National Basketball Association roundup: Jerryd Bayless, Bucks down Cavaliers

After he rescued the Cleveland Cavaliers from a loss to the NY Knicks on the world’s biggest basketball stage with an utterly dominant fourth quarter, LeBron James explained that Father Time and 12 prior seasons of wear and tear wouldn’t keep him from playing his game. After LeBron James blocked Jerryd Bayless’ layup, the Cavs had a 5 on 4 transition advantage and were looking to run on the retreating Bucks. Davis, though, heard players and assistant coaches on the Cleveland bench asking for a timeout so he granted it to the Cavs.

On November 4, the Knicks built a 15-point lead in Cleveland only to lose 96-86.

“I thought everyone did a great job, especially Mo (Williams), who came through with a timely shot and free throws at the end”.

Isaiah Thomas scored 17 of his 23 points in the second half and added 10 assists as the Celtics overcame a slow start with a solid finish and beat the Atlanta Hawks 106-93.

E’Twaun Moore added 11 points, Taj Gibson chipped in 12 points, Derrick Rose finished with 10 points and Pau Gasol recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 19 points and 13 rebounds.

The same can not be said for Knicks’ forward Carmelo Anthony, who had a team-high 26 points but scored only four in the second half. He finished 9 of 20 from the floor.

Brook Lopez missed a lay-up to win the game for the Nets, who were unable to recover as they scored just two OT points.

NY led 82-78 with 2:40 to go before James racked up three straight shots to give the Cavaliers the 84-82 lead with 1:15 to go in the game.

“We expected they would probably relax a little but, so we had chose to push it, and we didn’t get that chance, unfortunately”, Cleveland coach David Blatt said. His two free throws made it 88-84 with 18.1 seconds left. He shot 1-for-9 after halftime, and was 1-for-6 in the fourth quarter as James clamped down on him defensively. “We get into trouble when we try to manufacture offense as individuals rather than as a unit”. I think we expect we’re a great team, and we’re not.

The Cavaliers’ win over NY in their last clash evened up the two teams’ head-to-head record over their last 10 games. After electrifying the home crowd with his 22 first half points, Carmelo Anthony disappeared under the pressure of close friend LeBron James.

For as much as the Cavs struggled in the second overtime, they somehow STILL were in the game with 28 seconds left in the game after J.R. Smith hit a three to put the score at 108-105. That basket ignited the Knicks, who went on to outscore the Cavaliers 17-11. He sparked a 20-8 run in the second that helped the Knicks open up a 48-42 lead. G Cleanthony Early was inactive for the Knicks….

The Knicks spent another agonizing final minute, seeing a game get away from them Friday night at Madison Square Garden.

Milwaukee is still trying to find their rhythm that they had for most of last season.

Westbrook scored 21 points, grabbed 17 rebounds and dished out 11 assists as the Thunder (6-3) won their third straight contest.