Tried as they did, the Boston Celtics couldn’t succeed at keeping Cavalier superstar LeBron James down forever. Despite another poor shooting night, the league’s leading regular season scorer was able to break loose in crunch time to push his team past Doc Rivers’ top seeded Celts last night to take Game Four 88-77 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland.

The series story had been James’ cool shooting. But when push came to shove, the riveting 23 year-old Akron, Ohio native sprung to life adding more “Witnesses” to his Nike campaign. With the two defensive minded Eastern foes locked in another low scoring battle, LeBron put together a good stretch to lift his team to a second straight victory holding serve on their home court to send the series back to Boston knotted at two apiece.

Unable to locate the range, James finally got untracked off a perfect pick n’ roll using Anderson Varejao’s screen to drain an uncontested triple in front of the Boston bench giving his team a 79-73 lead with over three minutes remaining. Following a tough Paul Pierce make inside, James setup Daniel Gibson for another trey from almost the identical spot. Mike Brown’s Cavs then played outstanding defense forcing the Celts into a miss. On the other end, James finally came off a double screen putting a facial dunk on NBA Defensive Player of The Year Kevin Garnett to make it 84-75.

It was just an awesome finish by one of the game’s very best. LeBron finished with 21 points and 13 assists- both game highs. Yes. Despite only shooting 7-of-20 from the floor, he was the only player who topped 20 speaking to just how physical the game was. It’s made for a very ugly brand of basketball. Neither is particularly good in the halfcourt offensively. Both play excellent D and make it very hard on the other to get good shots.

Does anyone else find it hysterical that these same Celtics had the league’s best record winning 66 games? They are now 0-for-5 on the road in the playoffs. They had to go seven before finally putting away the Hawks and look like they might be headed that same route.

It just seems like none of their Big Three which was swatted aside by TNT’s Magic Johnson want to take the big shot. Who out of Garnett (9 of 15 in 1st qtr), Pierce (three fourth qtr buckets, 13 pts) and Ray Allen (15, 4-of-10 FG, two 3’s) is going to step up and take control? Have to also agree with Magic that Rajon Rondo (7-of-14 FG, 15 pts) shouldn’t be taking more shots than either KG or Allen.

The Cavs have no such problem with the ball always in LeBron’s hands to either take the shot or setup open teammates. He made better decisions down the stretch winding up with four of his 13 assists in a 20-12 quarter which they controlled.

Cleveland got solid contributions from their bench which outscored Boston 36-17. Gibson had his best game of the series hitting a pair of trifectas while notching 14, six boards and four assists in 27-plus. Varejao also played excellent on both ends finishing with 12 points and six rebounds along with splendid D on Garnett. Ex-Bull Joe Smith added eight points and six boards.

Now, the series shifts back to Beantown where the pressure will be all on the Celtics to hold serve. If they don’t, it could be back-to-back comebacks from 0-2 down for LeBron’s Cavs. Last year, they victimized the Pistons to reach the NBA Finals.

How will the Celts respond? Tomorrow night should be fun.

What have the Lakers gotten themselves into? Honestly, I’m not surprised the Jazz rose up sweeping both home games in Salt Lake to draw even at 2-2 in the best-of-seven Western Conference semi series. They’ve been a great home team all year losing just five and feed off a terrific home court crowd.

Anyone who thought this was going to be a cakewalk for league MVP Kobe Bryant and the Lakers was on another planet. The Jazz did reach the Conference Final last year. So they weren’t about to roll over.

Maybe the most startling aspect of their 123-115 overtime Game Four win was that they were able to recover from blowing a 12-point lead with four minutes left in regulation. Thanks to some money balling from Derek Fisher (three treys, 10 of 15 in 4th qtr) and Christ The King product Lamar Odom (two tying buckets including rare trey), the purple and gold rallied to get the game to OT tied at 108 apiece.

Why they went away from Odom in the extra five minutes remains a mystery. The Laker third option was having a great game getting open for Bryant passes and exploiting mismatches to the tune of 26 points on an effective 10-of-18 from the floor along with 13 rebounds for a double/double plus three swats.

Clearly, a hobbled Kobe (ankle) was struggling which made it more imperative to get teammates involved. Though the electrifying 29 year-old shooting guard paced his team with 33, he took too many shots misfiring on 20 of 33 including a dreadful 1-of-10 from three-point range. He did still drop a team high 10 assists and grab eight boards. The star just didn’t have the touch as he was defended about as well as possible by lanky Utah forward Andrei Kirilenko, whose five blocks were one fewer than the entire Laker team on Mother’s Day. Kirilenko was also good on the other end taking a pass for a nice flush completing a pivotal three-point play which gave his team some cushion in pulling away for the well earned eight-point win. He netted 15 shooting a perfect 4-of-4 from the field while converting seven of nine at the charity stripe.

As usual, the Jazz got a big game from floor general Deron Williams, who sliced up the Lakers for a team best 29 on an efficient 9-of-13 shooting including three treys, 8-for-8 from the line while also dropping a game high 14 dimes. The third-year Illinois product is just very tough. One such instance in OT saw him lose the ball, narrowly escape a backcourt while recovering it before draining a very tough 16-foot fadeaway over Pau Gasol. He also got into the lane on Utah’s pick n’ roll setting up Mehmet Okur for a couple of long two’s. Just money plays by a money player. He competes. Love the intensity. Okur netted 18 points, 11 rebounds and five assists.

Jerry Sloan also got a great outing from his bench, which outscored Phil Jackson’s second unit 39-16. That included 14 from Kyle Korver (two treys) and 12 from the gritty Matt Harpring (4-of-6 FG, 4-of-4 FT). They played extremely well in the second half helping build a double digit lead.

