Another exciting night in the NBA Playoffs saw the Knicks again come ever so close to pinching a win in Boston, the Magic level their series with Atlanta in a must-win situation, and an unexpected star of the past carrying Dallas to a 2-0 series lead against the Blazers. In case you missed any of the games last night, we’re here to get you caught up with the important stats and info from the action. Here’s our daily rundown of the Playoffs with Day Four’s Capsule Recap.
Game two: (3) Boston Celtics vs. (6) New York Knicks, TD Garden
- Final score: Celtics 96, Knicks 93.
- Kevin Garnett hit a tough turnaround in the paint to put the C’s up 1 with 14 seconds left and then stole the ball from Jared Jeffries at the other end to clinch the win.
- Boston’s Rajon Rondo: 30 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists.
- New York’s Carmelo Anthony: 42 points, 17 rebounds, 6 assists.
- Key stats: Somehow, Bill Walker led the Knicks with a team-high +10 on the court… he was 0-11 from the field. Amare Stoudemire only scored 4 points in 18 minutes due to back spasms.
- “The Celtics didn’t do anything special,” Anthony said. “They won two games on their home court. Now it’s our turn to go to our home court and try to do the same thing.”
- “It’s crazy, I barely remember anything,’’ Garnett said. “I just remembered I had the steal, and at that point, I’m just reacting more than anything.’’
- Boston leads series 2-0. Next game Friday April 22 at 7:00PM EST in New York.
Game two: (4) Orlando Magic vs. (5) Atlanta Hawks, Amway Center
- Final score: Magic 88, Hawks 82.
- Orlando held off a late Atlanta rally thanks to a Jason Richardson three that put the game beyond reach with a minute to go.
- Orlando’s Dwight Howard: 48 minutes, 33 points, 19 rebounds.
- Atlanta’s Jamal Crawford: 25 points off the bench.
- Key stats: Dwight Howard (15-19) shot and made more FTs than the entire Atlanta team (11-17).
- “They turned up their defense, and we should have been able to handle that,” coach Larry Drew said. “It wasn’t anything that we didn’t expect. It forced us to lose our composure.”
- “I just didn’t want to give ’em a chance to win,” Howard said afterward. “I trust my teammates. I just felt like I needed to be on the floor.”
- Series tied 1-1. Next game Friday April 22 at 8PM EST in Atlanta.
Game two: (3) Dallas Mavericks vs. (6) Portland Trail Blazers, American Airlines Center
- Final score: Mavericks 101, Blazers 89.
- Portland trailed by 1 heading into the 4th quarter, but shot 4/10 in the frame and turned the ball over 6 times as the Mavs ran away.
- Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki: 33 points, 7 rebounds.
- Portland’s LaMarcus Aldridge: 24 points, 10 rebounds.
- Key stats: Peja Stojakovic dusted off the mothballs to sink 5 threes off the bench. His 21 points were 1 short of a season high.
- “They’re tough guys,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said of his team. “We had to play two tough-minded games to beat this team. And both games were difficult.
- “I think we’ll go home and have our crowd behind us,” Aldridge said. “Hopefully that will bring us more energy and we’ll play better.”
- Mavericks lead series 2-0. Next game Thursday April 21 at 10:30PM in Portland.
