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NBA Playoff
Preview
Completed Second-Round Season Series Recaps
Indiana-Detroit | Seattle-Phoenix | Washington-Miami | Seattle-San Antonio
#4 Dallas Mavericks vs. #1 Phoenix Suns
Second-round playoffs:
Phoenix wins 4-2 SU (3-3 ATS)
OVER/UNDER 3-3
First-round playoffs:
Dallas d. Houston: 4-3 SU (3-4 ATS); UNDER 4-3
Phoenix d. Memphis: 4-0 SU (3-1 ATS); OVER 4-0
(Home team listed first in CAPS)
5/9/2005 – PHOENIX 127, Dallas 102
(ATS winner: Phoenix -7 | OVER 224.5)
* No stopping Amare: Stoudemire continued his streak of at least 30 points and 10 rebounds against the Mavs with 40 points and 16 rebounds. He had 25 points and 9 rebounds in the first half alone.
* No help for Nowitzki: The Mavs got very little from anybody but Nowitzki, who had a team-high 28 points on solid 13-for-24 shooting. The second-highest scorer for Dallas was Jerry Stackhouse with 14 points off the bench while Johnson had 25 points and Marion added 23 to help balance out Phoenix, which had all five starters score in double figures.
5/11/2005 – PHOENIX 106, Dallas 108
(ATS winner: Dallas +7 | UNDER 223)
* Missing Joe: Stoudemire extended his streak of at least 30 points and 10 rebounds against the Mavs with 30 points and 16 rebounds, Marion had 23 points and 15 rebounds and Nash added 23 points and 13 assists. However, Johnson (25 points in Game 1) did not return to the game after cutting his eye on a flagrant foul by Dallas swingman Jerry Stackhouse at the end of the first half.
* Dampier responds: After getting called out for poor play in Game 1 by Nowitzki, Dampier got off to a great start with 10 of his 15 points in the first quarter and also grabbed 12 rebounds for the Mavs.
* Dallas is 50-5 SU the last three years when Finley (31 points in Game 2) and Nowitzki (23 points) score at least 20 points, including a perfect 19-0 this year
5/13/2005 – DALLAS 102, Phoenix 119
(ATS winner: Phoenix +2 | UNDER 221.5)
* Hot from beyond the arc: The Suns made 11-of-22 shots from 3-point range, led by Quentin Richardson's 4-for-6 and Shawn Marion's 5-for-7. All of Richardson's 12 points came on 3-pointers while Marion finished with 21 points and 9 rebounds.
* Stoudemire a stud: Stoudemire became the first Phoenix player to score 30 points in three straight playoff games and ended up with 37 points, 14 rebound and 5 blocks. He has at least 30 points and 10 rebounds in all six meetings with the Mavs, including the playoffs.
* Replacing Joe: With starting guard Johnson out at least two games after undergoing surgery around his eye, Jimmy Jackson stepped up for the Suns with 17 points and 9 rebounds. All five Phoenix starters scored in double figures for the second time in the series, both wins.
* Finley, Nowitzki struggle with shooting: Finley had trouble finding his shot for the Mavs, scoring just 11 points on 4-for-14 shooting - including 0-for-5 on 3-pointers - while Nowitzki connected on only 8-of-24 attempts to finish with a team-high 21 points and 13 rebounds.
5/15/2005 – DALLAS 119, Phoenix 109
(ATS winner: Dallas -2.5 | OVER 221.5)
* Stoudemire turns in a stinker: For the first time this season, Stoudemire failed to have at least 30 points and 10 rebounds against the Mavs, finishing with just half those totals in Game 4
* Nash switches roles: The Mavs let Nash have his way with them offensively, as he scored 48 points, but he also had nine turnovers and just five assists, failing to get his teammates involved as much as usual. ``We felt that if we could allow (Nash) to score and not have all those other guys become involved in the offense, it would give us a better chance to win the game,'' Dallas swingman Jerry Stackhouse said.
