TheBigEasy wrote:Actually I dont remember if I had a shot at the end to win it ... but I guess so. The loss itself would not have been frustrating, what made it bad was that I was up by 20 points at half time and lost it. If it were an uphill battle all the time, I would have said ok ... tough to lose, but ok. But I had no problem in the first two quarters to contain them ... only to lose it by a freakin point.
Yeah, that definitely frustrating when you blow a lead like that; and it's not always your fault. The "comeback code" is especially effective when you're facing a good team. Something similar happened to me in a game against Golden State (details below).
TheBigEasy wrote:I am experiencing the same. With Live '03 it wasnt the same, cause the gameplay was simply fucked up. But with Live '04 it is different, if it becomes to hard or to easy, you just tweak the sliders a bit and its better. I have started a dynasty and I am now 42 games into the schedule (two games ahead of the real schedule), something I have never done before in Live.
I believe this is the first time I've been ahead of the real NBA. I'm now up to February 2nd. The improved gameplay definitely holds your interest in Dynasty Mode. Dynasty Mode itself has a couple of problems, but if you like to play the games (as I do), it certainly holds your interest.
And now, some more recaps...
Chicago 135, LA Clippers 112
Despite the final score, I'd describe this game as fairly boring. An excellent start saw me jump out to an early 10-0 lead - within the first two minutes. I never trailed in the game, and although the Clippers made a couple of runs to cut the lead to single digits, I always managed to pull away again. KG continued his streak of impressive games with 35 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 blocks.
Kirk Hinrich was on fire from downtown (7/16), he finished with 25 points, 8 steals and 3 assists. Pippen had 22 points and 7 assists. Crawford almost had a triple double with 19 points, 8 steals and 9 assists. Maggette led all scorers with 37 points, while Eddie House had 10 assists. A nice, easy victory, but kind of boring at the same time.
Chicago 100, Denver 96
This one started close, went my way for a while, then became close again. The Nuggets led for most of the first quarter, though I managed to tie things up by the end of the period. KG had a great first half with 18 points and 10 rebounds. I blew the game open in the second quarter, outscoring Denver 30-13 to lead 50-33 at the half. I thought the Nuggets were down and out, but I was wrong. My offense stalled in the third quarter and my interior defense was simply woeful. Andre Miller was slashing to the basket for easy buckets. Denver outscored me 38-17 in the third to take a 71-67 lead into the final quarter.
I was determined not to let Denver jump ahead at the start of the fourth, so I came out running; and it worked. I managed to stay ahead for most of the quarter, but a couple of blown layups allowed the Nuggets to snatch the lead a couple of times in the final two minutes. After I took the lead 95-94, Voshon Lenard missed a three and I controlled the rebound. The Nuggets put me on the line, allowing me to extend to a 97-94 advantage. From there on, I simply allowed Denver to put me on the line so that I could seal the win, a hard-fought 100-96 victory.
KG kept me in the game during the fourth, and played well throughout the contest. He was again named Player of the Game, scoring 38 points to go with 19 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 blocks. Jamal Crawford had a double-double with 19 points and 14 assists, while making two steals and committing only one turnover. Kendall Gill had a good game off the bench, scoring 13 points and grabbing 4 boards in 20 minutes.
Andre Miller led the Nuggets with 26 points and 7 assists. Carmelo Anthony had a good game at the offensive end with 21 points, but apart from 4 assists didn't do much else. Jon Barry scored 18 and Tskitishvilli added 11 off the bench. Marcus Camby led the team with 12 rebounds, while Nene had 10 boards, all at the defensive end.
Golden State 87, Chicago 86 (OT)
This was a really frustrating loss. I really should have won, but somehow Golden State remained close. The first quarter was fairly slow paced, ending 16-13 in my favour. The Warriors opened the second quarter with a 13-2 run and by halftime held a 41-32 lead. I managed to do a better job defensively in the third, holding them to 12 points while recapturing the lead. I entered the fourth with a 55-53 advantage, but a flurry of lead changes ultimately resulted in a 74-74 tie at the end of regulation.
We traded baskets in overtime, but with about 30 seconds left KG scored to give me an 86-84 advantage. Golden State got the ball to Jason Richardson at the three point line, and I fouled him on the attempt (in typical video game fashion, a likely miss was compensated by a phantom foul). J-Rich hit all three free throws, and I had 2.7 seconds left to win the game. I got the ball to Garnett near the basket, he was hammered and no foul was called. The shot rimmed out, and my eight game winning streak came to an end.
Despite the loss, KG was again named Player of the Game after another stellar performance. He had 36 points, 22 rebounds (including 7 offensive) and 7 assists. Pippen was also in fine form with 18 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. Chandler was the only other player who had a decent game, with 12 points and 9 rebounds. Crawford and Hinrich both struggled offensively. Though they combined for 7 assists, they only managed 5 points between them on a combined 2/20 from the field.
Nick Van Exel led the Warriors with 27 points; he also had 4 assists. Jason Richardson scored 26, while Mike Dunleavy Jr added 14. Cliff Robinson led the team with 11 rebounds, while Adonal Foyle added 7 rebounds and 2 blocks. Erick Dampier added 7 rebounds and 3 blocks, while making it tough for Eddy Curry to score inside.
I now have the same record as New Orleans; by virtue of my record against them (2-1), I'm still the first seed in the East.
Chicago 94, Portland 80
I took my frustration out on the Portland Trail Blazers, who remained competitive for the first 24 minutes and led 41-39 at halftime. I outscored them 26-18 in the third, despite Rasheed Wallace continuing to hit inside and from the perimeter. After capturing the lead and holding it for a 65-59 advantage heading into the fourth, I never trailed and scored 29 points in the final period to take the game 94-80.
The Player of the Game shouldn't surprise you. KG had his second consecutive 20-20 game, with 26 points and 24 rebounds (including 4 offensive). He also added 4 assists. Jamal Crawford made amends for his poor shooting in the Golden State game, hitting 7/15 field goals and scoring 16 points. Kirk Hinrich was quiet with 7 points, but found his teammates for 6 assists. Pippen also had a subpar scoring effort, but had 3 steals and team high 7 assists. Eddy Curry scored 14 points but only grabbed 4 boards.
For Portland, Rasheed Wallace led all scorers with 34 points shooting 4/15 from downtown. Damon Stoudamire had a near triple double with 11 points, 7 assists and a team high 10 rebounds.
And so I end January on a good note. With a record of 31-17, I remain on top of the Eastern Conference. Indiana has passed New Orleans and looms just half a game behind. Atlantic Division leaders the Nets are in second place. I went 14-3 in January.
January Award Winners:
Tracy McGrady was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month. T-Mac averaged 31.5 ppg, 4.6 apg, 9.2 rpg 0.9 bpg and 1.8 spg as the Magic went 6-11 in January. Tim Duncan took home Western Conference Player of the Month honours for January, with averages of 23.9 ppg, 3.5 apg, 11.5 rpg, 2.3 bpg and 1.0 spg. The Spurs went 11-6.
The Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month was TJ Ford. Ford averaged 13.8 ppg, 5.4 apg and 1.4 spg for the month of January. The Bucks went 9-7 during the month. Carmelo Anthony was named Western Conference Rookie of the Month for the second time this season, averaging 15.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.9 apg and 1.0 spg as the Nuggets went 10-7.