The bench’s play offset a cool outing for star big Carlos Boozer (14 pts, 5-of-15 FG). Boozer did have a great Game Three getting 27 and 20 boards to get the Jazz back in the series. He’ll need to play like that when the series shifts to Tinseltown Wednesday.

The Jazz also got a solid outing from Paul Millsap, whose energy was outstanding as he pulled down four offensive boards, had a steal, block and added nine points. It was that sort of hustle which epitomized his team’s play.

In a losing effort, Los Angeles center Gasol had 23 on 11-of-16 from the floor adding 10 rebounds, three blocks and two assists. He was effective but also missed a dunk in OT which would’ve tied it.

I didn’t get Jackson calling a timeout and then out of it, Sasha Vujacic getting the ball and doing nothing but dribbling into an easy turnover. The play made no sense. He did net 11 off the bench including three from downtown but why doesn’t he start? Vladimir Radmanovic (1-of-6 FG, 0-of-3 three’s, 2 pts in 15 mins) blows.

The Jazz deserved the win. They also hurt the Lakers at the line getting there 20 more times while making a solid 37-for-45. That was another area which LA didn’t do well missing 11 of 25 with 10 of those coming from Kobe and Odom. You’re not going to win many games at this time of year when you fail at the charity stripe.

Now, we got a series. We’ll see how the Lakers handle some adversity. It should be a good one.

Defense wins championships. Fair enough. But what about being able to score the ball? That’s how ugly Game One of the Eastern Conference Semifinal between the Cavs and Celtics was at TD Banknorth Garden last night which saw Kevin Garnett and the home team grit out a 76-72 win to take a 1-0 series lead.

Despite an awful third quarter in which they scored only 12 points (27 combined), the Celts still had enough to get the better of an ice cold LeBron James and the Cavs, outscoring them 23-20 in the determining final quarter. Savvy veteran Sam Cassell came off the bench for 10 of his 13 including a couple of big three’s and two free throws after flopping to the floor while frustrated Cav big man Zydrunas Ilgauskas protested and snuck in a late kick to the face.

The Cleveland center kept his team’s chances of stealing the home court alive by tipping home a James miss to tie the score at 72. On a night where James was stifled by Boston’s swarming defense into an abysmal 2-for-18 night which included an unLebron-like 10 turnovers, Ilgauskas picked up the slack scoring a team high 22 (8-of-18 FG, 6-of-6 FT) and pulling down 12 rebounds.

Even though the Cavs played their own brand of outstanding D completly shutting down Ray Allen (first ever career goose egg, 0-of-4 FG, 0-of-3 3’s, 4 TO) and neutralizing Paul Pierce (4 pts, 2-of-14 FG, 0-of-3 3’s, 6 TO), they were unable to contain Garnett, who scored the last of his game high 28 by overpowering mismatch Joe Smith for an easy lay-in with a shade under 24 seconds left to break a tie game. Here’s a question. What the heck was the undersized Smith doing in there trying to guard KG in the post? Shouldn’t Mike Brown have subbed Ben Wallace back in?

Following a full timeout, LeBron still had a chance to atone for a brutal shooting night. He had made his first field goal for 2-0 and then didn’t make another until a driving reverse lay-up with over five and a half remaining in the game. Now, he got the ball at the top of the key and drove past the Boston double for what looked like an easy tying lay-in. Instead, the ball didn’t go down caroming back out to James Posey with 8.5 seconds left. The key Boston sub sealed the game with two free throws completing an 8-point outing which as usual included a couple from downtown.

It all added up to an ugly Celtic Game One victory which the home crowd still loved. It sure didn’t remind you of two decades ago though when Bird, McHale, Parrish and DJ were all money at the old Boston Garden on that parquet floor. I can still recall that classic Cheers episode where McHale screwed with the bolts in the floor and tripped over it during a game.

Regardless of how they won with Allen and Pierce having games to forget, the Celtics won’t give this one back. You have to expect them to be better along with LeBron.

I just hope we see better offensive execution in the halfcourt because it was tough on the eyes. 

Well, at least the Magic have an excuse. They played better against the Pistons in Game Two but had a tough call go against them. Near the end of the third quarter, the clock never started creating tons of confusion when Chauncey Billups nailed a three to put Detroit up two.

The question was did he get it off in time? There were 4.9 seconds left when the controversy took place. Due to NBA regulations, the three officials couldn’t review the tape instead conferencing for about five minutes before deciding to reward the Detroit point guard with a three. From watching TNT replays, I counted 5.2 which the network later confirmed as the fourth quarter began.

Unfortunately for Stan Van Gundy’s Magic, it didn’t matter. They still had 12 minutes to overcome that mistake. Orlando certainly had their chances but just couldn’t make enough big plays down the stretch getting outscored 22-17 in the fourth quarter and falling 100-93.

They had fallen behind by 10 at the half after a miserable second quarter which saw them score only 11 points. Then the Magic came out and played a superb third quarter outscoring the Pistons 36-28 to pull within two. In particular, Rashard Lewis came alive draining a couple of treys and scoring 16 of 20 in the second half. Jameer Nelson also was much better scoring the ball and nailing five triples to the tune of 22. In fact, Orlando who shot just 2-of-15 from the outside was a perfect seven-for-seven in the third.

Too bad the Billups trey counted. Otherwise, they would’ve led by one entering the final quarter. Those kind of shots can swing momentum. For Orlando, it was a bad break cause it definitely shouldn’t have counted. Regardless, they did come out strong in the fourth and even took a four point lead on a thunderous follow-up jam by Dwight Howard, who was much better finishing with 22 and 18 boards (8 offensive) plus two rejections.

