How to beat the Fantastic Four? We've got the secret

By NBA.com staff
Posted Apr 16 2009 3:20PM

We asked NBA.com's writers to give us an idea of how to beat the top teams in the Playoffs. Here's what they had to offer:

How to beat the Cavaliers

To beat the Cavs in a seven-game series, you're going to need a little luck. They're 39-2 at Quicken Loans Arena, where they'll have four games in every round. And you don't get the best record in the league by being a bad road team, either.

Defensively, your best strategy is to protect the paint. You have to keep LeBron James away from the basket and make him a jump shooter. That's much easier said than done. His jumper has improved over the years. Still, he'll have some off shooting-nights during the postseason. The Cavs are the second-best 3-point shooting team in the league, but they were just 9-8 when they scored fewer than 30 points in the paint. They were 28-1 when they had 38 or more paint points.

Even if you can slow down the Cavs' offense, you're going to have a tough time scoring against their stingy defense. The strength of that defense is in numbers; no team helps out defensively better than the Cavs. They're five guys on a string. You're never going against just one defender.

One way to take away that strength is to put one of them on an island with an isolation up top or on the wing. If you send three or four guys to the weak side of the floor, you're making it harder for their defenders to help the guy on the ball. But you can only do that so much in the course of a 48-minute game.

The Cavs like to keep the ball on one side of the floor, and as with any defense, it pays to move the ball from side to side and make them work.
-- John Schuhmann
How to beat the Lakers

Defensively, you have to try to keep the ball on one side of the floor. The Lakers don't really start their offense until they make their second pass when they try to swing the ball to the opposite wing. The swing pass gives them the extra spacing to allow the triangle offense to operate at peak efficiency.

On offense, teams have had success when they force the action off the dribble and attack Derek Fisher. Fisher's legs are 34 years old. Quick guards give him trouble and often saddle him with early foul trouble. When he needs help, the Lakers turn to Jordan Farmar, who moves fast enough to keep up with the speed demons but gets exploited by bigger guards who post him up.

Kobe Bryant had as good of a season as anyone in the league not named LeBron James, but you can still bait him into trying to do too much. L.A. was 32-14 (.695) this season when Bryant attempted 20 shots or more and just 3-5 when he took 30-plus shots. The Lakers were 33-3 when he kept his attempts under 20.

Ever since the departure of Vladimir Radmanovic, L.A. hasn't had a consistent outside threat. Lakers coach Phil Jackson has implored Farmar to come in the game off the bench with a shooter's mentality, but Farmar's been reluctant, making just five of his last 26 attempts from deep in the Lakers' last 13 games. Sasha Vujacic has the gunner's mindset, but his 3-point percentage has dropped from a dependable 43.7 percent last season to just 35.6 percent this one. Teams will want try to pack the lane on Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol and dare the Lakers to hit from outside.

If none of that works, your best bet is convincing David Stern to schedule all of the games in Portland. L.A. has lost its last eight games at the Rose Garden.
-- Dave McMenamin
How to beat the Celtics

During the last two seasons, the Boston Celtics have won 142 games, including the postseason. So the book on how to beat them is more of a pamphlet. Or, if you prefer a more timely reference, a blog entry.

One of the best ways is to make them chuck 'em from the cheap seats. Despite having shooters such as Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Eddie House, in the 14 games in which they shot .437 or worse, the Celtics lost 11. In those 11 games, the Celtics shot .400 or better from 3-point range only twice. Letting Boston get hot is certain defeat as the Celtics are 29-1 when shooting .500 or better.

Keeping point guard Rajon Rondo from getting into the lane is key, as his dribble penetration sucks in defenses and leaves the perimeter loosely guarded. The Celtics are 23-5 when Rondo has 10-plus assists in a game. And because he can get into the lane with great frequency, Rondo shoots a stellar .506 from the field.

Any postseason opponent will want to get deep into the Celtics' bench, too. Boston's reserves averaged only 27.2 points per game, 22nd in the league. And while the dropoff isn't as steep with Mikki Moore and Stephon Marbury coming off the pine, the Big Three of Allen, Pierce and Kevin Garnett still account for 54.3 of the 100.8 points the Celtics average per game.