* Josh Howard scored a team-high 29 points to lead the Mavs while Nowitzki finally shot the ball well, scoring 25 points on 9-of-15 shooting
5/18/2005 – PHOENIX 114, Dallas 108
(ATS winner: Dallas +6.5 | UNDER 223.5)
* Double trouble for Mavs: Nash had his first career playoff triple double with a game-high 34 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists to lead Phoenix while Stoudemire rebounded from his only weak performance of the series with 33 points and a career-playoff high 18 rebounds, the seventh time in eight meetings with Dallas that he had at least 30 points and 10 rebounds
* Jackson filled in admirably for the injured Johnson by scoring 15 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter to help the Suns pull away
* Dallas duo not enough: Nowitzki had his best game of the series for the Mavs with 34 points and 10 rebounds while Stackhouse added 29 points in 36 minutes off the bench
5/20/2005 – DALLAS 126, Phoenix 130 OT
(ATS winner: Phoenix +3.5 | OVER 222)
* Nash capped off a phenomenal series against his former team with 39 points, 9 rebounds and 12 assists, including a game-tying 3-pointer with 5.7 seconds left in regulation to force overtime for the Suns.
"He made some unbelievable plays, not only today to win the game, but in
every game they won,'' said Dallas' Nowitzki."I've never seen him play better than this. I think he really wanted to show all of Dallas what we missed and he really did that.''
*
Stoudemire fouled out with 1:40 left in regulation and finished with just 18 points and 6 rebounds, but Marion picked up the slack for Phoenix with 38 points and 16 rebounds
* Nowitzki had 28 points, 13 rebounds and 6 assists for the Mavs while Terry added a team-high 36 points but pla
yed poor defense on Nash on the game-tying play
#6 Indiana Pacers vs. #2 Detroit Pistons
Second-round playoffs:
Detroit wins 4-2 SU and ATS
UNDER 4-2
First-round playoffs:
Indiana d. Boston:
4-3 SU and ATS;
OVER 6-1
Detroit d. Philadelphia: 4-1 SU and ATS; UNDER 3-2
5/9/2005 – DETROIT 96, Indiana 81
(ATS winner: Detroit -8.5 | OVER 172.5)
* Ben Wallace was a force inside for the Pistons, scoring 14 of his 21 points in the first half to go along with 15 rebounds and 4 steals
* Hamilton scored a game-high 28 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the field and 9-of-10 free-throw shooting
* Indiana's Jackson and O'Neal combined for 37 points but made only 14-of-41 shots while Miller had just 6 points on 3-for-7 shooting
5/11/2005 – DETROIT 83, Indiana 92
(ATS winner: Indiana +8.5 | OVER 172.5)
* Miller rebounded with 15 of his 19 points in the second half for the Pacers, who also got a career-best performance from Jeff Foster with 14 points and 20 rebounds
* The Pacers also outrebounded the Pistons 52-43 and had nine more steals to pull off the win despite 39 percent shooting
* Detroit's Tayshaun Prince had a team-high 24 points to go along with 9 rebounds and 7 assists while Hamilton and Billups combined for 27 points on 10-of-28 shooting
5/13/2005 – INDIANA 79, Detroit 74
(ATS winner: Indiana +4.5 | UNDER 174)
* Miller scored Indiana's last six points on four free throws and a jumper to rally the Pacers from a 72-71 deficit; he finished with a team-high 17 points and two of the free throws came as a result of Hamilton's sixth foul with 1:21 left, fouling him out of the game.