Clearly, the Pistons were on the ropes forcing Flip Saunders to call for time. Howard was getting players in foul trouble. That the Magic didn’t exploit that in the last five and a half minutes was a big reason they lost to fall behind 0-2 in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference Semi series.

How did the experienced Pistons respond out of the timeout? Like you’d expect. By going on a 7-0 run to take a 91-88 lead. First, a classic Rasheed Wallace score in the post cut it to two. After a bad Magic possession, Richard Hamilton made a contested three from the key to put them up one. Billups then hit a 14-foot runner. In less than two minutes, they were up three and back in control.

Orlando kept it close on an open Nelson three to cut it to two. They never got the game tied as Billups was great down the stretch getting to the charity stripe and making his free throws where one of the game’s best converted all 10. Hamilton also made five of six despite an off shooting night (4-of-18 FG) to still net 14 in support of Billups’ game high 28.

The Magic did have a chance to tie it a couple of different times but a wild Hedo Turkoglu three off an in bounds missed completely. Their last gasp was a Lewis runner which went off the back of the rim with Howard’s tip try also missing right to Turkoglu, who had the ball cleanly stripped by Theo Ratliff off his leg handing it back to Detroit. The Pistons converted enough free throws to put the game out of reach.

Both teams had all five starters in double digits with Orlando getting a better game from Maurice Evans, who hit a couple of three’s and netted 13 in a losing effort. Turkoglu struggled with his scoring touch only making 5-of-11 from the field despite two treys. Though he involved other teammates with a game best seven assists, the NBA’s Most Improved Player was awful turning the ball over six times. Lewis also had six miscues and Howard turned it over five comprising for 17 of Orlando’s 19 on the night. Just way too many to win on the road. By contrast, the Pistons only had eight.

Detroit got a better game from Wallace, who hit for 17 (7-of-10 FG). Supporting cast players Tayshaun Prince (17 pts, 10 rebs, 5 assists, 2 steals, blk) and Jason Maxiell (11 pts, 5-of-5 FG, 4 rebs, 3 blks, 3 assists) each had solid overall games.

The Piston bench outscored Orlando 13-4 with Antonio McDyess getting six and Rodney Stuckey adding five. Former Piston Carlos Arroyo netted all four for the Magic.

Key stat difference: Winning basketball games means taking care of the ball. Assist to turnover ratios are crucial.

Orlando- 16 assists, 19 turnovers, minus-three

Detroit- 23 assists, 8 turnovers, plus-15

Clearly, that needs to change for the Magic to make it a series.

How good is Chris Paul? The third-year Hornets’ floor general is plenty good already. After toasting Jason Kidd in Round One, Paul had his way with the Spurs in Game One of the Western Conference Semis, scoring 13 of 17 in the second half while handing out 13 assists and four steals in a 101-82 home win Saturday night.

Paul got plenty of help from teammates David West, who scored a playoff career high 30 (13-of-23 FG) with nine rebounds and 22 from Peja Stojakovic (9-of-15 FG) including a couple of three’s.

After falling behind 8-0 at the start, the Spurs cameback and outscored the Hornets 49-37 the rest of the half to lead by four at halftime. They slowed down the pace and executed in the halfcourt with lightning quick Tony Parker slashing for lay-ups and setting up Bruce Bowen for five treys. The feisty defender got all five in an excellent first half, only scoring two free throws the rest of the way.

The Spurs held a four-point lead early in the third quarter without much from Tim Duncan, who never got untracked finishing a dismal 1-of-9 from the floor, matching a career playoff low with only five points. How ineffective was he? The Big Fundamental only had three total rebounds, two assists and one foul in over 37 minutes. He also bricked three of six free throws, which was a team epidemic. The Spurs misfired on nine of 21 from the line.

Eventually, Duncan’s dreadful game along with a stagnant offense worked in the younger Hornets’ favor. With Paul getting more aggressive, they took control scoring eight straight to go up four. He setup a couple of easy dunks. The Spurs never recovered falling behind by eight after three quarters.

It would only get worse as Paul sliced up their D scoring and setting up open teammates. West also was draining 17-footers from both sides of the court and Stojakovic was taking advantage of mismatches to score inside off the dribble.

The Hornets had it all working. They played outstanding D in the second half outscoring San Antonio by 23 and forcing 13 total turnovers including an unusual five from Parker. By contrast, the hosts turned it over just seven times.

The Spurs were manhandled on the glass getting outrebounded 50-34 with New Orleans doubling them up 16-8 on the offensive glass. Quite a few times, free Hornets got to loose balls for putbacks including one from Bonzi Wells who came off the bench for 10 and a monster follow-up jam by Tyson Chandler, who paced everyone with 15 boards (6 offensive). The ex-Bull also added 10 points and three blocks.

Paul put an exclamation point on the win with a couple of killer crossovers flying by Spurs for easy lay-ins. He also made two consecutive steals including one which concluded with a dunk. Message delivered.

So, can the Spurs recover? Duh. They have before. No way will Duncan be this ineffective in Game Two. Gregg Popovich is a master at adjusting. He knows that if he gets the normal game from his star power forward along with the 42 combined points and 12 assists Parker and super sixth man Manu Ginobili delivered, the defending champs will be right there.

The question is can they slow down the explosive Paul? That remains to be seen. It’s undoubtedly the key to the series.

For the record, before they tipped off my pick was Spurs in 6 due to their wealth of experience. That said, I did give the Hornets a decent chance to win because they match-up. I just think in a 6-7 game series, that trio of Duncan, Parker and Ginobili will find a way to get it done. But if Game One was any indication, they’re going to be severely tested. Don’t forget too that Byron Scott has been around the block before winning three rings with the Lakers and coaching a flawed Nets team to back-to-back NBA Finals. So, he knows what it takes.