And finally, any team that meets the Celtics needs to fight back. The Celtics' defense, and at times the whole team's rough-and-tumble play, intimidated opponents last season. This season, the Cavs and Lakers showed if you stand tall and don't give an inch, the Cs get frustrated and may cede some ground.
-- Rob Peterson
How to beat the Magic

There's a theory about matching up against a team with a dominating force. Either clamp down on that guy and let the others beat you or shut down everyone else and let that one guy go to town. Dwight Howard and the Magic could be the test case.

As overpowering as Howard is, his skill set is rather one-dimensional. He destroys people on the block. His supporting cast is stockpiled with 3-point shooters -- Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, Courtney Lee, Mickael Pietrus, Rafer Alston and so on.

Almost 28 percent of Orlando's shots come from downtown, and when those 3-point specialists aren't on, the Magic are ordinary. Orlando is barely a .500 team when shooting less than 33 percent from beyond the arc.

Focusing on Howard and/or his long-range counterparts shouldn't be as taxing on the defense as facing all-around threats such as LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade. None of the Magic men possesses that coast-to-coast ability to break down the defense single-handedly.

Pressuring Orlando's defense also has worked at times. The Magic are solid defensively, but they don't have many standout individual defenders other than Howard. When attacking the basket doesn't lead to Howard sending shots back the other way, the big man has a tendency to get out of position while helping. The lack of a deep bench also comes into play if Howard, Turkoglu or Lewis gets into foul trouble.
-- Art Garcia

Ultra-Rare Shark Caught and Eaten

www.discovery.com
fear Asians, sharks.

April 7, 2009 -- A megamouth shark, one of the world's most elusive species, was caught, carved up and eaten by fishermen from a town in the Philippines, the environmental conservation group WWF said Tuesday.

So rare are megamouth shark sightings that each find is given a number -- this one, caught by fishermen from the coastal town of Donsol, was only the 41st ever seen or captured in the world.

But Elson Aca, a Donsol WWF representative, said it was butchered and its meat sauteed in coconut milk as a local delicacy, against the organization's advice.

The 13-foot, 1,100-pound megamouth was snared by fishermen trawling for mackerel off the Bicol peninsula on Luzon island.

The species, which is named after its 3-foot-wide mouth, is a fairly recent scientific discovery. The first specimen was caught off Oahu, Hawaii, in 1976, the WWF said.

The scientific community hailed it as the 20th century's most significant marine find, it added. Together with the whale shark, it is one of only three filter-feeding shark species in the world.

It is classified by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as "data deficient" because so few have ever been studied.

Ironically, Donsol has earned a global reputation for marine conservation, after campaigners convinced the locals to stop butchering giant whale sharks which use the nearby waters to feed.

The town prides itself as the whale shark capital of the world and marine tourism is a key money earner.

The Philippines sits at the apex of a so-called Coral Triangle, considered by experts as a world center for marine biodiversity.

Cities switch off for Earth Hour

Major cities and global landmarks have been plunged into darkness as millions of people switched off lights for an hour to protest against climate change.

The initiative, Earth Hour, was begun in Sydney two years ago by green campaigners keen to cut energy use.

Correspondents say the aim is to create a huge wave of public pressure to influence a meeting in Copenhagen later this year to seek a new climate treaty.

Critics describe the event as a symbolic and meaningless gesture.

The switch-off was planned to take place in more than 3,400 towns and cities across 88 countries, at 2030 in each local time zone.

Earth Hour was launched in 2007 as a solo event in Sydney, Australia, with more than two million people involved. Last year's event claimed the participation of 370 cities.

Organisers said they wanted to demonstrate what people can do to reduce their carbon footprint and save energy, thus drawing attention to the problem of climate change.

China debut

This time Sydney was one of the first places to switch off. The BBC's Nick Bryant described a city where skyscrapers were hard to make out against the night sky.


Revellers in Auckland, New Zealand - photo Earth Hour

In pictures: Earth Hour
Is your city taking part?