* Indiana had lost 4 of their previous 5 home playoff games
* Billups led the Pistons with 23 points on 6-of-17 shooting, and Antonio McDyess was the only Detroit player to shoot better than 50 percent as the team as a whole shot a dismal 37 percent
5/15/2005 – INDIANA 76, Detroit 89
(ATS winner: Detroit -5 | UNDER 173)
* Detroit got off to a 19-1 lead to start the game and was never really challenged from that point forward
* Billups scored a game-high 29 points for the Pistons while Rasheed Wallace helped back up his guarantee of a victory with 17 points and 12 rebounds
* Miller took just six shots and was 0-for-4 from 3-point range, finishing with just 7 points for the Pacers; Jackson led Indiana with 23 points while O'Neal scored just 10 on 4-for-15 shooting
5/17/2005 – DETROIT 86, Indiana 67
(ATS winner: Detroit -8.5 | UNDER 172.5)
* Pistons went on a 30-4 run between the second and third quarters to turn a close game into a rout, including a 15-0 start to the second half; they held Indiana without a field goal for a stretch of 10:39
* All five Detroit starters scored in double figures while Indiana's starters totaled 37 points on 31 percent shooting
5/19/2005 – INDIANA 79, Detroit 88
(ATS winner: Detroit -5.5 | UNDER 170.5)
* Miller time ends: Miller did all he could for the Pacers in the final game of his career with his best game of the series, scoring a team-high 27 points on 11-of-16 shooting. He averaged just 11.4 points in the first five games of the series.
* Hamilton rips Pacers in second half: Hamilton scored 19 of his game-high 28 points after the intermission to lead the Pistons while Billups added 23
#5 Washington Wizards vs. #1 Miami Heat
Second-round playoffs:
Miami wins 4-0 SU (3-1 ATS)
UNDER 3-1
First-round playoffs:
Washington d. Chicago: 4-2 SU (3-3 ATS); OVER 4-2
Miami d. New Jersey: 4-0 SU (3-1 ATS); OVER 4-0
5/8/2005 – MIAMI 105, Washington 86
(ATS winner: Miami -11.5 | UNDER 207)
* Miami's bench outscored Washington's 36-5
* Wade paced the Heat with 20 points on 7-of-18 shooting while O'Neal added 19 in 26 minutes due to foul trouble
* Arenas scored a game-high 25 points but made just 8-of-21 shots from the field and Antawn Jamsion added 13 but left in the fourth quarter with a knee injury
5/10/2005 – MIAMI 108, Washington 102
(ATS winner: Washington +12 | OVER 205.5)
* Wade had a team-high 31 points on 10-of-15 shooting and added a career-high 15 assists to lead the Heat, which shot 57.6 percent from the field; all five Miami starters scored at least 14 points
* Jamison kept the Wizards in the game despite his injury with a game-high 32 points while Arenas scored 28
5/12/2005 – WASHINGTON 95, Miami 102
(ATS winner: Miami -1.5 | UNDER 205.5)
* No Shaq, no problem: Shaquille O'Neal missed a playoff game for the first time in his career, ending a streak of 164 straight games, but Dwyane Wade stepped up yet again with 31 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists to lead the Heat in Game 3. O'Neal is expected to miss this game as well with a deep thigh bruise, but Alonzo Mourning filled in for him admirably with 14 points, 13 rebounds and 4 blocks in Game 3. All five starters scored in double figures for the Heat.
* Lucky 13: A crucial 13-0 run in the third quarter turned the tables on the hometown Wizards, as the Heat rallied back from an 8-point deficit for a 65-60 lead and didn't trail again.
*Haywood doesn't miss Shaq: Washington center Brendan Haywood had his best game of the series with 15 points and 8 rebounds. However, the Wizards continue to lack depth inside, as backup Etan Thomas missed the game with an abdominal injury.
5/14/2005 – WASHINGTON 95, Miami 99
(ATS winner: Miami -2.5 | UNDER 206)
* Wade the real Heat MVP: O'Neal missed his second straight playoff game due to a thigh injury, but Wade had his best career playoff game with 22 of his franchise playoff record 42 points in the third quarter on perfect 7-for-7 shooting from the field and 8-for-8 shooting from the free-throw line.
"To me, it's a remake of 'A Star is Born.' You could take the two series
and make a movie out of it, because he's certainly raised his game,''
Washington coach Eddie Jordan said. "He's certainly a bona fide star in this
league right now at his tender young age, whatever it is.''
