Daily Zap 10-11-14

Orlando Magic (2-5) @ Brooklyn Nets (4-2)

The Magic missed out on their third straight victory, despite winning the first half 42-40. They lost quite a bit of ground in the third, mainly due to Bojan Bogdanovic’s efforts which got him 11 points in the quarter. Magic center Nikola Vucevic kept his side in contention with brilliant scoring prowess of his own, notching up 17 points in the third. The Magic took the lead early in the fourth - a Channing Frye three-pointer putting them ahead. But Bogdanovic repeated his third quarter performance and put the game beyond Orlando’s reach.

Magic 96 - 104 Nets

KEY PERFORMERS

Nikola Vucevic - 27 points, 12 rebounds

Evan Fournier - 19 points, 5 assists

Bojan Bogdanovic - 22 points, 6 rebounds

Mason Plumlee - 12 points, 10 rebounds in 16:06 minutes of play

Utah Jazz (3-4) @ Detroit Pistons (2-4)

Two teams with losing records, both Detroit and Utah were keen to get a win in this game. The Pistons led for most of the second and third quarter, extending this lead to nine points late in the third. This was mainly due to the efforts of Brandon Jennings, the point guard scoring 14 points in the third. But the Jazz came back in final quarter, their whole team contributing to the resurgence. The Jazz took a one point lead with the Pistons having the final possession. The ball was inbounded to Jennings, who couldn’t convert a floater from the top of the key meaning Utah could pick up their third win of the season.

Jazz 97 - 96 Pistons

KEY PERFORMERS

Derrick Favors - 16 points, 12 rebounds

Enes Kanter - 14 points, 11 rebounds

Andre Drummond - 11 points, 18 rebounds

Brandon Jennings - 23 points, 5 assists

Sacramento Kings (5-2) @ Oklahoma City Thunder (2-5)

The Thunder may have only been able to name nine players in their squad for this game against the inform Sacramento Kings, but it didn’t stop them recording their first win since their victory against the lowly Denver Nuggets. They led by 13 at the break, but this still wasn’t enough for them to be comfortable. The Thunder turned the ball over way too much in the third meaning the Kings could get back into the game. With two minutes left, the Kings even managed to reduce the lead down to two, but Reggie Jackson responded well and helped pull his team through.

Kings 93 - 101 Thunder

KEY PERFORMERS

Rudy Gay - 23 points, 10 rebounds

Darren Collison - 12 points, 7 assists

Serge Ibaka - 14 points, 9 rebounds, 4 blocks

Jeremy Lamb - 17 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists

Philadelphia 76ers (0-7) @ Toronto Raptors (6-1)

The Philadelphia 76ers torrid start to the season continued last night as they fell to their Atlantic Division rivals, the Toronto Raptors. They were never in contention after losing the first quarter 33-20, although it did get better in the second - they only lost by two. But the next two quarters were blowouts as well, giving the Raptors the easy win. The highlight of the game was in the final quarter, when the Raptors’ James Johnson put Brandon Davies on a poster. Definitely worth checking out on YouTube.

76ers 88 - 120 Raptors

KEY PERFORMERS

Henry Sims - 12 points, 8 rebounds

Tony Wroten - 18 points, 5 assists

DeMar DeRozan - 24 points, 6 rebounds

Terrence Ross - 17 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks

Miami Heat (5-2) @ Dallas Mavericks (4-3)

Before this game, Dirk Nowitzki was just 33 points away from Hakeem Olajuwon on the all-time scoring list, and he looked on course to catch him after he scored 16 in the first half. Unfortunately for Dirk, he only had one point in the last two quarters of play, so Hakeem’s target is still, well, a target. Even worse for the German, he couldn’t prevent his Mavericks side losing their seventh straight game to the Miami Heat (the last time the Mavs beat the Heat was in the 2010-11 NBA Finals). Luol Deng was another player who had a hot hand at the beginning of the game, and he continued his form into the second half, ending up with 30 points. The Heat led by 11 at the break, and strengthened this advantage in the third, adding another 28 points onto their score. They were too far away for the Mavericks to catch in the last quarter, meaning Miami went top of the Southeast Division. 

Heat 105 - 96 Mavericks

KEY PERFORMERS

Luol Deng - 30 points

Chris Bosh - 20 points, 10 rebounds

Dwyane Wade - 20 points, 10 assists

Tyson Chandler - 16 points, 15 rebounds

Monta Ellis - 23 points, 5 assists

Golden State Warriors (5-1) @ Phoenix Suns (4-3)

The NBA is now without an unbeaten team, as the Golden State Warriors became the last team to succumb to defeat. The Warriors started brightly well, Stephen Curry had no worries nailing the three ball, and Leandro Barbosa proved a more than solid replacement for the injured Klay Thompson. The fourth quarter was when the Warriors’ standards slipped though. Gerald Green sent a three-pointer home to tie the game up and then scored two more three’s to put his team up by seven. Isaiah Thomas also helped out as the Suns won the last quarter 36-16. Curry may be on the “Key Performers” list but he could somewhat be blamed for his teams defeat, as he turned the ball over ten times in the game. 

Warriors 95 - 107 Suns

KEY PERFORMERS

Stephen Curry - 28 points, 10 assists

Draymond Green - 22 points, 9 rebounds, 4 blocks

Isaiah Thomas - 22 points, 7 assists

Marcus Morris - 17 points, 9 rebounds

Denver Nuggets (1-5) @ Portland Trail Blazers (4-3)

The Nuggets have been struggling recently, having lost their past four games, and this record didn’t get any better away in Portland. The Trail Blazers just looked more solid than their opponents throughout the game, LaMarcus Aldridge being dominant in the third. Steve Blake and Kenneth Faried tangled early in the fourth, their minor altercation led to them both receiving technical fouls. It had no effect on the game though, it went on as normal, with the Trail Blazers running play. Nicolas Batum left the game with an injury late on and didn’t return. Although there was no official word from the team, it didn’t look good for the French forward.

Nuggets 100 - 116 Trail Blazers

KEY PERFORMERS 

Timofey Mozgov - 7 points, 16 rebounds, 3 blocks

Kenneth Faried - 19 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks

LaMarcus Aldridge - 28 points, 9 rebounds

Robin Lopez - 12 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks

Charlotte Hornets (3-4) @ Los Angeles Lakers (1-5)

The Los Angeles Lakers won. Do not adjust your monitors, you read that right. It looked almost like déjà vu as the Lakers began the game on the wrong end of a 15-6 start, but they did enough to keep themselves in the game. The third quarter is when it went right for Los Angeles, with new signings Carlos Boozer and Jeremy Lin helping contribute to a 16-1 run. This meant they won the third period 34-13 and led the game 74-64 going into the final quarter. The Lakers needed someone to seal the deal, and who better than Kobe Bryant, he finished the game with 21 points.

Hornets 92 - 107 Lakers

KEY PERFORMERS

Al Jefferson - 23 points, 8 rebounds

Lance Stephenson - 6 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists

Kobe Bryant - 21 points, 6 rebounds

Jeremy Lin - 21 points, 7 assists