By DaVince “Dino” Wright
The Play-In Tournament is Down to Four Teams
The 10th seed Miami Heat took on the 9th seed Chicago Bulls on Wednesday and walked away with a much-needed win to face the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Division. The winner of this game will face the Boston Celtics. The 10th seed Dallas Mavericks went on the road to play the 9th seed Sacramento Kings and Dallas dared not to let Mavs fans down. Dallas took control in the second quarter and didn’t look back with Klay Thompson’s 16-point outburst before the halftime break. Dallas will face the Memphis Grizzlies on the road. Let take a closer look at the last 2 games of NBA Play-In tournament.
NBA Play-In Match up
Friday, April 18th
Miami Heat vs Atlanta Hawks (6:00 p.m. – TNT/TruTV/Max)
Dallas Mavericks vs Memphis Grizzlies (8:30 p.m. – ESPN)
Miami Heat vs Atlanta Hawks
4/18 – Friday – 6:00 p.m. – TV: TNT/TruTV/Max
The Miami Heat went into Chicago and knocked the fire out of the Bulls in the first game of the Eastern Conference Play-In game. They beat Chicago by 19 with Tyler Herro scoring a game high 38 points. The Atlanta Hawks lost their first game to Orlando. Hawks guard Trae Young was ejected in the 4th quarter behind two technical fouls. The Orlando took the number 7 spot, and the winner of this game will be the 8th seed in the Eastern conference. ESPN has the Hawks with a 55.9% chance of winning at home and moving on to the next round to face the Cleveland Cavaliers in the best of 7 games. Player matchup: Heat Bam Adebayo vs Hawks Onyeka Okongwu. I’m taking the Heat by 12! The Heat has more playoff and championship stock on their team. Final Score: Heat 120 – Hawks 108
Dallas Mavericks vs Memphis Grizzlies
4/18 – Friday – 8:30 p.m. – TV: ESPN
The Dallas Mavericks went into Sacramento and took the Kings to the woodshed in their 9 vs 10 play-in matchup. The first quarter was close until someone thawed Klay Thompson out and he went on to score 16 points to blow the game wide open. The Mavericks controlled the boards and created 8 more turnovers and scored in the open floor. The 3-headed monster in the paint kept the Kings at bay. The Grizzlies lost their first game to the Golden State Warriors on the road in the bay area. Golden State has the 7th seed, and the winner of this game will take the 8th and final spot in the Western Conference Playoffs. The Grizzlies have a young hungry team but lack the veteran leadership to get them over the hump. ESPN has the Grizzlies with a 65% chance of winning and moving on to play the number 1 seeded Oklahoma City Thunder. I’m taking Dallas by 6 points. Player matchup: Mavericks Anthony Davis vs Grizzlies Zach Edey. Final Score: Mavericks 119 – Grizzlies 113
