1-San Antonio Spurs: 14-2… In the game of the day, the Spurs beat the Hornets in NOLA 109-95. Manu leads the way with 23 points. “It’s hard to believe that we were up by 30 [in second-half scoring],” Ginobili said. “We were kind of shocked, but we played very well. We hustled a lot and defensively we were much, much better.” Spurs are now 7-0 on the road. ”I saw a 17-point deficit, so we changed up the defense and it helped us,” Gregg Popovich said. “We made shots and got more aggressive, got a little more physical and just competed better in the second half.” (Next: Tuesday at Golden State )
2-Los Angeles Lakers: 13-4…LA falls to the Indiana Pacers 95-92. Yes, you read that right. The Pacers went into Staples and despite Kobe dropping 41, defeated the Lakers. Pau Gasol had 13 points on 5 for 15 shooting from the field and pulled down 12 rebounds while his counterpart Roy Hibbert scored 24 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists in 34 minutes of action. (Next: Tuesday at Memphis)
3-Boston Celtics: 12-4…Beat the Raptors 110-101. Make it 3 in a row for the C’s. KG 26 and 11. Long rest coming up for the vets. (Next: Tuesday at Cleveland)
4-Orlando Magic: 12-4… Magic beat the Wizards by 1 in Washington 100-99. Dwight Howard scores the game winning basket. DW 12 scores 32 points and pulls down 11 rebounds. Orlando has won 7 of their last 8 including 3 straight without Vince Carter. (Next: Tuesday Home vs Pistons )
5-New Orleans Hornets: 12-4… Fall to the Spurs at home 109-95 for their first home loss of the season. Hornets had a chance to prove to the naysayers that they are for real but came up short. David West finished with 23 points which saw the Hornets blow a 17 point second half lead. “We’ve got to execute better on offense and push the tempo. That’s my fault,” Chris Paul said. “I pushed it in the first half and I guess I didn’t in the second half and they were able to get their defense set. I’ve got to pick up the pace.” (Next: Monday at Oklahoma City)
6-Dallas Mavericks: 12-4…Beat the Heat last night 106-95. Caron Butler drops 23. Make that 5 in a row for Rick Carlisle’s team. ”This was a big week for us,” Jason Kidd said. “It’s a big four wins, especially on back-to-backs. … We’ve been telling [Butler] to just catch and shoot and take that first one, and then go into your tricks and the game will be a lot easier for him. Tonight, we went to him and he delivered.” (Next: Monday Home vs Rockets)
7-Utah Jazz: 13-5…Beat the Clippers 109-97 for their 5th straight win. Deron Williams with 26 points and 9 assists. CJ Miles scores 16 points off the bench. Utah has held 10 of its last 11 opponents under 100 points. “In this system with these type of players, you’ve got to shine,” Francisco Elson said. “Jerry Sloan is one of the best coaches in the game and he has that winning mentality, so you want to come out and do well. And when he puts you in the game, you’ve got to perform. Miles was hitting his shots and we were making great plays, passing the ball to each other and finding the open man. When you pass to each other, confidence builds.” (Next: Monday Home vs Bucks )
