Bryant’s pull-up jumper from the foul line with 7:55 remaining in the second quarter gave Bryant 31,421 points for his career, edging past Chamberlain’s 31,419 total.

Now, Bryant trails only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387), Karl Malone (36,928) and Michael Jordan (32,292).

Bryant had passed former teammate Shaquille O’Neal last season to occupy the No. 5 spot.

“I just want No. 6, man,” Bryant said, referring to his championship count, when asked where he wanted to finish on the all-time scoring list when he retires. “I’m not asking for too much, man. Just give me a sixth ring, damn it.”

While the Lakers are struggling just to make the playoffs this season, moving up the scoring list seems more feasible than another title at this point. Bryant is 34 and in his 17th season, but even as he’s aged, his scoring has hardly taken a dip (27.2 points per game average in 2012-13 after 27.9 a year ago).

“It depends on him and his body and mentally if he wants to keep going through this,” Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni said after shootaround Saturday. “I would expect he would. He still hasn’t lost a whole lot and he’s 34 years old. Guys are now playing to 38-40. That’s on him. But his body and what he’s doing, he’s great.”

Bryant and Chamberlain already have been linked through their penchant for points in the past, as Bryant broke Chamberlain’s Philadelphia area high school scoring record by finishing with 2,883 points to Chamberlain’s 2,252. Bryant’s 81-point game on Jan. 22, 2006, also happens to be the second highest single-scoring game in league history, trailing only Chamberlain’s 100 scored on March 2, 1962.

“It’s a lot of points. It’s a lot of points,” Bryant said earlier this season. “I think it was just one of those nights for both of us where there was really no explanation for it. You just kind of get into one of those zones and one of those moments and things happen. … I was doing mine on jump shots, though. I didn’t have to bang with too many guys down low. I was just catching and shooting.”

While it took more than 40 years for another player to score 80 points or more after Chamberlain scored 100, Bryant said his and Chamberlain’s scoring totals are achievable.

“I believe so,” Bryant said when asked if any player would ever join him and Chamberlain with a matching single-game scoring outburst. “One day, it will happen.”

The post Kobe Bryant fourth on scoring list appeared first on IdealCapper.

It was about the only play he took off all night.

James scored 30 points in another efficient performance, Dwyane Wade scored 20 and the Miami Heat dominated the middle two quarters on the way to an easy 111-89 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday.

James shot 9-for-11, giving him 37 makes on his past 47 attempts, and sat out the fourth quarter. It was his fourth straight 30-point game, tying him with Wade as the only Heat players with such a streak in the franchise’s 25-year history.

“He’s off the planet right now,” Wade said of James. “He’s not even the best basketball player on the planet. He’s surpassed the planet. He’s somewhere else. He’s playing phenomenal.”

It was the first time in James’ career that he scored at least 30 points on 11 or fewer field goal attempts. According to STATS LLC, it was only the 13th such game in the NBA since the start of the 2002-03 season.

“Just confident in my ability,” James said. “It was great to see, when you put in a lot of work and you implement it into a game situation. Just play your game. That’s what I’m doing right now. Just playing my game.”

When it comes to this type of roll, James isn’t interested in figuring out how it’s happening.

“Nope,” James said. “It’s nothing to figure out for me. I go out, see what the pace of the game is bringing, and you go out and figure it out on the fly. I don’t predetermine anything. If the defense backs up, I shoot. They come up on me, I drive. My teammates are open, I find my teammates. The game flows for me that way, and I’m just in that comfort place right now where I can go out and just play free.”

Mario Chalmers finished with 18 points and Shane Battier scored 12 for Miami, which improved to 21-3 at home.

The Clippers got Chauncey Billups, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin back from injuries, but that trio of starters combined for only 23 points. DeAndre Jordan led Los Angeles with 17 points.

“We lost to a good team over there, but we’re not going to hang our heads,” Paul said. “You never want to make excuses, but they shot the lights out of the ball. We never really made an impact defensively. LeBron, Mario, all those guys were on a rocking chair all night.”

Miami was without Chris Bosh and Ray Allen, both sidelined with the flu.

James made his first six shots, and his first miss came when Jordan was credited with a block on a play on which he also struck the NBA’s reigning MVP in the face, leaving him briefly shaken up.

Jordan won the ensuing tip uncontested and capped that possession with a dunk to get Los Angeles within 10 at 64-54.

