By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Dennis Schroder scored a season-high 31 points and dished out eight assists as the Boston Celtics crushed the Portland Trail Blazers 145 – 117.
Schroder shot 10-16 from the field, including 5-7 3-pointers. He and Jayson Tatum (31 points) led the way for a Celtics‘ offense that was unstoppable despite the absence of Jaylen Brown (hamstring tightness).
The Blazers, which were missing superstar Damian Lillard (tendinopathy) were completely overwhelmed and particularly crumbled down defensively in the second half where the Celtics scored 81 points. C.J. McCollum had 24 points while Jusuf Nurkic finished with 18 points and five rebounds.
The Chicago Bulls mean business this season and they confirmed that also against the Brooklyn Nets. With Zach LaVine (31 points, eight rebounds, six assists) and DeMar DeRozan (29 points, six rebounds) leading the way, the Bulls got a 111 – 107 victory that keeps them second in the Eastern Conference.
Nikola Vucevic contributed 11 points plus five rebounds (they do count) vs. Kevin Durant (29 points) and co..
Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf soreness was out against the Miami Heat so he had to watch from the sidelines as his brother Thanasis scored a season-high-tying 10 points in 16 minutes in the Milwaukee Bucks‘ 124 – 101 win. Heat forward and former Bucks player PJ Tucker received his 2021 championship ring before the game.
Sandro Mamukelashvilli was a starter for the Bucks and finished with five points, seven rebounds and three assists in 21 minutes. Omer Yurtseven scored four points for the Heat that lacked Jimmy Butler (tailbone contusion) and Bam Adebayo (thumb surgery).
The rest of Saturday’s (4/12) NBA results and Euro Scorers:
New York Knicks – Denver Nuggets 99 -113 (Nikola Jokic 32 points, 11 rebounds, five assists – Evan Fournier 15 points, five assists)
Golden State Warriors – San Antonio Spurs 107 – 112 (Nemanja Bjelica nine points – Jakob Poeltl six points, nine rebounds, five assists)
Dallas Mavericks – Memphis Grizzlies 90 – 97 (Frank Ntilikina three points – Boban Marjanovic two points, seven rebounds)
Sacramento Kings – Los Angeles Clippers 104 – 99 (Ivica Zubac 12 points, 11 rebounds – Isaiah Hartenstein four points)
Standings via NBA.com:
Eastern Conference:
| TEAM | W | L | WIN% | GB | CONF | DIV | HOME | ROAD | OT | LAST 10 | STREAK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | 7 | .696 | — | 13-5 | 4-0 | 8-5 | 8-2 | 0-0 | 7-3 | L 1 | |
|
2  Chicago Bulls
|
16 | 8 | .667 | 0.5 | 10-5 | 2-1 | 7-4 | 9-4 | 0-0 | 6-4 | W 3 |
|
3  Milwaukee Bucks
|
15 | 9 | .625 | 1.5 | 11-6 | 4-0 | 8-4 | 7-5 | 0-1 | 9-1 | W 1 |
| 14 | 9 | .609 | 2 | 9-7 | 3-4 | 8-3 | 6-6 | 2-0 | 4-6 | L 1 | |
|
5  Miami Heat
|
14 | 10 | .583 | 2.5 | 8-5 | 3-1 | 6-3 | 8-7 | 0-2 | 5-5 | L 1 |
| 13 | 10 | .565 | 3 | 9-5 | 1-0 | 5-6 | 8-4 | 0-0 | 5-5 | W 4 | |
|
7  Boston Celtics
|
13 | 11 | .542 | 3.5 | 8-8 | 3-3 | 6-4 | 7-7 | 2-2 | 6-4 | W 1 |
| 13 | 11 | .542 | 3.5 | 9-6 | 4-2 | 7-2 | 6-9 | 0-3 | 6-4 | L 3 | |
| 12 | 11 | .522 | 4 | 7-7 | 0-5 | 5-5 | 7-6 | 0-1 | 4-6 | W 1 | |
| 12 | 11 | .522 | 4 | 7-6 | 3-1 | 8-3 | 4-8 | 0-0 | 8-2 | L 1 | |
| 11 | 12 | .478 | 5 | 8-10 | 3-2 | 5-8 | 6-4 | 1-0 | 4-6 | L 3 | |
| 10 | 13 | .435 | 6 | 8-8 | 3-3 | 3-8 | 7-5 | 0-0 | 3-7 | W 1 | |
| 9 | 16 | .360 | 8 | 5-12 | 1-3 | 6-6 | 3-10 | 1-2 | 3-7 | L 4 | |
| 5 | 19 | .208 | 11.5 | 2-16 | 0-5 | 2-8 | 3-11 | 0-0 | 2-8 | L 1 | |
| 4 | 18 | .182 | 11.5 | 3-11 | 1-5 | 2-8 | 2-10 | 0-0 | 1-9 | L 8 |
Western Conference:
Western Conference
| TEAM | W | L | WIN% | GB | CONF | DIV | HOME | ROAD | OT | LAST 10 | STREAK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | 4 | .826 | — | 11-3 | 5-1 | 12-2 | 7-2 | 0-1 | 8-2 | L 1 | |
| 19 | 4 | .826 | — | 13-4 | 3-2 | 10-2 | 9-2 | 0-0 | 9-1 | L 1 | |
| 15 | 7 | .682 | 3.5 | 9-2 | 4-0 | 9-4 | 6-3 | 0-0 | 7-3 | W 3 | |
| 13 | 10 | .565 | 6 | 11-5 | 2-1 | 8-5 | 5-5 | 2-0 | 7-3 | W 4 | |
| 12 | 12 | .500 | 7.5 | 9-10 | 1-4 | 9-7 | 3-5 | 0-1 | 3-7 | L 1 | |
| 11 | 11 | .500 | 7.5 | 9-6 | 6-2 | 6-5 | 5-6 | 1-0 | 3-7 | L 2 | |
| 11 | 11 | .500 | 7.5 | 6-6 | 2-2 | 7-4 | 4-7 | 0-0 | 3-7 | W 1 | |
| 12 | 12 | .500 | 7.5 | 6-8 | 1-4 | 8-7 | 4-5 | 4-1 | 4-6 | L 1 | |
| 11 | 12 | .478 | 8 | 7-8 | 0-1 | 7-6 | 4-6 | 1-1 | 7-3 | L 2 | |
|
10  Portland Trail Blazers
|
11 | 13 | .458 | 8.5 | 6-9 | 1-2 | 10-3 | 1-10 | 0-0 | 5-5 | L 2 |
| 10 | 14 | .417 | 9.5 | 8-11 | 4-3 | 4-8 | 6-6 | 1-0 | 4-6 | W 2 | |
| 8 | 13 | .381 | 10 | 3-10 | 0-3 | 4-6 | 4-7 | 0-1 | 4-6 | W 4 | |
| 7 | 18 | .280 | 13 | 6-10 | 2-2 | 3-8 | 4-10 | 0-0 | 5-5 | W 1 | |
| 6 | 16 | .273 | 12.5 | 3-12 | 0-2 | 5-5 | 1-11 | 1-0 | 5-5 | W 5 | |
| 6 | 16 | .273 | 12.5 | 6-9 | 0-2 | 4-7 | 2-9 | 0-0 | 1-9 | L 8 |
