In a direct confrontation for seventh place in the West, the Lakers imposed themselves on the floor of the Timberwolves. Second in the East, the Celtics signed a second win in a row against the Jazz when the Nuggets, leader in the West, fell to the Suns.
The Los Angeles Lakers can believe in the play-offs more than ever. Under the impetus of an Anthony Davis of the big nights (38 points, 17 rebounds), the Californian franchise won a crucial shock on the floor of the Minnesota Timberwolves. A meeting that has long seen the teammates of Rudy Gobert (14 points, 11 rebounds) and Karl-Anthony Towns (23 points, 8 rebounds) race in the lead. Apart from a burst of the Lakers at the start of the second quarter, the Wolves counted up to thirteen lengths ahead of the return on the floor of the Target Center. A third quarter which was the turning point of the meeting. A 15-0 allowed LeBron James’ Lakers (18 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists) to take the lead twelve minutes from the end of the game with a seven-point lead. A last quarter that saw the Californian franchise stay most of the time above the ten-point lead. Finally, it is with a mattress of twelve units that the Lakers sign a second success in a row (111-123). A success that allows Darvin Ham players to take seventh place in the West at the New Orleans Pelicans with the same record (39 wins for 38 losses. In the fight for the last places in the play-offs, Oklahoma City Thunder lost big by falling on the floor of the Indiana Pacers (121-117) when the Golden State Warriors dominated the San Antonio Spurs (130-115).
Two in a row for the Celtics
At the top of the Eastern Conference, the Boston Celtics were able to capitalize. Fallout of the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday, the players of the New England franchise narrowed the gap in the standings thanks to a success at TD Garden against the Jazz. A meeting that saw Jayson Tatum’s teammates (39 points, 11 rebounds) hold the reins on the scoreboard for a very large part of the 48 minutes. Indeed, it was only at the very end of the first quarter and then at the start of the second that the Salt Lake City-based franchise was able to pass in score, without the teammates of Talen Horton-Tucker (28 points , 8 rebounds, 7 assists) could take a lead of more than four points. After this burst of pride coming from the players of Utah, the Celtics took the upper hand definitively, counting up to 17 points in advance very early in the fourth quarter before perfectly managing their advantage. The Boston franchise wins by eight units (122-114) to return to a victory for the Bucks, who have one game less. A leading duo that is not let go by the Philadelphia 76ers, winners of the Toronto Raptors (117-110) when the Cleveland Cavaliers mark time with a second loss in a row conceded during the reception of the New York Knicks (116-130 ), who continue their momentum with a third consecutive victory.
The Nuggets fall again
For the Denver Nuggets, the relative bad patch is confirmed. Dominated this Thursday on his floor by the New Orleans Pelicans, the leader of the Western Conference conceded a second consecutive defeat on the occasion of a trip to the floor of a formation of the Phoenix Suns found. Apart from the first minutes, there was not really a match between the two teams. Indeed, if Aaron Gordon’s teammates (26 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists) opened the scoring, the Arizona players quickly banged their fists on the table. A 12-0 at the end of the first quarter set the tone and, from then on, the gap between the two teams rarely fell below ten points. Indeed, under the leadership of Kevin Durant (30 points) and Devin Booker (27 points, 6 assists), the Suns widened the gap to count up to 27 lengths ahead in the middle of the third quarter. Faced with such a difference, the Nuggets could only react and this materialized in the process by 24-6 to return below the bar of ten points behind. At the very end of the match, the Colorado players got closer to just four lengths but failed to take the next step to restart the game. The Suns thus sign a fourth victory in a row (100-93) and widen the gap on the Los Angeles Clippers, fifth in the West and beaten by the Memphis Grizzlies (108-94).