Three minutes later, Miami’s lead was 24 — a 14-0 run put it away, and James took care of the first half of those points within a span of 37 seconds.

He connected on a 3-pointer while getting fouled by Jordan, then made another 3 on Miami’s next possession. Wade followed with two highlight-reel plays, a two-handed slam on a baseline drive followed by an acrobatic turnaround jumper, and Chalmers connected on a 3-pointer to put the Heat up 78-54.

“We just have to stay together,” Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said. “It’s a test right now. I thought we gave up too much space, too much respect. Obviously, Chris is trying to get back. He’s got to take control of the game, and physically right now he’s not capable of doing that.”

At one point in the third quarter, Miami was shooting 69 percent from the field and 68 percent from 3-point range for the game. The Heat cooled down the stretch, finishing at 53 percent from the floor and 56 percent from beyond the arc.

There was plenty of buzz pregame, for good reason — matchup of division leaders, teams looking to go deep into the postseason. And when the Clippers said before the game that Billups (left foot tendinitis), Paul (bruised right kneecap), Griffin (strained left hamstring) and Jamal Crawford (sore right shoulder) were all fit to return, it seemed as if a showdown was highly possible.

That thought didn’t last for long.

“You can write this off that we got everybody back and we were a little rusty,” Griffin said. “But we have to be better.”

Miami’s lead after the first quarter was 30-29. The Heat — who shot 68 percent in the first half — outscored the Clippers 63-39 in the next two quarters, turning things into quite a rout.

Crawford and Griffin each finished with 13 points for the Clippers.

“When the lights are bright and the popcorn’s poppin’, our guys come to life,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “That’s a great quality.”

Game notes

Miami now has the best home record in the Eastern Conference, with Indiana losing Friday night at home to Toronto. … Heat F Udonis Haslem passed the 5,000-rebound mark for his career during the game. … The Heat continue their L.A. story at home Sunday, playing host to the Los Angeles Lakers. … Clippers F Caron Butler said before the game that he still enjoys playing in Miami, noting it was the Heat who “took a chance” on him coming into the league and it gives him a chance to see the NBA’s “Godfather” in Heat president Pat Riley. … Clippers backup C Ronny Turiaf got his NBA championship ring from the Heat in a brief pregame ceremony. … Billups and Paul combined to shoot 3-for-10.

The post LeBron James stays hot, sparks Heat’s rout of Clippers appeared first on IdealCapper.

Philadelphia Flyers at Tampa Bay
When: 6:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 27, 2013
Where: Tampa Bay Times Forum, Tampa, Florida
TV: 6 p.m. ET, CSN (Philadelphia), SunSports (Tampa).
Prediction: Lightning 5, Flyers 3

Oddsmakers currently have the Lightning listed as 116-moneyline favorites versus the Flyers, while the game’s total is sitting at 6.

Philadelphia, which was second in the league in scoring a season ago, finally got its offense cranked up. Matt Read registered his first career hat trick and Ruslan Fedotenko had a goal and an assist for his first points in his second stint with the Flyers. Captain Claude Giroux is the go-to player for the Flyers and he delivered his first multiple-point game of the season with a pair of assists. Philadelphia can’t expect to produce seven goals every night. The Flyers will need their defense to come together. Blue-liner Luke Schenn had 11 hits against Florida and is plus-3 thus far. Ilya Bryzgalov has played every game this season.

Last time out for Philadelphia, they were a 7-1 winner as they battled the Panthers on the road. Moneyline bettors who got the Flyers at -108 were rewarded, while the 8 combined goals moved the game OVER for totals bettors.

Tampa Bay has outscored its opponents 16-2 in the first and third periods combined, while getting swamped in the second, 10-3. The Lightning have made a bad habit of getting away from their relentless style in the middle frame. The Lightning have also surrendered an average of 36.5 shots, close to the most in the league. Their key performers are putting up numbers, especially in the third – led by Steven Stamkos (two goals, six assists) and Martin St. Louis (three, four). Rookie Cory Conacher has at least a point in every game and seven in all. Anders Lindback (.900 save percentage) is expected back in net.

The Lightning were a 6-4 winner in their most recent outing at home against the Senators. That made winners of bettors who got Tampa Bay at -125 on the moneyline, while the total score (10) was good news for OVER bettors.

