Apr
07
Playoff Picture: April 7th
By sarahhecht Posted in: playoffs
The time to recover is now.
The loss to Golden State is behind us.
We’ve clinched a playoff berth. Now it’s time to make our own destiny and fight for seeding.
Who do the Trail Blazers want to face in the first round of the playoffs? The Spurs? The Lakers? The Mavs or the Thunder?
If it’s Dallas in the 3rd seed (with the way they’re playing they could fall to 4th) we need to win out. This isn’t a mathematical prediction, just a hunch considering the remaining schedules of New Orleans and Memphis. And of course our tiebreaker status with both of them. We’d lose to NOLA 3-1 and were tied with Memphis 1-1 with a game left to play.
That said, let’s get a win!
Last night's scores and effects:
The
New Orleans Hornets topped the 
Houston Rockets 101-93 in New Orleans. The Hornets jumped into 6th place in the West and bumped the Trail Blazers to 7th. Houston hasn’t officially been eliminated yet, but at three and a half games behind Memphis it doesn’t look good for them.
The
Oklahoma City Thunder beat the 
L.A. Clippers 112-108 in Oklahoma City. The Thunder continue to push for 3rd place in the West. As owners of the 4th seed they only trail Dallas by one full game with plenty of time to close the gap.
The
San Antonio Spurs demolished the 
Sacramento Kings 124-92 in San Antonio. The Spurs clinched 1st place in the Western Conference with the domination of the Kings. They’ll face the team that lands in the 8th seed in the first round of the playoffs.
The
Denver Nuggets defeated the 
Dallas Mavericks 104-96 in Dallas. The Mavs continue their skid and now own a four-game losing streak. Their still in 3rd in the West but the Oklahoma City Thunder trail by only one full game. The Nuggets are firmly entrenched in the 5th seed.
The
Golden State Warriors stunned the 
L.A. Lakers 95-87 at Golden State. The Lakers dreams of the 1st seed in the Western Conference were dashed last night with their loss and the win for San Antonio. They’re in 2nd and lead Dallas by two full games.
Today’s games with Western Conference potential playoff teams:
Portland Trail Blazers (45-33) vs. 
Utah Jazz (37-41) on TNT A Portland win tonight moves the Trail Blazers back into the 6th spot in the Western Conference. They’ll stay in 7th with a loss.
Here are the playoff match-ups as of today:
(Tables courtesy of NBA.com)