It should make for a compelling brand of basketball.

There was one other series which got underway with the Pistons having their way with the Magic 91-72. Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton exposed Orlando’s backcourt of Jameer Nelson and Maurice Evans outscoring them 36-11 with five more assists (10-5) and three fewer turnovers (2 to 5).

Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu each got 18 and had near identical stat lines but as predicted, didn’t do much from the outside making only one three in seven combined attempts. Orlando as a team shot 2-for-15 from three. 

It didn’t help much that Dwight Howard was banged up bruising his left wrist when now Piston starting power forward Jason Maxiell hit his arm while going for a rebound. In 35-plus minutes, Howard finished with 12 points, eight rebounds and three blocks before sitting out most of the final quarter with the game out of reach. The only decision Stan Van Gundy could make.

The Pistons placed five in double figures including 12 apiece from Maxiell and Tayshaun Prince. Antonio McDyess came off the bench for 10 points, five rebounds and two rejections in 23 minutes.

Game Two is Monday at The Palace with a special 6 ET start time. We’ll try to confirm if that’s accurate.

Later today, the Lakers and Jazz get underway. But first up will be Hawks-Celtics in another Game Seven 20 years after that epic Dominique vs Bird duel with Boston prevailing. The Hawks have never won a road Game Seven in franchise history losing three different times to the Celts. Will the fourth time be the charm? Find out at 1 ET on ABC!

It’s new blood versus old as Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic battle Chauncey Billups and the Detroit Pistons in Game One of the Eastern Conference Semifinals tonight in Auburn Hills.

Series Overview: There’s a lot to like about this match-up. You got the Magic’s youth against the Pistons’ experience. The Magic rely on the power game of Howard along with deadly perimeter shooting from Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis. In their five-game first round win over the Raptors, Howard dominated the paint averaging 22.6 points, 18.2 boards and an intimidating 3.8 blocks. He’ll need to do more of the same and Turkoglu will have to shoot better from the outside (2-for-18 from 3 vs Tor).

They’ll also need Jameer Nelson to score and distribute the ball. That will be a tough chore against one of the game’s best point guards in Billups, who is a great all around player.

Keith Bogans and Keyon Dooling must supply the same spark they did in coming off Stan Van Gundy’s bench against the Raptors. Ex-Piston Carlos Arroyo could be vital giving Nelson a breather.

The Pistons rely on more of a balanced attack which features Billups and veteran big man Rasheed Wallace in the pick n’ roll. It’s extremely tough to defend because the versatile Wallace not only sets good picks but can hurt you from beyond the arc. In the six-game elimination of the 76ers, he averaged 14.5 PPG, 6.5 RPG and shot a deadly 44.8 percent (13-for-29) from downtown. In this series, he’ll be asked to play great D against Howard.

The Pistons don’t normally double which means they’ll ask Rasheed to limit the damage. What that could mean is Howard will get his points but the Magic perimeter attack could be neutralized. If that plays out, I can’t see Orlando winning this series.

You can give the nod to Howard against Wallace but Billups has a decided edge on Nelson, who needs to play out of his mind. The problem is that the other three starters all can chip in. That includes one of the brightest shooting guards in the game in Richard Hamilton along with the versatile Tayshaun Prince, whose length causes problems on both ends of the floor.

Antonio McDyess won’t score a ton but has good range and can step out from 17-18 feet and drain it. His ability to make shots away from the basket along with Wallace’s outside stroke could force Howard to play out meaning he won’t be as much of a defensive presence. That can’t happen or the Magic are in trouble.

On top of matters, Flip Saunders can bring in power forward Jason Maxiell, Amir Johnson and grizzled vet Theo Ratliff to bang around Howard. The Raptors didn’t have the personnel to do that. Rodney Stuckey, Arron Afflalo and Jarvis Hayes all give Saunders minutes. Figure vet Lindsey Hunter also to come off the bench. He can shoot the rock if you leave him open.

Analysis: The Magic are basically a three player attack with Nelson as the important fourth option. The problem is if the Pistons play Howard man-to-man, his supporting cast isn’t going to be much of a factor. It’s awfully hard to see them winning against a deeper and more experienced team whose been through this grind before.

Series Prediction: Pistons in 5

In the old days, the NBA had a signature phrase, “Now that’s fantastic.” These days in Atlanta, it’s more like Hawktastic! 

Twenty years ago, the Atlanta Hawks and Boston Celtics hooked up in a great seven-game second round series. Best remembered for the classic Game Seven duel between superstars Dominique Wilkins and Larry Bird, the scoring war went to The Human Highlight Film but not the series as Boston advanced thanks to 20 fourth quarter points from Larry Legend. Wilkins, who scored a game high 47 (13 better than Bird) had 16 in a losing effort. The Celtics won 118-116.

In the rich history of the Boston Celtics, they’ve never lost a series deciding Game Seven. That and plenty more will all be on the line when the East’s top seed hosts the underdog Hawks tomorrow afternoon at TD Northbank Garden. It doesn’t quite have that same feel as the fabled Boston Garden where the green and white won so many NBA titles. Just maybe that will be enough incentive for upstart Atlanta, a team who won 37 games during the regular season. That’s 29 fewer than Kevin Garnett and the Celts won in posting the league’s best record to gain home court.

The deciding game became necessary when the Hawks held up their end of the bargain by winning on their home floor at a loud Phillips Arena of better than 20,000. Like Game Four, Boston built a double digit lead taking a 32-20 cushion after one quarter. But the Celts couldn’t handle prosperity allowing a resilient group of Hawks to outscore them 29-18 cutting the deficit to one by the half.

