Friday Wake n Break

*The new-look Nuggets went to Cleveland to face King James in his court. It was a high scoring first half, with a few thunderous dunks, mostly by LeBron, and one by Nene. Early in the second, the Cavs got some productive minutes from JJ Hickson. They were feeding him in the post, and it looks like this kid might have some game. At the end of the half it was Chauncey with the big stats, going 7/8 for from the field for 18, and for the Cavs, Mo Williams, his buddy in ‘real life’, with 16. The Cavs built a ton of momentum going in the fourth quarter, with a Boobie Gibson 3 pointer, and a long LeBron jumpshot in the final second of play. The Cavs bench held it down, and LeBron was able to get a long rest for the start of the fourth, only coming into the game with 4:30 remaining, and obviously a ton of energy. It didn’t matter much though, because the Nuggets just went cold in the fourth, concluding with Kenyon Martin acting like an idiot, throwing elbows around, and getting tossed. Cavs 110, Nuggets 99

*Dallas started the game strong, taking a 19-point lead. The Chicago crowd grew frustrated fast, and started boo’ing heavily. However, apparently that was all the gas Dallas had in the tank, because they didn’t do much after that. Larry Hughes made his presence felt immediately, with a key 3-pointer and steal, that started a 10-0 run, extended a lead for the Bulls. Ben Gordon’s shot was on tonight, and when his shot is on, they’re tough to beat. Benny G scored 35 pointes overall, going 12-21 from the field and 8-9 from the charity stripe. This is the fourth loss in a row for the Mavs, and that is sure to stir up some commotion in Cubanland. It already began, after the game: "It's disappointing. We desperately need a win. "I'm just surprised at our lack of fight. I don't know how else to put it."- Maverick’s Coach, Rick Carlisle Bulls 98, Mavs 91

*It wasn’t a pretty game in Golden State, with both teams combining for 33 turnovers, but it was a fun one. The first half ended with Biedrens already in a double double (he’s had one in every game thus far), and the Warriors had a 7 point lead at the half. Sheed and Ivo look like they’re having a good time together, especially when watching the interview with John Thompson on Inside the NBA, but it’s not translating into success on the court. The third quarter came around, and the Pistons started off from behind. But that’s when AI turned it up and gave Detroit a lead. Golden State didn’t stay down long, and took back lead after Rasheed Wallace tipped in a basket into his own bucket, and missed two crucial free throws. As usual, Rasheed lost his cool, but as usual, Rasheed took that energy and put it into two shots from deep, and a dunk to seal the deal. The win doesn’t change the fact that the Pistons don’t look good on the court, a majority of the time. The Pistons are used to slowing the game down a bit, and running sets on offense, but with AI, he causes chaos with the rock (which usually leads to good things). If and when they get on the same page, this team will be scary. But I’d put my money on ‘the when’ being too late to compete for a chip. Pistons 107, Warriors 102