Hours later, Beijing's most prominent Olympic venues, the Bird's Nest and Water Cube, went dark. China is taking part for the first time, with major cities like Hong Kong, Shanghai and Guangzhou also dimming their lights.

Other locations due to take part this time include Edinburgh Castle in Scotland, St Peter's Basilica in Rome, Paris' Eiffel Tower, the Egyptian Pyramids and New York's Empire State Building.

Fast-food giant McDonald's has pledged to dim its "golden arches" at 500 locations, while celebrities such as actress Cate Blanchett and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have promised support.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon backed the initiative in a video posted this month on the event's YouTube channel.

"Earth Hour is a way for the citizens of the world to send a clear message," he said. "They want action on climate change."

People are invited to provide blogs and short video clips on how they spend their time.

Death is only a change of state [spam]

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ORLANDO, Fla.(AP) The Boston Celtics might be taking an extra road trip to defend their title.

It's a detour that might go through the Magic Kingdom.

Dwight Howard blocked a potential go-ahead layup by Paul Pierce with 3.8 seconds left, and the Orlando Magic clinched their second straight Southeast Division title with an 84-82 win over the Celtics on Wednesday night.

Howard had 24 points and 21 rebounds as the Magic (53-18) bumped Boston (54-19) by percentage points for second in the Eastern Conference. Orlando remains five games back of Cleveland for the conference lead with 11 games left. The Magic took the division title with Atlanta's loss to San Antonio.

"We get another banner,'' Howard said. "Hopefully we can get two more.''

Pierce hit a jumper to cut Orlando's lead to 83-82 with 1:27 left, but the Celtics couldn't make up the difference without Kevin Garnett, who was limited to 16 minutes as Boston continues to work him back in the lineup from a right knee strain. Pierce then missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer that would have won it for Boston.

Rashard Lewis had 21 points, and Hedo Turkoglu added 13 points for the Magic, who nearly blew a 16-point lead before holding on for their fourth straight win and 11th in their last 13 games. The Magic were held to just 14 points in the final period.

"I'm sure we'll see them again,'' Lewis said. "If we want to get to that ultimate goal, we'll have to go through Boston and Cleveland.''

Pierce had 26 points, and Ray Allen added 16 points for the Celtics, who snapped their four-game winning streak.

Fueled by their big man, the Magic finally started to shed that image of a team that can't win the big game.

Howard followed up a rim-rocking, two-hand dunk with a 3-point play that put the Magic up 66-50 with 3:54 left in the third quarter. Garnett was called for the foul on the play and left the game for good, but not before huddling his teammates to give them a few choice words.

They would respond.

Pierce had six points during a furious 12-2 Celtics run that trimmed Orlando's lead to six. Reaching to give his team some life, Howard dunked over Glen Davis on an alley-hoop from Turkoglu that ignited the Magic bench despite ending the third quarter with only a 70-62 lead.

"It's interesting. I don't think we were worried about being down,'' Allen said. "It was just like, 'Let's get to what we needed to get to.' But defensively we made some mistakes.''

With home-court advantage at stake for a potential second-round playoff series, the Celtics made health the priority.

Boston coach Doc Rivers again resisted the urge to play Garnett for a full game, limiting him to eight-minute spurts in the first and third quarters. Garnett finished with four points and eight rebounds in his fourth game back from injury, and Rivers has said he will continue to ease the All-Star forward back in the lineup.

"Our guys don't care about (home court). They want to get healthy,'' Rivers said. "And when we get healthy, we're willing to lace up against anybody.''

Magic coach Stan Van Gundy doesn't buy that as an excuse.

He started his postgame press conference by joking he wouldn't be controversial by blasting anybody, following barbs with the New York Knicks over not interviewing Magic assistant coach Patrick Ewing for a job and also accusing Shaquille O'Neal of flopping.

But Van Gundy couldn't resist.

"I want to know how some teams get on the list, where they get excuses and other teams are not on that list. All I've been hearing about is all the injury problems the Celtics have had this year,'' Van Gundy said.