Everytime the Celtics tried to take control, Atlanta made a timely basket to stay right with them. Trailing by three after 36 minutes, the Hawks used better aggressive defense and heady play on the offensive end to stifle their opponent outscoring them 24-18 to pull out a hard fought 104-101 Game Six win.

When his team needed a big bucket in crunch time, Game Four hero Joe Johnson delivered once again. With the Celts within two and the shot clock winding down, he faked out defender James Posey and then stepped into a trey from the right arc nailing it for a 100-95 lead with over a minute left. It was the only three Atlanta made all night.

If Johnson was the star in outscoring Boston 20-17 by himself a few nights ago, then he got plenty of help from a well balanced attack which included 16 points, five rebounds and four assists from NBA Rookie of The Year runner-up Al Horford. On a night when Boston doubled to limit Johnson’s touches, other Hawks came through including veteran guard Mike Bibby, who made just enough free throws to hold off Boston’s last charge without Paul Pierce, who fouled out and drew a technical.

Bibby stepped up supporting Johnson’s 15, five assists and four rebounds with a similar 17, seven assists and six boards. After converting one-of-two to keep the Celts’ hopes alive of forcing overtime, the former Sacramento King and teammates played splendid D not allowing Rajon Rondo to find an open Posey or Ray Allen for a potential tying three. Instead, the pass oriented point guard went to the last option forcing a 25-footer which drew nothing but air as the Hawks and their pumped up fans celebrated by chanting, “Se—ven, Se—ven, Se—ven!!!!!”

All five Atlanta starters hit for double figures including Marvin Williams’ 18 which paced them despite missing most of the final quarter due to a twisted knee while guarding Pierce. Showing playoff mettle, he came back into the game to play defense with 20 seconds remaining. The plan worked as an Allen force from way downtown missed wide forcing the Celts to foul. He just didn’t have the touch from the outside clanging seven of eight three-point attempts despite 20 points.

When Williams wasn’t in, replacement Josh Childress was ripping it up to the tune of 15 points, six rebounds, three assists and a steal. The former 2004 first rounder out of Stanford has really played big in this series, playing awesome D along with timely hoops and unselfish dishes. His hustle has also kept several loose balls alive including three big offensive rebounds last night.

The Hawks also got a valiant effort from little used reserve center Zaza Pachulia. The big man who jawed with Garnett during Game Four played 28 big minutes scoring nine points on three of four from the field with three free throws, six boards including four offensive and two steals.

That kind of yeoman effort is the reason they’re headed back to Boston for a Game Seven rematch 20 years in the making. Well, maybe it’s not quite Nique and Bird with current Celtic coach Doc Rivers on the Hawk side. But it sure is great theater.

The pressure will be squarely on Boston. They swept all three regular season meetings and have won by an average of 22 points in Games 1, 2 and 5 on their home court.

They didn’t bring in the Big Ticket (22 pts, 7 rebs, 6 assists) and Allen to flop in the first round against a hungry athletic opponent who wants to victimize a heavy favorite much the way Baron Davis and the eighth seeded Golden State Warriors stunned Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks in this same round. So, the pressure will be immense when they tip off Game Seven at 1 ET tomorrow in Boston.

If the Celts win, they’ll play LeBron James and the Cavs, who for the third consecutive year eliminated the Wizards on their home floor . James posted a triple double with 27 points, 13 assists and 13 rebounds in a 105-88 Game Six win at Verizon Center. Deadline pickup Wally Szczerbiak connected on six treys netting 26 points and Daniel Gibson came off the bench for 22 including another four from beyond the arc.

Antawn Jamison paced the Wizards with a double/double (23 and 15) in a losing effort. Game Five hero Caron Butler was limited to 18 on 6 of 14 shooting with four turnovers.

The Utah Jazz also advanced to an enticing Conference Semifinal match-up against rumored regular season league MVP Kobe Bryant and the Lakers. Despite a heroic 40 points, 10 boards and five assists from Tracy McGrady, the Jazz used a more balanced attack with seven different players netting double digits including 10 apiece from reserve guards Kyle Korver and Matt Harpring.

McGrady, who is now 0-7 in playoff series did all he could for the shorthanded Rockets who lost starting guard Rafer Alston to an injury early on which didn’t help their cause. In the past, I’ve been critical of him but the guy did all he could to get his team back in the game. They trailed by 19 in the first half before a McGrady led run which included back-to-back three’s cut the lead to four at the half. The only other Rocket in double digits was rookie power forward Luis Scola, who finished with 15 and nine boards.

The Jazz responded with a strong third quarter outscoring the Rockets 27-11. Point guard Deron Williams had 13 by himself including two straight trifectas which put Utah back in command up 18. The former Illinois standout finished with 25, nine assists and six rebounds. Mehmet Okur added a double/double (19 and 13) and Carlos Boozer chipped in with 15, 10 and 5. 

Utah cruised to a 113-91 Game Six win to setup Sunday’s Game One at Los Angeles. Figure that to be a great series.

In the movie classic Wizard Of Oz, Dorothy’s character claims, “There’s no place like home.”

Thus far, that’s held true for the first five games between the East’s top seeded Celtics and eighth seeded Hawks in the First Round. Coming off consecutive losses in Atlanta, Boston rebounded with a 110-85 Game Five victory to go up 3-2 in the best-of-seven series.

The result wasn’t surprising since the Celts fed off the energy like they did in Games One and Two. Factor in that Atlanta was 0 for their last 11 in road playoff games. So, it was predictable especially with a young team.

