NBA Playoff Nightcap: April 21st Edition

Before we get into the nightcap I want to take a moment and talk about how awful thundersticks are. For some reason - and I can only assume it is to piss me off - they have given out these god forsaken toys before both Game 1 and Game 2 of the Suns/Blazers series. Furthermore, this invariably guarantees that some idiot teenager in front of or behind me will spend the entire game clapping those damn thing - during game action and timeouts. They make me consider tearing my ears off of my head. I hate you so much thundersticks.

If you were surprised by any of the events of last night's playoff games then you are very very easily surprised. Perhaps the only thing that jumps off the page is the margin of Suns victory.

Tuesday April 20th Playoff Results:

Atlanta Hawks 96 Milwaukee Bucks 86 (Recap) - I'll just keep saying it, the Bucks don't have the horses to compete in this series without Andrew Bogut - and their shooting didn't help. Milwaukee got a 3/15 shooting night from ace rookie Brandon Jennings and hit just 4 of their 24 three point attempts in the 10 point loss. Atlanta led by just 6 at half, but an 11-2 run to open the third quarter made sure the Bucks would get no closer. Former Sun Joe Johnson led the Hawks with 27.

Boston Celtics 106 Miami Heat 77 (Recap) - No KG, no problem. In case number 40246024 of why you should never take gambling advice from Scott Howard, here is what I said about this game yesterday:

The big story of this one is the Celtics Kevin Garnett being suspended due to his issues with flailing elbow issues. Miami isn't perfect by any means but they held a 12 point lead in the 3rd quarter last time out and should be able to even the series with Garnett watching from home.

That's the kind of genius that lets you know I'm not being compensated for this work. The teams were tied after one quarter but a 44-6 RUN (caps intended) took care of that. Ray Allen led Boston with 25, while KG replacement Big Baby Davis put up 23.

Phoenix Suns 119 Portland Trail Blazers 90 (Recap) - Look literally anywhere else on this site for in-depth analysis on this game. I'm excited for the switch from over-confident Blazer fans to over-confident Suns fans. Should be a treat over the next couple days.

Los Angeles Lakers 95 Oklahoma City 92 (Recap) - Just enough to win...again. LAL got 39 from Kobe (15 in the fourth) and 25 from Pau Gasol in a tight win. The Thunder were led by 32 from Kevin Durant and actually had the ball, down 2, with 17 seconds to go and a chance to tie or win the game. Unfortunately Durant's three fell short, Gasol hit a free throw, and a Jeff Green missed a three at the buzzer that could have tied the game - and the Lakers held serve at home.

Series Standings:

(1) Lakers v. (8) Thunder: 2-0 Lakers

(2) Mavericks v. (7) Spurs: 1-0 Mavericks

(3) Suns v. (6) Trail Blazers: 1-1 tie

(4) Nuggets v. (5) Jazz: 1-1 tie

(1) Cavaliers v. (8) Bulls: 2-0 Cavs

(2) Magic v. (7) Bobcats: 1-0 Magic

(3) Hawks v. (6) Bucks: 2-0 Hawks

(4) Celtics v. (5) Heat: 2-0 Celtics

Wednesday April 21st Playoff Games:

Game 2 - Bobcats @ Magic: Charlotte made Game 1 more interesting than it seemed to be headed towards in the third quarter but with a banged up Stephen Jackson (he is supposed to play), I don't see how they steal a game in Orlando. If they want to win one before they go home it's going to have to be in North Carolina.

Game 2 - Spurs @ Mavericks: You know the Spurs Big Three is going to produce so if they get anything from Richard Jefferson (more than the 4 points they got out of him in Game 1) I think they'll even the series. But remember, I'm the guy that picked the Heat.

Now I'm certain you read none of that, but at least you have a forum to shout at each other. Commence shouting!