NBA play for Tuesday 4/29. Justice?

[RBD]

Recap: 0-2
Record: 13-10
Review: Dropped both plays last time in. Head still above water but some heavy treading going on to keep afloat.


Bone-headed coaching by Bickerstaff cost his team a win in their last game, sending the Pistons back to New York down one game to three.
Yes, the refs blew the call on the foul on Hardaway ("blew it" at best; had money on New York at worst.)
And their post game apology is worthless.

But the blame goes to Bickerstaff.
Is there anyone who watched the game and didn't say, "THAT'S going to come back and bite him on the ass later!" after his ridiculous first quarter challenge on a meaningless play?
There is no excuse for making that call at that time.
And, sure enough, it cost them the game.

To be polite you could say it was an amateurish call.
To be impolite (but accurate) you could say he's an idiot.

So to my way of thinking if there's any justice in the world Hardaway will get a make up call or two tonight.
Books made his number 12' points.
Overall, he averages 11 for the season.
But in the playoffs he's hit for 19, 0, 14 and 24.
(How the hell did that zero get in there??!!)
And if there's any justice in the world at all . . .

Hardaway Ov 12', -106 (at Bookmaker)

[RBD]

All day long I suppressed the urge to take Indiana on the money line tonight.
Smaller price and I would have been all over it, but there are certain principles of sports betting that I don't ignore.
Like chasing after a bad bet, and laying juice like -350 (unless it's boxing and I have an edge.)

Update: Milwaukee up 11-0 to start the game but I'm not fooled. They'll probably blow it by the end of the first quarter.

Update #2: Apparently Doc Rivers learned nothing from Bickerstaff. He just used the Buck's challenge on a meaningless play midway in the first quarter.
And . . . he lost the challenge.

Update #3: End of the first quarter and they managed to not only hold on to that 11-point lead but they built on it, ahead by 17. This, after losing all four quarters at Hm in the last game.
But I'm not going to let false hope mess with me, those tired, old legs on Milwaukee will show up in the second half.

Update #4: At halftime the 17-point lead is already down to 6 points.
Body language is a thing, and it's visible.
Game four in Milwaukee, when the Bucks were down by 10 points, I had no illusion about them coming back. You could see it in there body language - they were defeated, physically and mentally.
Tonight it's the opposite. Indiana was down by 17 but they looked determined, they looked ready for a fight.
They look like they believed in themselves!

If I could have gotten a better number at halftime I would have considered taking Indiana to buy off my series bet. But the number came out at Ind -9, so if I take it and they win by seven or eight I'd lose the series and the game.
I should have jumped on the live line at the end of the first quarter.

Update #5: Only took 3 minutes into the third quarter for Ind to take the lead. It's about to get ugly.
Bucks just 50% on FT's, 4-8, including 1-4 from Giannis.

Portis just passed the ball to a ref! I think he took a quick look and thought it was one of his teammates.

Update #6: Indiana wins the third quarter, 34-28.
Milwaukee has now lost four out of the last six quarters, and they need to win the 4th and final quarter tonight to survive.
In other words, they're dead.

Final Mil/Ind update: Milwaukee proves me wrong. They didn't quit or look old in overtime. But they just weren't good enough.
They somehow managed to blow a SEVEN point lead with THIRTY-FIVE seconds left, thanks to a turnover on what should have been the final possession of the game.
Pit-u-ful.

Det/NY update: Hardaway with five points at halftime.