Tampa Bay:
Team record: 3-1-0 SU, ATS
Current streak: won 2 straight games.

is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of last 5 games at home

When playing on Sunday are 5-5
Before playing St. Louis are 3-7
After playing Ottawa are 4-6
After a win are 5-5

Philadelphia:
Team record: 2-3-0 SU, ATS
Current streak: won 2 straight games.

The total has gone OVER in 4 of last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of last 5 games when playing Tampa Bay
The total has gone OVER in 5 of last 7 games when playing on the road against Tampa Bay
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of last 6 games

When playing on Sunday are 1-9
Before playing Tampa Bay are 9-1
After playing Florida are 5-5
After a win are 4-6

The post Philadelphia Flyers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Free Betting Pick appeared first on IdealCapper.

Mike Conley had 23 points and nine assists, and Allen had nine points and four of his five rebounds in the second half on Wednesday night to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to a 93-83 victory over the Boston Celtics. It was the fourth consecutive loss for Boston, which won its 17th NBA title with Allen in 2008.

“You come back to a team that you won a championship with, and there’s no greater feeling than coming back and getting that win,” Allen said. “Put all my feelings and emotions to the side and came out and did everything that Coach Lionel (Hollins) asked me to do.”

Rudy Gay scored 19 points for Memphis, which shot 61 percent from the floor — and 62.5 percent from 3-point range — in the first half. The Grizzlies led by 18 early in the fourth quarter, then made 8 of 11 free throws down the stretch after the Celtics made it a five-point game.

“Whatever we’re doing wrong, it’s not going to get fixed in a day,” said Celtics coach Doc Rivers. “That’s what happens when things aren’t going well: You’ve got to make them go well.”

Rivers was one of the Celtics that Allen sought out for a hug as the clock wound down. Afterward, in the visitors’ locker room, Allen was showing off a blood-stained Celtics uniform that he had worn in the NBA Finals; an equipment manager gave it to him.

“This is one of my jerseys they had. It almost brought tears to my eyes,” said Allen, who had played in Boston as an opponent only once before, in 2011.

“There’s still going to be one or two of those guys … I love them to death. That’s my family; like I said, it’s a brotherhood. … From the training camps in Maine to long seasons, getting the ring, raising the banner, the ring ceremony, all that. I just told them `Thanks for everything and good luck for the rest of the season.”

Paul Pierce scored 17 for Boston, but he had just one basket in the third quarter and none in the fourth while missing seven of his last eight shots.

Rajon Rondo had 11 points and 10 assists for the Celtics, who trailed by 79-61 after the opening basket of the fourth quarter but closed the gap to 83-78 with under 5 minutes to play on back-to-back 3-pointers from Jason Terry. Boston began fouling and the Grizzlies made their shots.

“We sit in here and we talk about being positive, don’t get our heads down,” Pierce said. “It’s just like any confident person: When things don’t go your way you feel the next thing is going to go your way, and that’s how this team feels.”

Memphis led by nine at the half and took a 75-59 lead after three quarters, then Marreese Speights hit a pair of baskets at the beginning of the fourth to give the Grizzlies a 79-61 lead. But Kevin Garnett scored eight points during a 17-4 run, and Boston made it 83-78 on Terry’s 3-pointers 46 seconds apart.

It was 85-78 with under 3 minutes to play when Garnett missed a pair of free throws and then committed a foul at the other end. The Celtics big man finished with 12 points and seven rebounds.

Avery Bradley returned from injuries to both shoulders for his first appearance of the season for the Celtics. He started and scored four points in 19:31. Rondo didn’t practice on Tuesday but played in his second straight after missing a game with bruised right hip and thigh.

Game notes

The Celtics lost three straight at the end of their four-game West Coast road trip — by an average of 23 points. … Garnett played in his 1,286th game, tying him with Sam Perkins for 14th on the NBA career list. … Boston rookie Jared Sullinger picked up three fouls in three minutes in the first half…. The Grizzlies had lost three of four after winning four in a row. … Memphis has forced at least 10 turnovers in 132 straight games, the longest active streak in the NBA. … Memphis reserve Jerryd Bayless sprained his left ankle in the first half and did not return. … Celtics rookie Fab Melo was in Boston to see a doctor after receiving a concussion when he ran into a hotel door. He expects to be back in Maine on Friday.

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