NBA Finals Set; Stanley Cup Finals Game 1; Perfect Game Thrown
Philadelphia Phillies vs. Florida Marlins (brief)
After struggling, Roy Halladay just wanted to leave the game with a win for his team. However, he got much more.
Halladay threw a perfect game Saturday, striking out 11 in a 1-0 win. Although Halladay did get some good outfield plays, none were superb, like in Ubaldo Jiminez's no-hitter.
Josh Johnson of Florida pitched well, and Philly only scored on an error. But Halladay was superb, throwing pitches in the right place. He became just the 20th perfect pitcher in Major League history, and the second in 20 days.
Halladay is now 7-3 with a 1.99 ERA, and now he has something else to add to his resume.
LA Lakers vs. Phoenix Suns
While Kobe Bryant had had big performances vs. Phoenix, he had never exactly come up clutch. Make that end tonight.
Kobe Bryant scored 14 of LA's 16 points (in 2 different streaks), and he picked apart Phoenix with his tough jumpers. With LA up 5 late, Kobe nailed a fadeaway jumper over Grant Hill to give LA a 107-100 lead.
Ron Artest went 3/4 on 3's and 7/11 from the floor in the first half, helping LA take a 65-53 halftime lead. Artest was also big on D, and he finished with 25 points.
Rebounding was also a key, and and Kobe's fadeaway, double-teamed jumpers helped LA take a 91-74 lead after 3. However, a 6 point play on a flagrant foul helped Phoenix climb within 9. It fired Phoenix up, and they came within 3 late.
But, Kobe knocked down 2 more jumpers, including the game-sealing one, and LA took the game 111-103 and the series 4-2.
NBA Finals Pick: Kobe, Derek Fisher and Pau Gasol will step up, and LA will take the series in 6.
Stanley Cup Final
After Antti Neimi allowed 7 goals in 4 games and Michael Leighton shut Montreal out 3 times, we all thought that it would be 2-1 or something like that. Turns out it wasn't.
Chicago got the puck past Michael Leighton 5 times, and they forced him to be pulled. Philadelphia tied the game at 5, but Tomas Kopecky got the puck past backup goalie Brian Boucher in the left corner of the goal to give Chicago a 6-5 win.
Ville Leino scored for Philly, but Troy Brouwer scored 1:08 later. Then, Dave Bolland scored a shorthanded goal to give Chicago the momentum, and a 2-1 lead.
However, Phialdelphia got another penalty break, and they took advantage of it. Scott Hartnell scored on a power play, and with :27 left in the first period Danny Briere got it past Neimi. Philadelphia led 3-2 after 1.
But Leighton could not stop Chicago. Patrick Sharp got the puck past Michael Leighton's glove, and the score was tied. However, Neimi couldn't stop Blair Betts, and Philadelphia went up 4-3.
Then, Kirs Versteeg gave Chicago a big boost. He was in the right place at the right time for a rebound on a goal, and the score was tied at 4. Troy Brouwer scored 5:47 later, and Chicago led 5-4 late in the second.
However, Antti Neimi got confused by Philadelphia's passing, and Arron Asham got the puck by him towards the end of the second period. Now, Philadelphia had the momentum, and a fresh goalie in Briam Boucher.
Boucher was very fresh and was playing inspired hockey, but Tomas Kopecky was ready. He slid the puck into the corner of the goal, and Niemi wouldn't allow another goal. He made some good saves, and he didn't allow another goal. Chicago took the game 6-5, and the 1-0 series lead.
After struggling, Roy Halladay just wanted to leave the game with a win for his team. However, he got much more.
Halladay threw a perfect game Saturday, striking out 11 in a 1-0 win. Although Halladay did get some good outfield plays, none were superb, like in Ubaldo Jiminez's no-hitter.
Josh Johnson of Florida pitched well, and Philly only scored on an error. But Halladay was superb, throwing pitches in the right place. He became just the 20th perfect pitcher in Major League history, and the second in 20 days.
Halladay is now 7-3 with a 1.99 ERA, and now he has something else to add to his resume.
LA Lakers vs. Phoenix Suns
While Kobe Bryant had had big performances vs. Phoenix, he had never exactly come up clutch. Make that end tonight.
Kobe Bryant scored 14 of LA's 16 points (in 2 different streaks), and he picked apart Phoenix with his tough jumpers. With LA up 5 late, Kobe nailed a fadeaway jumper over Grant Hill to give LA a 107-100 lead.
Ron Artest went 3/4 on 3's and 7/11 from the floor in the first half, helping LA take a 65-53 halftime lead. Artest was also big on D, and he finished with 25 points.
Rebounding was also a key, and and Kobe's fadeaway, double-teamed jumpers helped LA take a 91-74 lead after 3. However, a 6 point play on a flagrant foul helped Phoenix climb within 9. It fired Phoenix up, and they came within 3 late.
But, Kobe knocked down 2 more jumpers, including the game-sealing one, and LA took the game 111-103 and the series 4-2.
NBA Finals Pick: Kobe, Derek Fisher and Pau Gasol will step up, and LA will take the series in 6.
Stanley Cup Final
After Antti Neimi allowed 7 goals in 4 games and Michael Leighton shut Montreal out 3 times, we all thought that it would be 2-1 or something like that. Turns out it wasn't.
Chicago got the puck past Michael Leighton 5 times, and they forced him to be pulled. Philadelphia tied the game at 5, but Tomas Kopecky got the puck past backup goalie Brian Boucher in the left corner of the goal to give Chicago a 6-5 win.
Ville Leino scored for Philly, but Troy Brouwer scored 1:08 later. Then, Dave Bolland scored a shorthanded goal to give Chicago the momentum, and a 2-1 lead.
However, Phialdelphia got another penalty break, and they took advantage of it. Scott Hartnell scored on a power play, and with :27 left in the first period Danny Briere got it past Neimi. Philadelphia led 3-2 after 1.
But Leighton could not stop Chicago. Patrick Sharp got the puck past Michael Leighton's glove, and the score was tied. However, Neimi couldn't stop Blair Betts, and Philadelphia went up 4-3.
Then, Kirs Versteeg gave Chicago a big boost. He was in the right place at the right time for a rebound on a goal, and the score was tied at 4. Troy Brouwer scored 5:47 later, and Chicago led 5-4 late in the second.
However, Antti Neimi got confused by Philadelphia's passing, and Arron Asham got the puck by him towards the end of the second period. Now, Philadelphia had the momentum, and a fresh goalie in Briam Boucher.
Boucher was very fresh and was playing inspired hockey, but Tomas Kopecky was ready. He slid the puck into the corner of the goal, and Niemi wouldn't allow another goal. He made some good saves, and he didn't allow another goal. Chicago took the game 6-5, and the 1-0 series lead.
Comments