FloaterDaily Brief
Saturday, May 9, 2009Playoffs · 2 games
← May 8CalendarMay 10 →

2 games, none went to overtime. Biggest comeback: Nuggets trailed Mavs by 1 after three quarters and won 106–105.

Final · R2 · G3 · Box score
Nuggets106
Mavs105
Q1 Nuggets 0; Q2 Nuggets +3; Q3 Nuggets -1; Q4 Nuggets +1
Final · R2 · G3 · Box score
Cavs97
Hawks82
Q1 Cavs +4; Q2 Cavs +1; Q3 Cavs +7; Q4 Cavs +15
On this day · 2007–08May 9, 2008: 1 game. Top scorer: Kobe Bryant (Lakers-Jazz), 34 points.
May 9 in other seasons202620252024202320222021201920182017201620152014201220112010200720062005200420032002200120001999199819971996
The lead · Conference semifinals · Game 3 · Nuggets-Mavs

Chauncey Billups scores 32, Denver holds off Dallas

LeBron James goes for 47 points

Game flow · Nuggets margin at each break
-10-50+5+10TipEnd Q1HalfEnd Q3Final00+3-1+1Nuggets AHEAD ↑Mavs AHEAD ↓
By quarter
Q1Q2Q3Q4T
Nuggets20283127106
Mavs20253525105
Who led
Chauncey BillupsPoints, last 10 games: 5, 13, 36, 31, 16, 17, 13, 6, 18, 32Nuggets32 PTS · 3 REB · 3 AST
Carmelo AnthonyPoints, last 10 games: 21, 12, 13, 22, 25, 26, 34, 23, 25, 31Nuggets31 PTS · 8 REB · 2 AST
Dirk NowitzkiPoints, last 10 games: 34, 30, 19, 14, 20, 12, 31, 28, 35, 33Mavs33 PTS · 16 REB · 2 AST
Jason TerryPoints, last 10 games: 22, 23, 12, 16, 10, 10, 19, 15, 21, 17Mavs17 PTS · 4 REB · 1 AST
Second story · Cavs-Hawks · R2 · G3

Cleveland wins Game 3 over Atlanta, 97–82

Conference semifinals series: Cleveland 3, Atlanta 0. LeBron James led Cleveland with 47 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists.

Series tracker · Cavs-Hawks
G1 · @ CavsCavs99–72G2 · @ CavsCavs105–85G3 · @ HawksCavs97–82
Lead changes
Nuggets-Mavs9
Cavs-Hawks6
Shot of the night

Melo's three with 1 second left puts the Nuggets ahead, 106-105 final

The night in charts
Nuggets-Mavs combined for 211, 32 more than any other game
Points by game
Nuggets-MavsNuggets 106, Mavs 105
211
Cavs-HawksCavs 97, Hawks 82
179
Nuggets won the closest game by 1
Closest finishes
Nuggets-MavsNuggets 106, Mavs 105
+1 Nuggets
Cavs-HawksCavs 97, Hawks 82
+15 Cavs
LeBron shot 15-of-25 for the night's hottest hand
Hottest shooting · min 10 FGA
LeBronCavs · 47 PTS, 12 REB, 8 AST, 1 STL
60% (15-25)
BillupsNuggets · 32 PTS, 3 REB, 3 AST, 1 BLK
56% (9-16)
DirkMavs · 33 PTS, 16 REB, 2 AST, 2 BLK
47% (9-19)
Joe JohnsonHawks · 21 PTS, 5 REB, 3 AST, 3 STL
47% (9-19)
Flip MurrayHawks · 17 PTS, 3 AST, 1 REB, 1 STL
46% (6-13)
Final · Nuggets-Mavs
Nuggets 106Mavs 105
TeamQ1Q2Q3Q4T
Nuggets20283127106
Mavs20253525105
The story
Carmelo Anthony had 31 points as Denver beat Dallas 106-105

Jason Kidd led Dallas with 13 PTS, 5 REB, 5 AST 31 PTS, 8 REB, 2 AST · 9-24 FG, 2-2 3PT

The swing

The Nuggets won the second 28-25, their biggest quarter edge.

Nuggets lead by quarter
200 0+3−1+1 Q1Q2Q3Q4
Fantasy angle

Dirk Nowitzki led the game in fantasy with 61.2 FPTS (33 PTS, 16 REB, 2 AST)

Final · Cavs-Hawks
Cavs 97Hawks 82
TeamQ1Q2Q3Q4T
Cavs2225252597
Hawks1828191782
The story
Zydrunas Ilgauskas' 14 points carried Cleveland past Atlanta, 97-82

For Atlanta, Josh Smith had 18 PTS, 5 REB, 2 AST 14 PTS, 8 REB, 1 AST · 6-9 FG, 0-2 3PT

The swing

The fourth quarter, 25-17, was where the Cavaliers built it.

Cavs lead by quarter
200 +4+1+7+15 Q1Q2Q3Q4
Fantasy angle
Heating up
+7.6points, last 3 playoff games vs reg. season avg
Points per game
28.4Reg. season avg36.0Last 3 playoff games

36.0 points a game over his last three playoff games, against 28.4 in the regular season (81 games). Today: 47 points in 43 minutes.

Losing minutes
−24.0minutes, last 3 playoff games vs reg. season avg
Minutes per game
34.3Reg. season avg10.3Last 3 playoff games

10.3 minutes a game over his last three playoff games, against 34.3 in the regular season (61 games). Today: 4 points in 13 minutes.

Stepped-up role
+11.6minutes, today vs reg. season avg
Minutes per game
24.7Reg. season avg36.3Today

36 minutes today, against 24.7 a game in the regular season (80 games). Line: 17 points, 1 rebounds, 3 assists.

Top performances

LeBron James leads the day with 47

LeBron JamesPoints, last 10 games: 27, 29, 37, 38, 29, 25, 36, 34, 27, 47Cavs-Hawks · W
33.7 PPG playoffs to date · +15.5 vs his playoff average before tonight
47 PTS · 12 REB · 8 AST
Dirk NowitzkiPoints, last 10 games: 34, 30, 19, 14, 20, 12, 31, 28, 35, 33Mavs-Nuggets · L
24.0 PPG playoffs to date · +10.3 vs his playoff average before tonight
33 PTS · 16 REB · 2 AST
Chauncey BillupsPoints, last 10 games: 5, 13, 36, 31, 16, 17, 13, 6, 18, 32Nuggets-Mavs · W
21.1 PPG playoffs to date · +12.4 vs his playoff average before tonight
32 PTS · 3 REB · 3 AST
Carmelo AnthonyPoints, last 10 games: 21, 12, 13, 22, 25, 26, 34, 23, 25, 31Nuggets-Mavs · W
24.9 PPG playoffs to date · +7.0 vs his playoff average before tonight
31 PTS · 8 REB · 2 AST
Joe JohnsonPoints, last 10 games: 15, 16, 10, 14, 25, 13, 27, 11, 10, 21Hawks-Cavs · L
16.2 PPG playoffs to date · +5.3 vs his playoff average before tonight
21 PTS · 5 REB · 3 AST
Josh SmithPoints, last 10 games: 23, 17, 13, 13, 20, 7, 21, 22, 8, 18Hawks-Cavs · L
16.2 PPG playoffs to date · +2.0 vs his playoff average before tonight
18 PTS · 5 REB · 2 AST