Van Gundy went on to say how the Magic have dealt with the loss of All-Star point guard Jameer Nelson, who has missed 24 games since a season-ending shoulder tear Feb. 2. The Magic have recovered after a three-team trade brought point guard Rafer Alston from Houston, and Howard has continued to make up the point difference lost in Nelson's absence.

Howard's double-double by the first quarter made things tougher for the Celtics.

Orlando's do-it-all center had 12 points and 10 rebounds in the period, powering the Magic to a 25-19 lead after a quarter in which he had three dunks, soaring at times above the backboard. Howard started 6-for-9 shooting and took advantage of Garnett's limited minutes to penetrate the paint at will. It was the fourth time this season Howard had a double-double in the first 12 minutes.

Notes: Magic coach Stan Van Gundy's brother, Jeff, the former New York Knicks and Houston Rockets coach, was part of the ESPN telecast. Stan Van Gundy joked before the game that he better not hear his brother be critical of his coaching. "When I watch him, he's not critical of coaches. So if he's critical of me, I will be (ticked) off,'' Stan Van Gundy said, laughing. The brothers' father, Bill, was also in attendance. ... Both teams have one game left against first-place Cleveland. The Magic host the Cavaliers on April 3, and the Celtics play at Cleveland on April 12.

Copyright 2008 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Garnett returning to game shape as Celtics win

Death is only a change of state.

BOSTON(AP) Ray Allen scored 20 points and the Boston Celtics, sparked by an alley-oop dunk from Kevin Garnett, pulled away for a 90-77 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night.

Rajon Rondo added 14 points and seven assists, while Kendrick Perkins scored 12 points and had 13 rebounds for Boston (54-18). The Celtics remained a game ahead of Orlando for second place in the Eastern Conference. The teams meet in Florida on Wednesday night.

Garnett played 18 minutes, hitting all five field-goal attempts while scoring 12 points. He added two rebounds and two assists in his third game back since missing 13 with a sprained right knee. He left a few minutes after scoring on an alley-oop pass from Rondo - a similar play on which he hurt his knee against Utah on Feb 19.

Zach Randolph led the Clippers with 17 points and 14 rebounds, while Baron Davis had 13 points, eight assists and seven boards.

Boston trailed 55-52 midway into the third quarter before scoring 14 straight points to take control. The Celtics took the lead for good at 56-55 on Garnett's short jumper in the lane before his alley-oop brought the relatively quiet crowd to its feet.

Allen then scored on a breakaway layup before he nailed a 3-pointer from the left corner 36 seconds before Paul Pierce's 3 from the top, closing the spree.

Boston led 70-60 after three and pushed it to 83-65 when Glen Davis broke out on a fast break, dribbled behind his back before hitting Eddie House, who nailed a 3-pointer from the left corner with 7:01 to play.

The Celtics led 31-18 after one quarter, but soft defense and poor shooting by their bench allowed the Clippers to climb right back. Boston's reserves shot 2-for-12 in the opening half.

Notes: Boston coach Doc Rivers said before the game that he was going to "back up'' Garnett's minutes "a bit'' for the next few games even though the team faces Orlando on Wednesday. "If we can't get the top seed, we want to be healthy,'' he said. ... Allen passed Walter Davis for 36th on the NBA's career scoring list. ... The Clippers have just five wins against teams over .500 this season, with their last against the Celtics at the Staples Center, 93-91 on Feb. 25. ... Boston had just four field goals in the second quarter.

Spam [end of post]

There were times during this season when it looked as if no team other than the Cavs, Celtics and Lakers would crack the top three. And there were times when it looked like no one other than those three, the Magic and the Spurs would crack the top five.

Those walls have been broken down, more so by the frailties of the teams listed above than by a big run from any of the other 25 teams. These days, with Kevin Garnett's return boosting the Celtics back to elite status, it's the Spurs who aren't looking very top-fivish.

The top two teams, though, are looking impenetrable. Each has an insurmountable lead atop the conference and, together, they are competing only against each other for home-court advantage .