Though Boston led throughout building a double digit lead, the pesky Hawks chipped away at it cutting the deficit to 11 with under a minute left in the third quarter. That’s when the two biggest plays were made from Paul Pierce and James Posey to rebuild an 81-64 lead by the quarter’s conclusion.

First, Pierce drove the lane and converted a very difficult acrobatic lay-up getting fouled for a three-point play. Following an Atlanta misfire, heady Boston point guard Rajon Rondo got the ball quickly up court and found a wide open Posey for a bread and butter trey with a second to spare. 

Just like that, instead of the Hawks possibly being down by nine, instead they trailed by 17. While not insurmountable, it was just too much to ask for a vastly inexperienced Atlanta club to comeback from.

Led by Pierce’s series best 22 (10-of-17 FG) along with seven rebounds and six assists, the Celtics cruised to the 25-point win at TD Banknorth Garden. Kevin Garnett scored 20, posted five boards and seven assists. Rondo also dropped seven times as Doc Rivers’ club spread the wealth with 12 more assists than their opponent (Celts-28, Hawks-16).

Boston also got a splendid shooting night from Ray Allen, who connected on five-of-eight three’s en route to 19 points. Even savvy vet Sam Cassell got into the act nailing two triples on his way to a valuable 13 off the bench in just 15 minutes.

The Celts held the three-point edge sinking 9-of-20 to the Hawks’ 4-of-13.

In a losing effort, Game Four hero Joe Johnson paced his team with 21 finishing 6-of-11 from the field including two from downtown plus a perfect seven-for-seven at the charity stripe. Rookie center Al Horford had his best effort of the series notching a double/double (14 and 10) to go with five assists. Josh Smith added 18 with five boards, three assists and three steals.

So, can the Hawks do what team legend and exec Dominique Wilkins flashed showing seven fingers to a TNT camera? They’ll need a better effort from veteran guard Mike Bibby. Six points and just one assist while turning it over three times in almost 40 minutes just won’t cut it. Conversely, he had 18 in their Game Four win at Phillips Arena. That’s what they’ll need.

It will take a lot of effort on both sides of the court to extend the battle tested Celtics the distance. By now, they want to get this series over with and not chance going a seventh game.

Sure. They’re not losing this series. However, going seven this round won’t help their quest to reach the NBA Finals.

In the other playoff series last night, the Cavs couldn’t close out the Wizards dropping an 88-87 decision on their home floor. They got outscored 6-0 in the final 1:47 blowing an 87-82 lead.

Delonte West’s three-point play had supplied Cleveland with the five-point lead but some bad possessions along with a Caron Butler score plus two Antonio Daniels free throws suddenly cut it to 87-86 with 43 ticks left.

A couple of more Cleveland misses from in tight allowed the Wizards to get the ball back. Following a timeout, they went to their best player Butler, who hit a tough driving lay-up with LeBron James draped all over him.

There were still 3.9 seconds left. Enough time for LeBron to once again end Washington’s season as he had a couple of years prior. However, this time he missed a runner off the backboard and rim allowing the Wizards to escape with new life.

They’ll now get a Game Six back in the nation’s capital tomorrow. Who thinks they’re losing that? You can pretty much book a Game Seven.

Butler’s heroics put the exclamation point on a brilliant night. The former Uconn star finished with 32 points on 11-of-22 shooting including four trifectas along with six-for-seven from the line. He also added nine rebounds, five assists and two swipes in nearly playing all 48.

For once, a Walt Frazier expression played true. The Butler did it! There’s a reason he’s one of my fave players. He’s really worked hard to become an NBA All-Star and a versatile player who can score, get teammates involved and D up. His big night along with DeShawn Stevenson’s 17 and Daniels’ 12 helped offset only eight from Antawn Jamison.

For the Cavs, James led the way with 34 netting 24 in the second half. Did we also mention the man child had 10 boards and seven assists? Just awe inspiring. How can you not love LeBron? Well, with the exception of driving a really fast car at insane speeds and all the other fame which comes with it…Never mind.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 19 and West netted 12 points, five rebounds and eight assists. Great pickup from Seattle for next to nothing! I called that one.

Realistically, I can’t see the Cavs dropping this series. The Wizards are without Gilbert Arenas. Even if they have played well without him, it’s hard to see them winning three in a row over LeBron. Especially with a seventh game back in Cleveland.

Figure the MVP candidate to rescue his team.

Mavericks Fire Johnson: In other NBA news, it came as little shock that Dallas fired coach Avery Johnson for another first round disappointment. Still, I feel he got a raw deal here as it was just too much to expect the former NBA Coach Of The Year to suddenly make it all work because crazy owner Mark Cuban got Jason Kidd at the deadline. Two months just isn’t enough time to mesh and they ran into a better opponent in the Hornets.

You have to figure Johnson will wind up coaching again. Maybe the Bulls or Knicks? It’s also rumored that Mike D’Antoni will step down as Suns coach. Look for him to resurface in Toronto and re-team with Bryan Colangelo. That also would mean Sam Mitchell would not return as Raptor coach even though he’s done an admirable job.

That’s the NBA for ya where it’s all about now and how far you go. Proven track records only work if your name is Larry Brown, who still manages to get jobs even though he’s just in Charlotte for another paycheck.

Ditto Pat Riley, who “retired from coaching.” Just ask current Magic coach Stan Van Gundy about that. Who really could take Riley at his word? In the old WFAN days, Steve Somers and Russ Salzberg got it right when Riles dissed New York only to resurface in Miami:

The Loser Within

See. Even American Idol’s Paula Abdul got one right.

