Five Fast Facts from NBA Games: 2.27.13

Occasionally the NBA has a night in the NBA that fans remember whenever they think of wonderful memories concerning the historic league. The final Wednesday in February 2013 was one of those nights that fans will speak of with “Oh, man! Let me tell you about the night I saw a Davidson grad light up “The World’s Most Famous Arena!!”.

There were 10 games on the schedule Wednesday night in the NBA. The Spurs were given a rude welcome home by the Suns thanks to Wes Johnson, Kevin Durant turned a triple-double against the Hornets at home, Monta Ellis made Rockets fans cry at the buzzer and Tyson Chandler had an incredible night no one will remember thanks to Stephen Curry.

Sit back and enjoy a memorable Five Fast Facts.

 

1. Stephen Curry scored 54 points for the Warriors against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night, but it wasn’t enough as the Knicks defeated the Warriors, 109-105. Curry shot 11-13  from 3-point range, falling one short of the NBA record for most 3-pointers made in a game (12– Donyell Marshall and Kobe Bryant). Since the new Madison Square Garden opened in February of 1968, only Kobe Bryant (61 in February 2009) and Michael Jordan (55 in March 1995) have scored more as an opposing player. Curry’s 11-13 performance from long distance, followed his 7-10 effort Tuesday night at Indiana.  Since the NBA instituted the three-point line in 1979, only one other player has made at least 70 percent of his three-point shots on at least 10 attempts in consecutive games: Mike Miller, who went 7-for-10 and 9-for-12 from downtown in consecutive games for the Grizzlies during the 2006-07 season. Along with Curry’s historic performance, Tyson Chandler pulled down 28 rebounds for the Knicks.  Prior to Wednesday, the last regulation NBA game in which one player scored at least 50 points and another recorded at least 25 rebounds occurred on March 24, 1987.  That night, Michael Jordan had 56 points for the home Bulls while Charles Barkley grabbed 25 rebounds for the visiting 76ers in a 93-91 Chicago victory. The Warriors have now lost eight of their last 11 games, prompting Mark Jackson to send this note out in our Tweet of the Day.
2. In their first home game since February 2nd, the Spurs saw their 18-game home win streak end at the hands of the Suns, who needed a Wesley Johnson 3-pointer at the buzzer to force overtime. The Suns, who entered the contest with a 19-39 record, became just the second team that was 20-or-more games under .500 to end a single-season home winning streak of at least 18 games. The only other team to do that was Indiana, who at 30-50, stopped the 76ers’ 25-game home winning streak with a 127-118 victory on April 7, 1978 at The Spectrum. Find out where the Spurs sit on SheridanHoops.com latest power rankings. 
3. Kevin Durant had 18 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the Thunder to a 119-74 thumping of the Hornets on Wednesday night.  Only six other players in NBA history have registered a triple-double in a game in which their team won by 45-or-more points: Boston’s Bill Russell on March 9, 1969, Boston’s John Havlicek on November 27, 1970, San Antonio’s Johnny Moore on January 8, 1985, Denver’s Fat Lever on November 6, 1987, Golden State’s Chris Webber on December 23, 1993 and Denver’s Marcus Camby on March 16, 2008.
4. In Houston, Monta Ellis hit an off-balance 27-foot jumper at the buzzer to snap the Rockets five-game home win streak. The Bucks have now won consecutive games  for the first time since January 26-29. Omir Asik scored 16 points and pulled down a career-high 22 rebounds for the Rockets in a losing effort, while James Harden led Houston with 25 points and 7 assists. Asik’s 22 rebounds were the most for a Rockets player since Charles Barkley pulled down 24 against the Pacers in November of 1999.
5. The Mavericks blew a 25-point first half lead and dropped a 90-84 decision to the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night.  It marked the first time that Dallas lost a game in which it once led by 25 points since December 6, 2002 against the Lakers.  The Mavericks entered Wednesday’s game having won 119 consecutive games in which they led by 25 points, which was the fifth longest current streak in the league behind San Antonio, the Lakers, Miami and Houston. The Grizzlies defense stifled the Mavericks and held them to just five points in the third quarter in Memphis’ come from behind win on Wednesday night.  It is the fewest points the Grizzlies have allowed in a quarter in their franchise history and the second fewest Dallas has scored in any quarter in its existence, behind the two points the Mavs produced in the third quarter on April 6, 1997 against the Lakers.

Stat Mann is the nom de guerre of our research statistician, who spends a lot of time watching basketball in central Connecticut. Someone would be angry if they discovered he was moonlighting here.