NBA Scores & More: John Lucas Is Your New MVP As Bulls Beat Heat, Pacers Perfect Vs. Sixers

Bledsoe’s game was particularly eye-opening. After knee surgery in October to repair a torn meniscus, the second-year guard missed the first seven weeks of the season. He made his debut on Feb. 11 and was playing in just his 15th game of the season Wednesday. He played a season-high 17 minutes. In addition to his 14 points, he also had four steals -- the second time he’s registered four steals in his last three games. Primarily a tempo-pushing change of pace guard last season, Bledsoe seems to be remaking himself as a pressure defender this year. Two Bledsoe steals in the course of three fourth-quarter possessions helped stretch the L.A. lead from seven to 11 while Paul and Griffin were resting for the stretch run. The Clippers were adamant about keeping Bledsoe out of the big Paul trade in December and have been reluctant to use him as a trade chip even as the trade deadline draws near. We’re beginning to see why.

With the win, the Clippers improve to 24-17, 13-7 at home. The Hawks drop to 24-19, and fall below .500 on the road at 12-13.

Indiana even refrained from fouling, committing only eight fouls for the game versus the Sixers’ 21 in that category. To cap off the perfection, the Pacers allowed only five offensive rebounds to Philadelphia, who didn’t play all that badly themselves.

The Sixers shot 53 percent, including 46 percent from three-point range, and committed only nine turnovers themselves. Because of the Pacers’ lack of fouling, their free throws were limited to an 8-for-10 outing as compared to the 18-for-22 by Indiana. The Sixers also matched their hosts with five scorers in double digits, but it was never enough to pull even or pass the Pacers after Indiana had grabbed the lead for good before halftime.

As Dave from Blazer’s Edge put it, Portland continued a long run of setting new lows:

So, after an unsettling day, the Knicks got just what they needed in a sorry opponent and a dominant, rousing team performance. For the first time in a while, everybody but the opposition left Madison Square Garden in a good mood. Woodson’s 42-point win-- the biggest margin of victory ever in a coach’s debut-- moved the Knicks to 19-24 overall while the Blazers fell to 20-23.

The Heat-Bulls rivalry is real, folks. Not only is it emotional -- Chicago fans booed LeBron on his early touches, flashed explicit tee-shirts targeting King James and booed him again on crunch time possessions -- it’s always an extremely competitive matchup. Consider this insane stat: in 10 head-to-heads over the past two years, the aggregate score is Miami 917 - Chicago 914 (via @JeffGurt). The critical difference on this night happened to be the superior teamwork and depth of the Bulls.

James and Wade turned in phenomenal performances, but they still managed to become the first duo to each score 35+ and lose since 2006. To say they received little help from their teammates would be an understatement. In the opening period, Wade and James scored all 23 points while the rest of the roster shot 0-for-6. By halftime the point ratio moved to 33-9 in favor of the two megastars. By the end, it looked just as ugly. James hit jumpers from all angles and finished with 35 points on 14-for-25 shooting, five rebounds, four assists and four steals, while Wade attacked the rim and pulled off a 36-point, seven rebound night. LBJ and D-Wade hit 30 of Miami’s 38 made field goals on the night, as if to test the limits of ridiculousness. The other eight Heat players stumbled to a pathetic combined line of 31 points on 23.5 percent from the field.