By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net
Giannis Antetokounmpo stole the show with his historic (and clutch) performance to become the Bucks’ all-time scoring leader but there were a couple more great displays to see among other matchups.
DeMar DeRozan was as phenomenal in his 50-piece for the Chicago Bulls, handing the team an overtime win against the LA Clippers with 134-130 on the scoreboard. Nikola Vucevic helped out with 22 points, 14 boards.
DeRozan scored 17 points in the fourth quarter as well as ten in overtime, as led the Bulls to a 16-point comeback. It was the second career 50-point game for DeRozan with the first one being in January 2018.
However, the player noted that the win was all that mattered to him.
“The win is more meaningful. I wanted to win this game badly. You see how tight the [playoff] race is. Every single game is extremely important and we have no more room to be dropping any more games. That’s just my mentality.”
On the opposing side, Nicolas Batum with 17 and Ivica Zubac with 11 points followed Reggie Jackson’s 34 points.
Meanwhile, Joel Embiid’s 37 points weren’t enough for the Sixers who lost to Detroit 102-94. That loss might cost them in the final ranking as they now sit in the fourth spot of the East (46-30), in front of the Chicago Bulls (45-32).
Rudy Gobert put on another big double-double with 25 points and 17 rebounds behind Donovan Mitchell’s 29 points and seven assists. The Jazz took care of the Lakers with 122-109 as they keep pushing for the fifth spot. The LA squad, however, remained in trouble as they are currently out of the play-ins.
Cedi Osman had a solid display with 21 points and tried to lead the Cavs but it was from enough. Atlanta got a 131-107 win with Trae Young scoring 30.
Clint Capela had a 12-point, 14-rebound double-double while Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot scored 12 and Bogdan Bogdanovic 11 points.
Standings
| Eastern Conference | W | L | W/L% | GB | PS/G | PA/G | SRS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami Heat (1) | 49 | 28 | .636 | — | 109.3 | 105.1 | 4.00 |
| Milwaukee Bucks (2) | 48 | 28 | .632 | 0.5 | 115.0 | 111.4 | 3.42 |
| Boston Celtics (3) | 47 | 30 | .610 | 2.0 | 110.6 | 104.0 | 6.24 |
| Philadelphia 76ers (4) | 46 | 30 | .605 | 2.5 | 108.7 | 106.7 | 2.04 |
| Chicago Bulls (5) | 45 | 32 | .584 | 4.0 | 111.7 | 111.2 | 0.29 |
| Toronto Raptors (6) | 44 | 32 | .579 | 4.5 | 109.4 | 107.1 | 2.46 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers (7) | 42 | 35 | .545 | 7.0 | 107.2 | 105.2 | 1.98 |
| Brooklyn Nets (8) | 40 | 37 | .519 | 9.0 | 112.5 | 112.2 | 0.48 |
| Charlotte Hornets (9) | 40 | 37 | .519 | 9.0 | 114.8 | 114.4 | 0.58 |
| Atlanta Hawks (10) | 40 | 37 | .519 | 9.0 | 113.7 | 112.4 | 1.39 |
| New York Knicks (11) | 34 | 43 | .442 | 15.0 | 106.4 | 107.0 | -0.37 |
| Washington Wizards (12) | 33 | 43 | .434 | 15.5 | 108.4 | 111.4 | -3.10 |
| Indiana Pacers (13) | 25 | 52 | .325 | 24.0 | 110.8 | 114.0 | -3.03 |
| Detroit Pistons (14) | 21 | 56 | .273 | 28.0 | 104.5 | 112.1 | -7.22 |
| Orlando Magic (15) | 20 | 57 | .260 | 29.0 | 104.2 | 112.1 | -7.64 |
| Western Conference | W | L | W/L% | GB | PS/G | PA/G | SRS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phoenix Suns (1) | 62 | 14 | .816 | — | 115.2 | 106.8 | 7.84 |
| Memphis Grizzlies (2) | 54 | 23 | .701 | 8.5 | 115.4 | 109.1 | 5.60 |
| Dallas Mavericks (3) | 48 | 29 | .623 | 14.5 | 107.1 | 104.3 | 2.84 |
| Golden State Warriors (4) | 48 | 29 | .623 | 14.5 | 110.7 | 105.7 | 5.09 |
| Utah Jazz (5) | 46 | 31 | .597 | 16.5 | 113.4 | 107.8 | 5.23 |
| Denver Nuggets (6) | 46 | 31 | .597 | 16.5 | 112.0 | 109.5 | 2.36 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves (7) | 43 | 34 | .558 | 19.5 | 115.2 | 112.4 | 2.85 |
| Los Angeles Clippers (8) | 37 | 40 | .481 | 25.5 | 107.1 | 108.8 | -1.42 |
| New Orleans Pelicans (9) | 33 | 43 | .434 | 29.0 | 108.9 | 109.8 | -0.61 |
| San Antonio Spurs (10) | 31 | 45 | .408 | 31.0 | 113.0 | 113.3 | -0.38 |
| Los Angeles Lakers (11) | 31 | 45 | .408 | 31.0 | 111.5 | 114.6 | -3.20 |
| Sacramento Kings (12) | 28 | 49 | .364 | 34.5 | 110.5 | 115.8 | -5.12 |
| Portland Trail Blazers (13) | 27 | 49 | .355 | 35.0 | 107.4 | 114.9 | -7.19 |
| Oklahoma City Thunder (14) | 22 | 54 | .289 | 40.0 | 103.9 | 111.5 | -7.26 |
| Houston Rockets (15) | 20 | 57 | .260 | 42.5 | 109.3 | 117.7 | -8.23 |