Roughly three weeks remain in the 2013-14 NBA regular season. Thus, every single result from hereon out will be of the utmost importance in the shaping of the playoffs.
On Sunday, March 30, the critical outcomes poured in. A superstar added to his season of dominance, a championship contender’s slump hit new lows and a rising force continued to impress.
Here’s everything that you need to know about last night’s action.
1. Kevin Durant only needed 13 field goal attempts to dominate as the Oklahoma City Thunder took down the Utah Jazz 116-96. Durant finished with 31 points and nine assists on 9-of-13 shooting on a night in which Utah scored just nine first quarter points.
Durant has scored at least 25 points in 38 consecutive games. The last time a player did it for longer was 1986-87, when Michael Jordan scored 25+ in 40 straight outings.
2. Paul Pierce scored 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting and Joe Johnson added 19 on a mark of 8-of-13 from the floor as the Brooklyn Nets took down the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-99. It was a balanced attack for the Nets, which made 12 three-point field goals and shot 50.0 percent from the field.
The Nets are an Eastern Conference-best 29-12 since January 1.
3. It wasn’t pretty for either team, but the Cleveland Cavaliers pulled out a 90-76 upset of the Indiana Pacers. Tristan Thompson recorded 12 points and 16 rebounds for Cleveland, while Indiana shot 37.2 percent rom the field as a team.
It was the Cavaliers’ first win over the Pacers since Feb. 15, 2012.
4. The Pacers have lost four of five and five of their past seven games. Indiana has gone 6-9 over its past 15 outings.
It took Indiana 43 contests to lose its ninth game of the season at 34-9.
5. DeMar DeRozan scored 28 points to help the Toronto Raptors pull out a 98-93 road victory over the Orlando Magic. Jonas Valanciunas posted 20 points and nine rebounds for the Raptors, while Nikola Vucevic tallied 22 and 10 on 10-of-13 shooting for the Magic.
With a record of 42-31, the Raptors have secured their first winning season since 2006-07.
6. D.J. Augustin scored a career-high 33 points as the Chicago Bulls remained hot with a 107-102 victory over the Boston Celtics. Six separate players scored in double-figures for the Bulls, while Rajon Rondo put up 17 points and 11 assists for the Celtics.
In yet another you-must-play-the-wrong-position display of ability, Joakim Noah tallied 13 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds, one block and a steal.
7. Chris Kaman went off for 28 points, 17 rebounds and six assists on 13-of-19 shooting as the Los Angeles Lakers took down the Phoenix Suns 115-99. Gerald Green scored 22 points for Phoenix, but the Suns suffered a surprising setback.
Phoenix’s loss snapped a six-game winning streak.
8. Kaman’s 28 points, 17 rebounds and six assists all either matched or set season-highs.
9. Neither team shot better than 40.0 percent from the field as the New York Knicks won an ugly battle with the Golden State Warriors 89-84. J.R. Smith scored 21 points on 8-of-17 shooting and Carmelo Anthony posted 19 on a mark of 7-of-21 from the field as New York earned a critical win.
Despite sitting 12 games below .500, the Knicks are just one game back of the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference.
10. LaMarcus Aldridge scored 28 points as the Portland Trail Blazers outlasted the Memphis Grizzlies for a 105-98 win over the Memphis Grizzlies. Zach Randolph put up 21 points and Marc Gasol tallied 20, but Memphis started slow and paid the price.
Since losing three in a row, the Trail Blazers have won three straight.
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