*
Washington shot just 37 percent from the field and was led by Arenas with 25 points, 14 of which came from the free-throw line
* Haywood took advantage of O'Neal's absence with his second straight strong game inside for the Wizards - totaling 18 points and 15 rebounds - but it wasn't enough
#3 Seattle SuperSonics vs. #2 San Antonio Spurs
Second-round playoffs:
San Antonio wins 4-2 SU (3-3 ATS)
OVER/UNDER 3-3
First-round playoffs:
Seattle d. Sacramento: 4-1 SU (3-2 ATS); OVER 3-2
San Antonio d. Denver: 4-1 SU and ATS; UNDER 3-2
5/8/2005 – SAN ANTONIO 103 , Seattle 81
(ATS winner: San Antionio -8.5 | UNDER 187.5)
* Sonics lost leading scorer Allen (8 points in 13 minutes) and top reserve Vladimir Radmanovic within a minute of each other in the second quarter with ankle sprains
* Parker matched his career playoff high with 29 points for the Spurs, who jumped out to a 62-35 halftime lead and shot 51 percent from the field for the game
5/10/2005 – SAN ANTONIO 108, Seattle 91
(ATS winner: San Antionio -10.5 | OVER 184.5)
* Spurs won their sixth straight game by an average margin of 16 points since dropping the first game of the playoffs at home to Denver
* Ginobili led San Antonio off the bench with 28 points on 9-of-11 shooting while Duncan had 25 and Parker added 22
* Allen scored a team-high 25 points for the Sonics in 42 minutes despite playing on a sprained ankle and Lewis scored 22
5/12/2005 – SEATTLE 92, San Antonio 91
(ATS winner: Seattle +4.5 | UNDER 188.5)
* James had his best game of the series for the Sonics in Game 3 with 15 points on perfect 7-for-7 shooting in 23 minutes but fouled out with 1:46 remaining; he scored 12 points in the first two games combined
*
Allen, Sonics off but on at the charity stripe: Allen (20 points) was 0-for-6 from the field and failed to score in the fourth quarter, but the Sonics still found a way to win despite 41 percent shooting, going 2-for-16 from 3-point range. The biggest disparity came at the free-throw line, where Seattle hit 28-of-33 (85 percent) and San Antonio made just 19-of-34 (56 percent)
5/15/2005 – SEATTLE 101, San Antonio 89
(ATS winner: Seattle +7 | UNDER 186)
* Seattle point guard Luke Ridnour had the best playoff game of his two-year career, scoring 15 of his 20 points in the third quarter on perfect 7-for-7 shooting to go along with his 6 assists
*
Allen scored a team-high 32 points for the Sonics and Antonio Daniels added 19 and 7 assists filling in for the injured All-Star Lewis, who sprained his toe in Game 3
* Duncan scored a game-high 35 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Spurs, who faced a 16-point deficit going into the fourth quarter
5/17/2005 – SAN ANTONIO 103, Seattle 90
(ATS winner: San Antonio -11.5 | UNDER 186.5)
* Ginobili made his first start since the first game of the playoffs and responded with a career-playoff high 39 points
* Bad starts doom Sonics: Seattle missed its first seven shots of the game and then missed six of seven to start the second half
* Allen scored 15 of his team-high 19 points for the Sonics in the second quarter, when they rallied to tie the game 50-50 at halftime
5/19/2005 – SEATTLE 96, San Antonio 98
(ATS winner: Seattle +6 | OVER 188)
* This one's good: After missing the potential game-winning basket in Game 3 (a 92-91 loss), Duncan connected on a 4-foot jumper with 0.5 seconds left to win the game and series for the Spurs. He had made just 5 of his previous 20 shots but finished with 26 points.
* Allen led the Sonics with 25 points while Daniels added 22 filling in yet again for the injured Lewis, who missed half the series with a toe injury
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