pulled away with a late 14-0 run to secure Game 2 with a 102-91 victory over the Boston Celtics to gain a comfortable 2-0 series lead Tuesday in front of the fired up Miami fans in Florida.

James got very able help from Dwayne Wade who scored 28 points and Chris Bosh who tallied 17 points and 11 boards as they broke away from an 80-all deadlock with 7:10 left in the final quarter. Boston missed their next 6 attempts at the basket, allowing Miami to cruise along for the victory.

The embattled Celtics was led by Rajon Rondo with a double-double (20 points, 12 assists) while Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett added 13 and 16 points respectively. Ray Allen was a non-factor as he only accounted for an anemic 7 points on 2-7 shooting.

Game 3 will be on Saturday in Boston where the home team Celtics will try to avoid falling to a 3-0 deficit in which no team in NBA history have recovered from.

Rose named 2011 NBA MVP

He knew right from the start that he was on his way to being the MVP.

22 year-old All-Star point guard Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls became the youngest ever MVP in NBA history after he received the 2011 Kia Motors MVP plum last Tuesday (Wednesday, Manila Time)

after leading the Bulls to 62 wins this season, the most since the championship glory days and he joined Michael Jordan as the only 2 Bulls players to ever get the award.

Rose averaged 25 points and 7.7 assists as he led his team to being the number 1 seed in the entire league and he hopes to steer his squad to it's first ever championship since the Jordan-Pippen era. He collected 1,182 points with 113 first place votes from media voters in a land slide victory as he was followed by Orlando's Dwight Howard (643 points) while LeBron James ranked third in the list.

He stepped up his game even more in the play-offs as he led his team over the Indiana Pacers in the first round after dropping 39 and 36 points in the first two games before scoring 25 in game 5 to help his team wrap up the series.

Rose walked away with a sprained ankle in the last moments of their Game 1 loss to the Atlanta Hawks which ended 103-95 but he will try to get his team back on the right track in Game 2 as they try to even out the series.

Meanwhile, Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau received the 2011 Coach of the Year Award, a testament to Chicago's success this season.

Hawks eliminate Magic to set up a showdown with the Bulls

Talk about serving ice cold vengeance.

The Atlanta Hawks avenged themselves against the team that ousted them in an embarrassing sweep last season by pushing the Orlando Magic out of contention after their 84-81 victory to wrap the series up 4-2 at the Phillips Arena in Atlanta.

Joe Johnson led the Hawks with 23 points and he made a crucial play by tapping the ball to his teammate Jamal Crawford in a rebound play in the final seconds of the game leading to Crawford nailing two free throws to seal the final margin.

Orlando had two close chances to salvage their season but JJ Redick missed an open three-pointer and Jason Richardson’s desperation attempt was blocked by Josh Smith.

Hawks now advance to the second round for the third straight year and this time they will be facing the top seeded Chicago Bulls who won their series with the Pacers in 5 games 4-1.

The Magic meanwhile head to their earliest off season since 2007 and their star center Dwight Howard becomes a free agent next year so uncertainty surrounds the Orlando camp this off season.