The Basketball Diaries

Miami Heat 95 Chicago Bulls 88

Weren't these two teams battling each other in the playoffs last season? Wasn't that 4-0 sweep by the Bulls supposed to be what helped catapult them to Eastern Conference power status? My how far they've fallen. The following sentence is a complete microcosm of this Bulls season: Some guy named Kasib Powell (Who!?) was just recalled from the D-League for this game, and he led the Heat with 18 points and was a driving force in their win on Tuesday night. That's right, the Bulls can't even stop D-Leaguers. The good news is that this loss eliminates the Bulls from the playoffs mathematically, so you can now allow yourself to stop paying attention. If you are still watching this team I urge you to stop, there are plenty of other things you can do that are much better for your health. Have you ever thought about starting to smoke? Maybe you want to shoot heroin or speed (hell, why not both?) into your eyeballs? And these are just a few options, really, the world is your oyster.

Utah Jazz 77 New Orleans Hornets 66

It wasn't the kind of game you'd expect between these two teams, but I don't think the Jazz are complaining since the victory clinched their second consecutive Northwest Division title. Mehmet Okur led the Jazz with 22 points and grabbed 17 rebounds to lead the Jazz in what was a defensive struggle to say the least. Hell, the 22 points doesn't seem like that much, but they still accounted for 29% of his team's points. "I feel really good right now," said Okur. "I try to stay active on the boards, grab every rebound out there, start the game with a couple easy baskets, then I step back. I've really got my confidence." Deron Williams also had 16 assists (his team made only 35 field goals, so Deron had a hand in 46% of his team's baskets) but more importantly he continued his dominance over Chris Paul by holding CP to only 4 points and 9 assists.

Denver Nuggets 117 Los Angeles Clippers 99

Wow, something is definitely wrong in Denver because the Nuggets scored less than 135 points on Tuesday night. I know they won and everything, but still, they should be worried. Carmelo had 36 points, while Allen Iverson had 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 9 assists as the Nuggs snapped a two-game losing streak. Marcus Camby also had a big night with 13 points and 18 rebounds. Unfortunately for Denver, the Warriors won as well so they weren't able to seperate themselves in the race for the final playoff spot, and both teams remain tied at 47-31.

Elsewhere...

• Pacers 112 Hawks 98
• Bobcats 121 TWolves 119
• Knicks 98 Pistons 94
• Celtics 107 Bucks 104 OT
• Suns 127 Grizzlies 113
• Mavs 99 Sonics 83
• Blazers 112 Lakers 103
• Warriors 140 Kings 132