2/7/11: Upsets, Near Upsets, And Big Nights

It was a pretty eventful Monday night in the NBA, and I couldn’t decide on a headline.  Here’s the condensed version of what happened for those of you who only read the little blurb that pops up on Facebook when I link my posts: The Celtics dropped a trap game to the Bobcats, the T-Wolves beat the West’s fifth best team, Melo dropped 50 in a losing effort, Cleveland came painfully close to avoiding their 25th consecutive loss, and LaMarcus Aldridge made All-Star voters look silly. 

Random Observations:

• Highlight Recap: Jason Kidd finds Tyson Chandler on an inbound lob.  Jamario Moon with a putback slammer.  KG hammers a lob from Rondo.  I wish KG jumped.  In case you weren’t aware, Derrick Rose is a freak.  Sebastian Telfair sighting.  Donte Greene converts the rare four-point play.  Vince Carter still makes some of the most spectacular layups you’ll ever see.
• Lowlight Recap: The following link will lead you to the Hornets/Wolves game recap, but you don’t have to watch the whole thing to get the gist of how the game went for New Orleans.  See the 1:50 mark for their night in a nut shell.
• Coming off a win over Orlando and looking forward to home games against the Lakers and Heat, the Celtics played sluggishly in Charlotte.  Kwame Brown and friends, on the other hand, were ready to rumble…

• Kwame’s intensity rubbed off on his teammates, leading to Charlotte’s 50 to 37 rebounding edge, which sums this game up pretty effectively… the Cs were simply outworked.  The ‘Cats got great bench play from Shaun Livingston and Gerald Henderson, who more than doubled Boston’s entire bench total with 33 points on 12-23 shooting.  Eduardo Najera added five more, including a big-time triple that stretched the lead to six with 1:57 to go.  That shot basically made the game a freethrow shooting contest, as only one bucket was scored the rest of the way (a jumper by Glen Davis on the following possession).  Gerald Wallace went just 6-16, but did lead the Bobcats with 19 points and 16 boards.  The aforementioned Kwame Brown made only one of nine shots, but made his presence felt with 12 boards and a couple of blocks (Yo Perk, KWAMAY BROWN!  Yup, that guy got the best of you).  Ray Allen led the Celtics with 25 points… he knocked down a pair threes, putting him just two shy of passing Reggie Miller’s all-time mark.  Oh yeah, Stephen Jackson was ejected late in the first half.  Stack is now just three Ts away from a suspension. 
• The Hornets entered their home game against Minnesota at 4-14 when they allow 100 or more points.  The T-Wolves dropped 104, and it was more than enough for their 12th W.  Kevin Love did what Kevin Love does with 27/17, and the bench came up huge with 47 points in the 12-point victory.  Emeka Okafor’s value to the league’s second stingiest defense is becoming clearer by the game.  The Hornets have given up 100+ in three of four games since losing their starting center, and all three of those games resulted in losses.  Okafor’s rebounding presence was sorely missed in this particular game.  Kevin Love grabbed 11 offensive boards, leading to 22 second-chance points for Minnesota.
• With their 25th consecutive loss, the 2010/11 Cleveland Cavaliers are officially all alone in the NBA’s record books.  No NBA franchise, even spanning multiple seasons, has ever lost 25 games in a row.  According to ESPN, assuming I heard it correctly, the Cavs are now chasing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the worst losing streak in the history of America’s major sports leagues.  Number 25 was certainly a heart breaker… Anthony Parker had a good look at a three to send the game to OT, but it rimmed out.  Cleveland got the rebound and Jamario Moon should’ve been able to launch one final prayer, but apparently he enjoys making history, as he instead opted to pass the ball to Antawn Jamison as time expired. 
• Old news: LaMarcus Aldridge is a beast.  New news: he scored a career-high 42 points in a 109-103 win over the Bulls.  The guy basically scored at will, making 15 of 23 shots from a variety of locations.  He also converted on 12 of his 14 freethrow attempts, including five of six down the stretch in a tight fourth quarter.  Derrick Rose had a great night with 36 points of his own, 20 of which came in the second half, but it simply wasn’t enough.  The Blazers shot 51 percent as a team, but they won the game at the freethrow line, where they made an astounding 37 of 40 attempts.  Andre Miller went 13-13, and Rudy Fernandez made eight of nine.
• Carmelo Anthony put up a 21-point fourth quarter and ended up with 50 points, but even with a 37-point fourth quarter assualt, the Nuggets couldn’t come back to beat the Rockets.  Kevin Martin’s 18 third-quarter points led the Rockets to a 29-point period, and even with Melo’s heroics, the hole was too deep.  Melo’s 50 is the second highest total this season, fewer than only LeBron’s 51 against the Magic.  Anthony made 16 of 24 shots, two of three from distance, and 16 of 18 freethrows.  Kevin Martin led the Rockets with 37 in the game.
• The other games: DeMarcus Cousins dropped 25/14, but had to watch his Kings complete another chokejob (against Utah this time, 107-104) from the bench after picking up his sixth foul.  Sacramento led by seven entering the final period, but proceeded to be outscored 27-17.  Al Jefferson led the Jazz with 23.  Six Lakers scored in double figures, and their balanced effort paid off in the form of a 93-84 road victory over the Grizzlies.  Channing Frye’s five threes and 19 points led the Suns in a 104-92 victory over the Warriors.  The Dubs clanked 16 of 18 three-point tries while the Suns made 13 of 3o. 

Quote of the Day: Eduardo Najera on an elbow thrown by… you know who the Bobcats played, do I really have to tell you who was throwing elbows?  From the AP’s game recap…

“The Boston Celtics were short-handed, weary and lacking energy following a difficult stretch of games when Kevin Garnett leveled an elbow into Eduardo Najera’s face.

The intimidation attempt didn’t work against the Charlotte Bobcats.

“I just told him he hits like my grandma,” Najera said.”

Photo of the Day: Stephen Jackson breaks out his invisible jump rope…