Michael Redd & the Milwaukee Bucks played an inspired game against the defending NBA Champion Lakers on the 16th, but in the end..Kobe Bryant would show exactly why he is the best player in the clutch moments. The contest was back & fourth throughout the entire duration. Redd's total game was in full effect with multiple threes, drives to the basket, post ups, and mid range jumpers. The 9 year veteran looked extremely comfortable on the court, showing no signs of the knee soreness that kept him out for a stretch. He received most of his help from center Andrew Bogut, young Turk Ersan Illyasova who scored 24 points, and rookie point god Brandon Jennings who dropped in 7 assists.
The fourth quarter resembled a championship boxing round each team responded to each other with blow after blow. The game went into overtime after an Andrew Bogot make to tie the game at 95, and subsequent Kobe miss at the end of regulation. Milwaukee pretty much controlled the overtime period, even earning a 4 point lead after a Redd three with a little over a minute to go. But turning point occurred when Kobe Bryant barreled intro Andrew Bogut with 50 seconds to a go, not only did Bryant draw a block (looked like a charge, all of Wisconsin agrees), but he also hit shot & the and 1. The Bucks missed a runner on the other end, and Kobe did his thing at the end with a buzzer beater over Michigan State's Charlie Bell. Redd finished with 25 points, 7 rebounds, 4 dimes, & 2 steals..and the honor of being the Buckeye Ballers player of the week :)
Some first half clips
2nd half/overtime
Atlanta Hawks 110 Memphis Grizzlies 97
The play of the Memphis Grizzlies has been one of the more interesting stories of the month. After a disappointing start to the season, the Grizz were able to open December with a 4-1 record, including impressive victories over the likes of Dallas, Cleveland, & Miami. Such play starts to attract more viewers..and one starts to think to themselves..'hmm..is this team starting to develop into the truth? ' Well we found out they still have a little ways to go as the Grizz fell to two of the beasts in the East this week, Boston & Atlanta. Like Milwaukee/LA..the Dec. 14th contest with Memphis/Boston was close throughout with the more experienced team pulling it out in the end.
The game in Atlanta last night looked it was going to have a similar recipe after a competitive first quarter. But hot scoring stretches in the 2nd & 3rd quarter by the Hawks effectively made the game out of reach for the Grizz. Point guard Mike Conley Jr. has still been nice & steady throughout the month of December. He finished with 12 points & 5 dimes vs the Hawks. Othello Hunter was able to get nice 7/8 minutes of playing time as well. Late in the game Hunter received a pass from a driving Jeff Teague and finished it off with an emphatic two handed slam. O had 6 points for the night.
All is not lost - CEZ Nymburk & EWE Baskets Oldenburg suffered pivotal losses in the Eurocup & Euroleague competitions this week Nymburk fell at Brose Baskets, a team they defeated at home a week earlier, by a score of 85-73 on the 15th. Nymburk now sits at 3rd place in their grouping at 2-2. Ron Lewis recently wrote about what it is going to take for his club to advance to the next Eurocup round.
EWE Baskets gained a big boost this week with the return of guard Jason Gardner. A back injury kept the veteran from Arizona out of action up to this point. But it wasn't enough in a dissapointing 62-49 Euroleague loss to BC Khimki on the 16th. EWE Baskets Oldenburg will not advance to the top 16 in their inaugural year of Euroleague play. But all is not lost, as they have still have some group games left to play in January vs the likes of Panathinakos & Real Madrid..the type of games where EWE could make their Euroleague season by winning. Oldenburg is still near the top of the Bundesliga standings with a current standing of 2nd place as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment