NBA

Two second round series tipped off last night in the NBA playoffs, and both games had surprising results.

First up, it was the #3 Orlando Magic heading to the Garden to take on the Boston Celtics. Boston just finished a 7-game Herculean effort against the Chicago Bulls, and, needless to say, weren’t exactly in top physical shape just 2 nights after playing their last game.  The Magic however have been somewhat well rested, as their series against the 76ers only took 6 games.  Well, the Magic came out swinging, and they definitely landed some punches, pulling out to a big early lead.  Paul Pierce did what he could for the Celtics, putting up 23 points, but the evenly distributed scoring of the Magic was just too much for Boston, and Orlando stole game one on Boston’s floor.  Orlando 95, Boston 90.

Next up, it was the much anticipated return of the Western Conference’s #1 seed:  The Los Angeles Lakers.  However, while they mopped the floor with the Utah Jazz in the first round, the Houston Rockets are a far more competitive matchup.  Houston led at the half, and seemed to have the Lakers number last night.  Yao Ming had 28 points and 10 rebounds, and was finally the presence that Houston had been hoping for for the past decade (It must have been the Olympics).  Kobe Bryant did his thing, scoring 32 points, but it just wasn’t enough to get by a red-hot Houston team.  Wow!  Who would have thought that the Rockets could come into Kobe’s house and steal game 1.  Houston 100, Los Angeles 92.

Most notably about LA’s loss was that Kobe Bryant wasn’t able to prevent it.  Many thought that Kobe would be an absolute mad man last night. Why?  Because he lost the MVP vote by an overwhelming degree.  That’s right, LeBron James was officially dubbed the league’s Most Valuable Player yesterday in Akron, Ohio.  This is the first MVP award for LeBron, and with it, he becomes the 3rd youngest player ever to win the award.  He led his team to a #1 seed this year, and has played freakishly well this season.  His team is definitely primed to play in this year’s championship game.  Congrats LeBron.

NHL

And finally, in a memorable hockey night, the Washington Capitals took on the Pittsburgh Penguins.  This was a battle between two of the games best players:  The Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin and Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby.  Well, what made this game special is that both players scored goals.  Not 1, not 2, but 3 GOALS EACH!!!  This is called a “Hat Trick” (when one player scores 3 goals in a game), and it is EXTREMELY RARE.  So, in a playoff game, to see two of the league’s best players nab Hat Tricks in the same game.  That’s a true gem.  In fact, it has never happened before in Stanley Cup History.  With that said, it was Ovechkin’s Hat Trick that gave Washington the secure lead they needed to hold on and win the game.  Washington 4, Pittsburgh 3.