Maybe it was fitting that the same script was written for both the Mavericks and Suns last night. Each lost close Game Fives on the road to be eliminated in disappointing first round showings against better opponents.

Not long ago, they were two of the Western powers who could go deep into the NBA’s second season. Now, not even acquiring marquee stars such as Jason Kidd or Shaq could alter a downward spiral for each. It’s two straight years for the Mavs out in the first round. Though falling to Chris Paul and the Hornets wasn’t much of a stunner like last year’s bowing out to eighth seed Golden State.

In his third year, Paul is a legit MVP candidate along with Kobe and LeBron proving he’s legit ripping apart the older Kidd along with the rest of the Mavs. He only recorded his first career playoff triple double in closing out Dallas with 24 points, 11 rebounds and 15 assists. David West added 25 points, seven boards and four assists. Tyson Chandler was a force underneath grabbing 14 rebounds (seven offensive) and blocking three shots. Reserve guard Jannero Pargo also came off the bench for 17 shooting seven for nine from the floor with a couple of triples.

It all added up to a five-game victory and first ever series win since the Hornets relocated to New Orleans.

On the losing side, Dirk Nowitzki’s double/double (22 and 13) along with six assists and a couple of blocks weren’t enough to save the Mavs’ season. Neither was Kidd’s best effort of the series in which he had 14 points, nine assists and four boards. Jason Terry also added 13 points and nine dishes. Still, Dallas didn’t have enough to offset their younger opponent who advanced to a Conference Semifinal meeting against the defending champion Spurs.

Who isn’t excited about that match-up? Old established guard against new kid on the block. The point guard match-up between Paul and 2007 Finals MVP Tony Parker should be one to enjoy for any hoop fan.

Parker just got done finishing off Steve Nash, Shaq and the Suns going for over 30 again with a team high 31 to go with eight dimes. I’ve come to the conclusion that Mr. Parker is just The Truth. I love his game cause he never settles. Plus he’s lightning quick off the dribble making like the Road Runner.

Nash and the Suns won’t be rising as Shaq promised. Oh well. The Big Aristotle did try hard giving his all on the defensive end despite foul trouble. He had 13 points but was only two of eight from the field and misfired on 11 of 20 free throws. Yikes. Gregg Popovich’s hack-a-Shaq formula worked. O’Neal still pulled down nine rebounds, blocked three shots and had a couple of steals in over 29 minutes.

In crunch time, the Suns were right there fighting for their playoff lives. They nearly stole Game Five and got it back to Phoenix. And who would’ve bet against them forcing a seventh game? The reason they lost was because Nash had some costly turnovers. He was stripped once by freaking Robert Horry. Big Shot Bob is only supposed to be good for the occasional dagger from downtown. He shouldn’t be able to pick Nash’s pocket clean. Especially with Tim Duncan on the sidelines with Shaq out which should’ve been an edge for Phoenix on the offensive end. Wow.

Nash had a couple of other bad miscues as did teammate Boris Diaw jumping a crosscourt pass to nobody in the final minute. The Spurs didn’t screw up instead allowing Parker to do his thing and Manu Ginobili to do his from the free throw line even though he had an off night finishing with just eight. Half came from the charity stripe.

There also was a big make from Duncan where he went by Shaq off the dribble and beat the shot clock with an eight foot runner off the glass. Yeah. The Big Fundamental can still play as evidenced by his strong 29 and 17 with three blocks. He’s a gamer.

The Suns bricked 17 of 37 free throws. The worst total in 14 years. At least for them cause if I caught it right, the last time came against the Rockets. Isn’t that when they blew a 3-1 lead? Never mind.

I do have to wonder how Nash only wound up with three assists while turning the ball over five times. He also shot a pitiful four for 16. Against Parker and the physical Bruce Bowen, Nash looked old. He’s 34 and certainly not getting any younger. Maybe the pounding is finally taking its toll cause he looks like an Ewok from Star Wars out there.

So, will Mike D’Antoni get the axe for this? Should he really when new GM Steve Kerr decided to bring in Shaq and throw him into a system which wouldn’t work? No. They needed more time to jell. Ditto for J Kidd, Dirk and the rest of the Mavs coached by Avery “Squeaky” Johnson.

I concur with what TNT’s Charles “The Chuckster” Barkley said during the postgame. Both are good coaches who got thrown for a loop with big acquisitions. And it’s not that easy to just go and win with that much time left. It doesn’t account for team chemistry, etc. Did Shaq and Dwyane Wade win the first year down in Miami? Of course not.

For that reason, I wouldn’t fire either coach. They’ll be scooped up faster than Larry Brown can reach his next destination. Charlotte? Really? Is he kidding? They suck! I guess he must be really de$perate or hasn’t met Dan “Da Man” Wheeler (Wheel-ah) yet. 

Joe Johnson couldn’t be stopped. The top seeded Celtics had no answer for the explosive leading Hawks’ scorer who scored 20 of his game high 35 in a fourth quarter comeback to lead the big underdog to a second straight home win 97-92 in Game Four-leveling the best-of-seven first round series at two games apiece.

In a back and forth riveting playoff game at Phillips Arena which saw the eighth seeded Hawks comeback from a 16-3 hole to take an eight-point lead before a strong third quarter by Boston put them down 10, the home team rallied outscoring the Celts 32-17 in the last 12 minutes to win their second straight. Most expected them to go quietly and get swept after not being competitive in the first two games but Atlanta had other ideas taking Game Three 102-93 and using that strong fourth quarter to square the series and put all tons of pressure on Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen  along with the rest of former Hawk point guard Doc Rivers’ team.