It has been predicted in this space multiple times that Cleveland-L.A. will be the matchup in the 2009 NBA Finals, and that possibility is looking stronger than ever. Not only will the Lakers have the No. 1 seed in the West, but they also have a winning record against every Western Conference team except one. (They're 1-1 against the Jazz, with one game remaining.)

The only Eastern Conference team with a head-to-head edge on the Cavs is the Celtics, who visit Quicken Loans Arena on April 12. Cleveland also has split its first two games with the Magic and visits Orlando on April 3. But of course, the Cavs are 32-1 at home, 21-0 against the East. And even though Ben Wallace is out, Cleveland is looking much more healthy than the Celtics these days.

Meanwhile, the Elimination Watch is on. They're still mathematically alive, but put former partners Larry Bird (Indiana) and Donnie Walsh (New York) on the guest list for May 19 in Secaucus. Then pencil in Rod Thorn (New Jersey), John Hammond (Milwaukee) and Steve Kerr (Phoenix) as well.

It looks like the eighth spot in the East will come down to the Bulls and Bobcats. They play once more (April 11 in Chicago) and Charlotte already has the tiebreaker, with wins in the first two games between the two teams.

• Last Week: A Fine Line
• This Time Last Year: Rising Suns and Convincing Celtics -- The Celtics swept through the Texas Triangle, the Suns had won seven straight, the Magic were showing improvement on the defensive end, the Warriors controlled their own destiny, and the Wizards were waiting on Gilbert Arenas.

Hero Team of the Week: Houston (4-0)
Zero Team of the Week: New York (0-3)

High jumps of the week: Houston (+3), L.A. Clippers (+3), New Jersey (+3), Sacramento (+3)
Free falls of the week: New York (-7), Washington (-4), Miami (-3), San Antonio (-3)

East vs. West: The East leads 215-203 (.514) in inter-conference games, but the West was 14-11 last week.

Pace: Possessions per 48 minutes (League Rank)
Off: Points scored per 100 possessions (League Rank)
Def: Points allowed per 100 possessions (League Rank) The league averages through Sunday are 90.4 possessions (per team) per 48 minutes and 109.6 points scored per 100 possessions.

As always, the stats don't determine the rankings, but they help evaluate each team and provide a picture of where they stand on both sides of the ball.

NBA.com's Power Rankings are just one man's opinion and are released every Monday during the season. If you've got an issue with the rankings, or have a question or comment for John Schuhmann, send him an e-mail.

By John Schuhmann, NBA.com
Posted Mar 23 2009 11:56AM

Now let's spam!!!! I am spamming my own blog, if you don't like it, sue me :)

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Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.
Death is only a change of state. Death is only a change of state.

Rockets move into first in Southwest without fanfare

SAN ANTONIO -- So why didn't ABC want this game?

One of the Rockets wondered as much aloud in the locker room before Sunday afternoon's high-stakes showdown with the Spurs. Though the question came wrapped with a good-natured smile, the lack of respect --real or imagined -- has been a season-long inside joke in Houston.

What can't be argued is how these resilient Rockets keep plugging away. It's almost funny that Houston (47-25) has taken hold of the Southwest Division lead and sits second in the Western Conference after rallying past San Antonio 87-85 (Box Score | Recap) in the last regular-season meeting between these instate rivals.

"It's quite astounding, I think, for a lot of us," said Brent Barry, a reserve Rockets guard and Spurs exile. "There's kind of a quiet agreement that we can be a much better team than what we are now. We really feel like we have room to grow.

"That's the opportunity we have in the last 10 or so games before the regular season ends. Maybe we can still make strides in that direction, so come playoff time we're playing our best basketball of the year. We really think that's what our goal should be."

One of those strides is figuring out how to win without total reliance on Yao Ming and Ron Artest. The Rockets struggled throughout the second half to get good shots -- credit San Antonio's defense -- but they continued to fight and improvised with seasoned precision with the game hanging in the balance.

Twice in the last 30 seconds, Yao played the part of 7-foot-6 decoy. A relative non-factor at both ends with 13 points and eight boards, Yao still commands attention. So when the ball found his hands 18 feet from the basket, the Spurs predictably gravitated his way.

