Archive for the 'Boxscore Breakdown' Category

And so it came to pass that Game 5 of the NBA Finals, at home in Orlando, would be the site where the weary Magic would make their last stand. Having allowed two games to slip through their fingers in the series already, Orlando now faced the sobering reality of needing to win 3 consecutive games against the Lakers, a team that did not suffer a 3-game skein all season long, to capture the prize. The odds were heavily against a comeback, but then again, the odds had been against the Magic all season. Did they have one last epic surge left, or would the Lake Show permanently crush their collective will in Game 5 on Sunday night?

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As we noted several days ago, Game 4 was essentially the second straight "must-win" game for the Orlando Magic -- their estimated probability of winning the series was already just 20% even after capturing Game 3 at home (a game which required a record-breaking shooting performance for them to narrowly defeat L.A.). Game 4 on Thursday night would be the most important of the series yet, then: Win, and you've given yourself a fighting chance again with things at 2 games apiece; lose, and face the unpleasant reality of requiring 3 straight wins (including 2 on the road) against the NBA's most talented team. In other words, it was make or break time Thursday night...

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With the series shifting to their own building for Game 3, the Orlando Magic knew they absolutely had to get a win by whatever means necessary if they wanted to have any shot at the NBA title. The Lakers' defense had ruled Games 1 and 2, holding the Magic below 100 points/possession in each of the matchups at Staples. While Rashard Lewis had still managed to play well, getting Dwight Howard, Hedo Turkoglu, Rafer Alston, and Mickael Pietrus going offensively would be a must for Orlando in Game 3. So did they get the job done at home, or did L.A. take a commanding 3-0 series lead?

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Another game, another crushing loss for the Magic. This one wasn't crushing because it was a blowout, mind you, but for the exact opposite reason: Orlando had the game in their grasp at various points in the 4th quarter (a buzzer-beating, game-winning alley-oop attempt by Courtney Lee literally missed by inches) and overtime, yet in the end they could not stave off the Lakers when it came down to making a key stop in the closing sequences. First, here's the advanced box score:

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Well, Game 1 is officially in the books, and it was a surprisingly one-sided affair:

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Boxscore Breakdown time! Well, kinda. I mean, I'm not going to take what was a fun and enjoyable showcase game for the league and break it down to our usual level of microscopic detail, but I did think it would be interesting to run our usual game numbers on the ASG. Because even meaningless exhibitions deserve the full treatment here at BBR.

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The last time Kobe Bryant's Lakers faced LeBron James' Cavaliers, L.A. came out on top with a 17-point victory at home. On Sunday, the two teams went head-to-head again in the final matchup of the season series, and this time the game would be staged on King James' home court, where Cleveland had not lost all season. But would the outcome be any different the second time around?

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We were hyping it earlier this week, and Thursday night we finally got to see Boston take on Los Angeles and try to avenge their Christmas Day defeat at the Lakers' hands. Could the Celtics pull it off at home, against an L.A. team that sorely missed Andrew Bynum but also boasted the game's most dangerous pure scoring machine?

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Just when you thought the near-constant LeBron-Kobe debate might cool down a bit this week in favor of Boston-vs-L.A./Finals-rematch talk, Bryant went out and destroyed the Knicks to the tune of 61 points in a win on Monday night. Not to be outdone by his fellow Redeem Team mate, King James handed the Knicks a jaw-dropping performance of his own on Wednesday, dismantling N.Y. with 52 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds in a 107-102 win at the Garden. And so it is against that backdrop that we once again dive into the LBJ-vs-KB24 fray to bring to you yet another (boxscore) breakdown by the Knickerbockers at MSG...

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Last night, Kobe Bryant put up an MSG-record 61 points, breaking Bernard King's old mark of 60 from 1984. Since we focused on a not-so-great game by Kobe the last time we did a boxscore breakdown, I figured we should look at a game where Kobe is at his absolute best:

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