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Ivica Zubac accounted for 19 points (8-of-12 FGs, 3-of-6 FTs), nine rebounds, one assist and one blocked shot in 33 minutes in Thursday’s Game 3 win over the Nuggets.
Zubac finished one rebound shy of a double-double in the 34-point victory, but he continues to give Nikola Jokic a hard time defensively. While the three-time MVP recorded another triple-double on Thursday, Zubac’s ability to make things difficult for Jokic has allowed the Clippers to avoid gambling too much defensively. Zubac is a finalist for the Most Improved Player award, and for good reason. His performance in this series has shown why that’s the case. Game 4 is on Saturday afternoon.
Josh Hart led the Knicks with 24 points (7-of-15 FGs), seven rebounds, two assists and five three-pointers in a 127-102 loss to the Celtics in Game 5 on Wednesday.
Things didn’t start off well for Hart. He got hit right above his eye on an elbow from Luke Kornet, which resulted in a lot of blood on his face and uniform. He got cleaned up and was given a new jersey, and it didn’t impact his shot. It wasn’t enough for New York to wrap up the series, and they’ll head home for Game 6 on Friday. This was Hart’s highest-scoring performance of the postseason, and his most points in a game since before the All-Star break. He’ll look to carry some of this shooting success with him to Madison Square Garden.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters Walker Buehler (shoulder) is likely to return on Tuesday against the Mets.
Buehler appears on track to rejoin Boston’s rotation mix early next week after missing a couple weeks with shoulder bursitis. The 30-year-old has another bullpen session on tap for Thursday before he’s officially cleared to return.
OG Anunoby struggled on Wednesday and finished with just six points (1-of-12 FGs), eight rebounds, two assists, one block and one three-pointer in Game 5 against the Celtics.
It has been a hit-or-miss series for Anunoby. He had 29 points in Game 1 and 20 points in Game 4. He scored a total of 13 points in Games 2, 3 and 5. Which Anunoby shows up in Game 6 could be critical for New York’s chances of closing this series out at home. Of course, they’d much prefer to end things in New York than to have to travel back to Boston for Game 7. Simply put, Anunoby is going to have to be much better on Friday.
Masyn Winn went 4-for-5 with a homer, three RBI and a walk as the Cardinals trounced the Phillies 14-7 in the second game of Wednesday’s doubleheader.
The Cardinals were down 5-1 after one tonight, but they dominated the game afterwards. Winn reached seven times in all today, raising his OPS from .769 to .836. That’s pretty good for a guy who opened up 0-for-18 through five games.
Sonny Gray surrendered seven runs in 3 2/3 innings in the second game of Wednesday’s doubleheader against the Phillies.
Still better than Aaron Nola. Gray surrendered three homers for the ninth time in his career. He’s turned in quality starts in four of his last six outings, but since he’s given up 13 runs in the other two, his ERA stands at 4.50. He has a 51/12 K/BB in 50 innings for the season; he just needs to keep the ball in the park. He’ll face the Tigers next.
Aaron Nola was pounded for nine runs and 12 hits in 3 1/3 innings by the Cardinals in the second game of Wednesday’s doubleheader.
Nola’s 83 pitches produced six missed swings and 13 hard-hit balls, which just isn’t a very good ratio. His velocity was fine, and while he didn’t miss bats tonight, that hasn’t really been an issue over the course of the season. He’s just giving up an unusual amount of hard contact when he gets hit, and it’s hard to see any quick fixes here. He’s 1-7 with a 6.16 ERA, and now he has to go pitch in Coors Field next time out.