In both cases, Yao found a cutting Luis Scola at the basket. The second pass, dropped over charging Spurs forward Kurt Thomas, awarded Scola an easy layup and proved to be the game-winner with 11.2 seconds left.

"Yao found me and got the ball to me," said Scola, a former San Antonio draft pick. "I just saw the ball coming toward me and saw that the basket was open."

The play isn't exactly in Houston's repertoire. Asked how many times Yao-to-Scola has been run this season, Rockets coach Rick Adelman quipped: "Twice. Twice. That's about it." It turned out to be two too many for the Spurs, who weren't without an unsung star of their own.

Reserve swingman Ime Udoka put on his own show for the non-national TV audience with a nine-point blitz early in the fourth. During the run, he had a fastbreak layup with the ball hanging on the rim for an extra drama-building second, a put-back off a Tony Parker airball and a 3-pointer that left Adelman shaking his head in disbelief.

And then there were the lowlights. Tim Duncan scored 23, the most he's had since Feb. 17, but went scoreless in the fourth, missing all four shots. Parker made just 3 of 11 in the final period. Michael Finley took one shot ... in the game.

With the three-point loss to Boston on Thursday, the Spurs (45-24) may be questioning their ability to finish games after dropping two straight at home. San Antonio had led the division outright since Jan. 3 and was second in the West since Jan. 19.

"We're concerned with playing well and closing out games," Spurs guard Roger Mason, Jr. said. "We're concerned about being ready for the playoffs. At the end of the day we want to put ourselves in the best position, but we don't care about standings."

Just as the Rockets don't care about exposure. They were slotted for only 13 national TV dates when the season started and before the plug was pulled 1,500 miles away in favor of two teams (Miami and Detroit) in the bottom half of the East playoff picture.

Eight other teams had more prime-time engagements than Houston, including two -- Phoenix (25) and Dallas (21) -- at the bottom of the West playoff race. The Rockets are the ones in position to host a first-round playoff series.

And they could also fall to seventh by the end of the week. Houston's margin of error is as fragile as the conference is tight. That's why Barry said these games are more important for his new squad than his team of the previous four seasons.

Even as the Spurs lament the chances lost, they have been through this before and come out the other end with jewelry. Adelman alluded to San Antonio's experience, adding that his team isn't there yet.

"We are a good team and I feel that our best basketball is still yet to come," Rockets forward Shane Battier affirmed. "I would say it's surprising that we are in first place in the division at this point in the season. Few people thought we would be here."

And fewer people watched it happen.

By Art Garcia, NBA.com
Posted Mar 22 2009 9:48PM

Teen girls committed for trial for retired teacher's murder

Two teenage girls have been committed to trial for the murder of retired Opotiki school teacher John Rowe last November.

At the end of the depositions hearing in Whakatane Youth Court this morning, lawyers for the pair, Craig Horsley and Gene Tomlinson conceded a prima facie case and entered not guilty pleas.

Community magistrate Robyn Paterson remanded the two accused in custody, who were granted name suppression, to appear for callover in the High Court at Rotorua on May 7.

Mrs Paterson also granted an application by crown prosecutor Duncan McWilliam for a blanket suppression order on today's proceedings until the High Court date.

The crown produced transcripts of the evidence of 43 witnesses and one person took the stand to give oral testimony.

More than a dozen exhibits were handed up.

100-year-old victim of attack dies

A 100-year-old woman, who was a home invasion victim in November, has died in hospital in Palmerston North.

The woman turned 100 last month.

Last November, neighbours heard her screaming as she fought an attacker in her home.

The man charged with the attack, Glen Patrick Joseph Walsh, was committed to trial facing charges of sexual assault, assault and burglary.

He is on bail awaiting his next appearance on April 9, the Manawatu Standard reported.

Detective Sergeant Gary Milligan said at this stage no further charges had been laid.

A post mortem was being carried out today.

The woman's daughter said her mother had suffered "four months of hell" following the attack.

The family had been preparing her to go to a rest home before she died on Thursday night.