News from March 17. The NBA named Blake Griffin (LAC) had Al Jefferson (Cha) as Players of the Week. Griffin averaged 27 points and 9.3 rebounds as the LA Clippers went 4-0. Jefferson averaged 24.3 points and 11.5 rebounds as Charlotte went 4-0. Brooklyn signed Jorge Gutierrez to a 2nd 10-day contract. Orlando signed Dewayne Dedmon for the rest of the season after he completed his 2nd 10-day contract. Orlando elected not to sign Adonis Thomas for the rest of the season after he completed his 2nd 10-day contract. Philadelphia signed James Nunnally to a 10-day contract. Kyrie Irving (Cle) is expected to be out 2 weeks with a strained left biceps. Indiana activated Donald Sloan and placed Andrew Bynum on IL. Dal 94, Bos 89 at Dal Dirk Nowitzki (Dal) had 19 points including 6-17 FG and 4-8 3-pointers and 6 rebounds. Monta Ellis (Dal) had 17 points including 4-11 FG, 7 rebounds, and 5 turnovers. Devin Harris (Dal) had 12 points and 6 assists. Jerryd Bayless (Bos) had 19 points and 6 assists. Kelly Olynyk (Bos) had 16 points and 9 rebounds. Bos out-rebounded Dal 57-36 including 21-6 offensive. Rajon Rondo (Bos, rest) did not play. Den 110, LAC 100 at Den Kenneth Faried (Den) had 18 points and 16 rebounds including 6 offensive. Ty Lawson (Den) had 19 points, 5 assists, 4 steals, and 6 turnovers. J.J. Hickson (Den) had 21 points including 9-14 FG and 11 rebounds including 5 offensive. Blake Griffin (LAC) had 26 points on 7-25 FG and 12-12 FT and 12 rebounds including 8 offensive. Chris Paul (LAC) had 29 points including 9-11 FT, 7 assists, 3 steals, and 6 turnovers. Nate Robinson (Den, torn left ACL), Darren Collison (LAC, stomach virus), and Jamal Crawford (LAC, strained left calf) did not play. Hou 124, Uta 86 at Hou Terrence Jones (Hou) had 30 points including 11-15 FG and 3-4 3-pointers, 5 rebounds, and 4 blocks. Patrick Beverley (Hou) had 19 points and 7 rebounds. Jeremy Lin (Hou) had 17 oints including 7-10 FG, 9 assists, and 5 turnovers. Derrick Favors (Uta) had 15 points. Alec Burks (Uta) had 15 points. Hou shot 58.2% (46-79) FG and Uta shot 41% (34-83) FG. Omri Casspi (Hou, flu) and Dwight Howard (Hou, sprained left ankle) did not play. OKC 97, Chi 85 at Chi Kevin Durant (OKC) had 35 points including 3-4 3-pointers and 10-12 FT, 12 rebounds, and 5 assists. Serge Ibaka (OKC) had 15 points. Russell Westbrook (OKC) had 17 points including 5-14 FG, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists. Carlos Boozer (Chi) had 12 points and 11 rebounds. Taj Gibson (Chi) had 16 points and 7 rebounds. Bro 108, Pho 95 at Bro Deron Williams (Bro) had 28 points including 11-13 FG and 3 steals. Mason Plumlee (Bro) had 14 points including 5-6 FG and 11 rebounds. Joe Johnson (Bro) had 19 points including 7-11 FG, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. Gerald Green (Pho) had 17 points. Markieff Morris (Pho) had 18 points. Bro shot 58.6% (41-70) FG and Pho shot 46.3% (37-80) FG. Ind 99, Phi 90 at Ind Paul George (Ind) had 24 points on 4-14 FG and 15-16 FT and 8 rebounds. Lance Stephenson (Ind) had 25 points including 1-6 3-pointers, 5 rebounds, and 5 turnovers. George Hill (Ind) had 11 points on 4-11 FG and 5 rebounds. Thaddeus Young (Phi) had 23 points including 4-8 3-pointers and 5 rebounds. Michael Carter-Williams (Phi) had 15 points including 7-20 FG, 13 rebounds, 5 assists, and 6 turnovers. Atl 97, Cha 83 at Cha Paul Millsap (Atl) had 28 points including 12-20 FG and 5 rebounds. Pero Antic (Atl) had 11 points and 10 rebounds. Jeff Teague (Atl) had 11 points including 4-14 FG, 6 rebounds, and 9 assists. Kemba Walker (Cha) had 20 points including 4-6 3-pointers and 7 assists. Al Jefferson (Cha) had 16 points and 12 rebounds. Atl shot 45.9% (39-85) FG and Cha shot 35.3% (30-85) FG. Schedule for Tuesday, March 18 (All times Central) Miami @ Cleveland 6:00 pm Toronto @ Atlanta 6:30 pm NBATV Milwaukee @ Portland 9:00 pm Washington @ Sacramento 9:00 pm Orlando @ Golden State 9:30 pm Schedule for Wednesday, March 19 (All times Central) Chicago @ Philadelphia 6:00 pm Miami @ Boston 6:30 pm Charlotte @ Brooklyn 6:30 pm Utah @ Memphis 7:00 pm Toronto @ New Orleans 7:00 pm Indiana @ New York 7:00 pm ESPN Minnesota @ Dallas 7:30 pm Detroit @ Denver 8:00 pm Orlando @ Phoenix 9:00 pm San Antonio @ LA Lakers 9:30 pm ESPN ---- Patricia Bender pbender@eskimo.com For Trianglons puzzles: http://www.trianglons.com For NBA stuff: http://www.eskimo.com/~pbender/index.html For Mavs stuff: http://www.eskimo.com/~pbender/mavs.html