Thursday evening saw the Miami Heat vs. Milwaukee Bucks, Brooklyn Nets vs. Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Clippers vs. Memphis Grizzlies take the floor. They were all Game 3's played and they were all pretty entertaining. Let's start with the more surprising result as the Bulls did what nobody thought possible.
Let's just say, if the Nets want to win this series, they will have to push it to a Game 6 in Brooklyn as the Bulls won Game 3, 79-76. The Bulls didn't play extremely great basketball since the Nets had a terrible shooting night and still found a way to make it a game. The Nets shot just about 35 percent from the floor, while the Bulls shot 38 percent. There's not much of a difference there, but the Bulls were a bit more consistent and they played scrappy basketball throughout Game 3.
The equation continues to be the same for the Bulls, Carlos Boozer and Luol Deng. They both finished with double-doubles grabbing at least 10 rebounds and scoring 22 and 21 points respectively. Deng could improve on his shot making after going 9-23 from the floor. Joakim Noah went 0-7 from the floor and finished with just one point, but he grabbed eight boards and had two blocks along with two assists.
The Nets took an early 17-5 lead with 6:25 to play in the first quarter. The Bulls closed out the period on a 14-0 run as the Nets didn't make a single point. The Nets didn't make it a ball game until late in the game as they outscored the Bulls 24-14 in the fourth, but Chicago managed to hold on to take the 2-1 series lead.
Los Angeles Clippers vs.Memphis Grizzlies
The Clippers almost had no fight in this one. They weren't the same team that won Games 1 & 2. Maybe it's the crowd in Memphis? They were extremely loud and helped the Grizzlies along the way even as the Clippers made a late run in the fourth quarter.
Nobody was more pumped the Zach Randolph who had 27 points to finish with the game-high accompanied by 11 rebounds. All in all, the Grizzlies received contributions from everybody. They had 11 steals in the game, as Tony Allen and Mike Conley pick pocketed the Clippers seven times combined. Randolph and Marc Gasol helped on the boards, nobody had an amazing night from beyond the arc, but they made 28-38 from the free throw line.
With the victory, the Grizzlies avoid burying themselves an in ditch making the series 2-1 in favor of the Clippers.
Miami Heat vs. Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks are doomed. Maybe they were doomed from the start as Brandon Jennings ran his mouth about winning in six. Suddenly, reality has set upon Jennings and the Bucks as the Heat are up 3-0 in the series. The Heat didn't lose four consecutive games in 2013 and with LeBron James saving his energy for when it really matters, it's safe to say the Bucks are done.
If this were a boxing match, it could be said that the Heat allowed the Bucks to punch themselves out. Milwaukee starting this game with a 27-17 lead and eventually won the first quarter 30-21. However, the Heat played at their pace and eventually finished the game shooting over 50 percent.
James finished with 22 points, givng way for Ray Allen to finish with the game-high 23 points. Dwyane Wade added 16 points.
After six straight days of NBA Playoff action, here's how all eight series looks and where every team stands.
EASTERN CONFERENCE:
Heat 3-0 Bucks
New York Knicks 2-0 Boston Celtcs
Indiana Pacers 2-0 Atlanta Hawks
Nets 1-2 Bulls
WESTERN CONFERENCE
OKC Thunder 2-0 Houston Rockets
San Antonio Spurs 2-0 L.A. Lakers
Denver Nuggets 1-1 Golden State Warriors
Clippers 2-1 Grizzlies
