Thursday 5/3

Utah v Houston (tied 3-3) – It was tumultuous year for me and my boy Andrei Kirilenko. From complaining to sulking to crying he did everything is his power to make me abandon him. Then he plays a game like this I remember how my man-crush on him started in the first place. AK-47 was back to flying all over place, making life miserable for Tracy McGrady and blocking Yao Ming (oh yes he did!) from the weak side. It wasn’t quite a 5x5, but 14 points (on 6-10 shooting), 5 blocks, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals is nothing to sneeze at. When AK brings this type of energy his teammates feed off it and the Jazz are very tough to beat. Oh yeah, did I mention he’s doing all this with a fractured left thumb?

Memo Okur finally broke out of his slump hitting by 4-7 threes and rookie Paul Millsap provided Utah the kick in the pants they needed in first half. For the Rockets it was the same old story. Shane Battier (4 points), Juwan Howard (6) and Luther Head (4) shot a combined 4-12. Yuck! Only Rafer Alston (13) stepped up to support Yao and T-Mac, but Skip-to-my-Lou shot a putrid 5-14.

C’mon, who doesn’t love a Game 7? A funny bounce here, a bad call there or a lucky break; any of these things can determine the outcome. This series has lived up to its advanced billing for me. I’m probably in the minority, but I’ve really enjoyed watching this one unfold. As I’ve already typed, I think McGrady will have a special performance and carry his squad to the second round for the first time in his career. But if you’re looking for something under the radar to follow on Saturday, keep your eye on who has a better game, Battier or Matt Harpring. It’s usually a supporting player who has a big game out of nowhere that swings the balance in Game 7.