It was Johnson and super athletic deluxe Josh Smith (28 pts, 12 of 13 FT, Hawks franchise playoff record seven blocks, six rebounds) who took all the Hawks’ shots combining to score all 32 points dominating the paint against a normally strong Boston defensive club. In particular, they weren’t able to shutdown Johnson, who toasted Allen on effective pick n’ roll isolation all quarter scoring on an array of floaters. Maybe the biggest shot in a game where his team trailed 75-65 after being outscored 27-14 in the third was a classic schoolyard crossover where defender Leon Powe was so badly faked out that he fell down allowing Johnson to step back and drain a trey from the left arc, putting Mike Woodson’s team up four with 4:41 left as a raucous crowd erupted invoking memories of Atlanta-Boston series past which featured NBA Hall of Famers Dominique Wilkins and Larry Bird.

At one point, Johnson scored nine straight including a couple of ridiculous finishes where he sliced and diced the Boston D. Along with some money free throw making from Smith, they wouldn’t allow Atlanta to lose insuring that there would be another home game in the series.

Two late James Posey three’s weren’t enough as Johnson and Smith finished off the Celts at the line. In fact, the dynamic duo finished with 18 of Atlanta’s 29 free throw makes. Overall, the Hawks shot lights out going 29 for 33 as compared to the Celtics’ 10 of 18. That was the biggest difference.

They also got invaluable contributions from rookie Al Horford on the defensive glass as he finished with a game high 13 boards. Josh Childress came off the bench to grab nine rebounds including a big offensive board late to get a new shotclock. He also had a highlight reel tomahawk jam netting four points and two assists in nearly 32 minutes.

The game also featured some nastiness with Garnett and Atlanta backup center Zaza Pachulia going nose to nose before cooler heads prevailed. Pachulia took exception to a KG elbow going right after the Boston superstar nearly butting him. Both got T’s as did Sam Cassell and Johnson in which each respective coach came out making certain nobody from the bench got involved.

Good thing too because league commish David Stern was in the house looking on. There could be fines but it doesn’t look like there will be any suspensions which would be the best case scenario with a best two-of-three deciding this series.

“We all know he’s a great player,” Pachulia later indicated of Garnett who finished with 20 points, nine rebounds and six steals in a losing cause. “He’s done a lot of good things for the league. He’s a future Hall of Famer. But it doesn’t matter when we’re on the court.”

“I don’t take anything from anybody,” Pachulia added. “The message was, ‘We’re right here. Even if we lose, it’s not going to be easy.”’

Message delivered.

Two Advance: In the other two first round games played Monday night, both Orlando and the Lakers advanced to the Conference Semis.

The Magic got another 20/20 performance from man child Dwight Howard (21 pts, 21 rebs) as they eliminated the Raptors posting a 102-92 Game Five home win.

Howard paced a balanced attack which saw all five starters hit for double digits including a double/double from Rashard Lewis (18 and 13), 19 from Jameer Nelson and Hedo Turkoglu’s 12 along with a game high nine assists.

Turkoglu was presented with the NBA’s Most Improved Player before the game beating out Memphis’ Rudy Gay and Portland’s LaMarcus Aldridge. Reserve guard Keith Bogans also came off the bench nailing three triples for 11 points, six boards and two assists in 35 minutes.

Toronto was paced by star power forward Chris Bosh’ 16 and nine rebounds. Supersubs Jason Kapono, Carlos Delfino and Jose Calderon each netted double figures combining for five treys and 39 points. Raptor point guard T.J. Ford added 14 but only five assists while turning it over four times.

Orlando now will await the 76ers-Pistons winner. That series is tied 2-2.

Meanwhile out West, the top seeded Lakers advanced with a hard fought 107-101 Game Four road win over the Nuggets, sweeping their talented opponent out of the playoffs. It’s the fifth consecutive year Denver’s bowed out in the first round. According to TNT, the Nuggets became the first 50-win team in playoff history to be swept in Round One.

Kobe Bryant came alive in the final quarter scoring 14 of his 31 in the last five and a half following a 17+ minute drought. Making an assortment of Kobe-esque shots as only the Laker superstar can do, he carried his team down the stretch in shooting down a more pesky Denver team finishing them off to advance to Round Two where they’ll play either Utah or Houston. The Jazz lead that series 3-1.

Bryant is a lot like Michael Jordan in that when his team needs it most, he’ll step up and make the very difficult big shots which provide sparks. This was a fun game to watch with the Nuggets refusing to go away thanks to some ridiculous hot shooting from sixth man J.R. Smith. The 22 year-old out of Freehold, New Jersey hit a couple of deep three’s including a 28-footer. That along with a three-point play put Denver back ahead by one 96-95 with over three minutes to play.

But a tough Kobe trademark 15-foot floater along with some great passing to setup an uncontested Luke Walton trey from the right corner put Los Angeles on top 100-96 with 2:37 left.

The Nuggets never seriously threatened again. It was the first time in franchise history they were swept out of the postseason.

“My wish would be that we had four games like tonight and we all could have been happier,” Nuggets coach George Karl lamented of his team which doesn’t always play disciplined on both ends.

“I’ve said all along, when they play the right way, they’re fun guys to coach.”

The dilemma for Denver moving forward is how do they change that chaotic style into a winner. They can score with Carmelo Anthony (21 pts, 11 rebs) and Allen Iverson (22 pts, 10-of-22 FG, only 2 assists) plus Smith, who becomes a free agent this summer. However, where’s the D? Marcus Camby plays hard as does Kenyon Martin, who has never quite fit in since bolting the Nets.

Unless Denver alters their style meaning not as much reliance on the offensive end at one-on-one emphasizing better team oriented play in the halfcourt set, they’ll continue to win games but not when it counts most.

It’s high time for an adjustment.