Miami Heat vs Milwaukee Bucks April 25, 2013

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The Miami Heat are taking their talents to Milwaukee to face the Bucks in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series.

For some reason, Brandon Jennings still thinks the Bucks can stop the Heat in six games according to CBS Sports, which would effectively be a sweep of the next four games for the Bucks.

Well Brandon, I think LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and their supporting cast have other plans.

Miami Heat vs Milwaukee Bucks April 25, 2013

While LeBron faltered in Game 2 with just 19 points on 6-of-14 shooting, I'm sure he isn't interested in letting this series go past four games.

The Heat want the sweep not only so they can rest, but also so that they can continue to assert their dominance in the Eastern Conference.

If the Bucks have any chance of winning this one, they will have to get lots of production from Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings, who combined for just 15 points on 5-of-22 shooting in Game 2.

If Larry Sanders can step up his defensive pressure a bit and Mike Dunleavy can be an efficient force off the bench like he was in Game 2, the Bucks stand a chance of stealing Game 3.

Unfortunately, that is asking a lot from the only team to make the playoffs with a losing record.

Basel vs Chelsea April 25, 2013

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Chelsea have Ashley Cole and Gary Cahill available. Cole has not featured since limping off during the April 1 FA Cup quarter-final replay win over Manchester United, while Cahill underwent minor knee surgery on March 30 after suffering the injury against West Ham prior to the international break. Brazil forward Oscar also travelled despite coming off during Sunday's 2-2 draw at Liverpool with a groin problem. Long-term injury victim Oriol Romeu (knee) is the only definite absentee.
Basel striker Alex Frei has retired since the victory over Tottenham to become sporting director at Swiss club Lucerne. Former Liverpool right-back Philipp Degen is a doubt with a muscular problem, with nominal centre-half Arlind Ajeti ready to step in.

Rafa Benitez’s side travel to Switzerland to take on an FC Basel side that has already disposed of Tottenham in the Europa League knockout stages.


Preview

Chelsea will attempt to succeed where Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur both failed when they tackle Swiss side FC Basel in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final on Thursday.

Winners of last season’s Champions League, Chelsea have had to make a priority of Europe’s second-tier cup competition this term as opportunities for winning silverware have fizzled out around them.

They are just two matches from the final in Amsterdam on May 15, but in Basel they face a team who sensationally knocked United out of last season’s Champions League and put paid to Spurs in the last round of the Europa League.

The current Swiss Super League leaders have also gone six home games without defeat in this season’s competition.

Complicating matters further is the fact that Chelsea’s main priority is the battle to qualify for next season’s Champions League.

Having become the first defending champions not to progress beyond the group phase of the following campaign’s competition, failure to qualify for next season’s tournament would complete a startling fall from grace.

The quest for a Champions League place was compromised on Sunday by a 2-2 draw at Liverpool that left the London club in the fourth and final qualifying berth.

Borussia Dortmund vs Real Madrid April 24, 2013

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Mourinho, 50, named an attacking side as he aims to reach the final with his third different club.
Angel Di Maria is the only doubt as his wife had a baby on Tuesday.


"Madrid are one of those clubs where finishing second counts for nothing. So we have to reach the final and then win that," Mourinho said.
Mourinho's managerial honours

Porto: Champions League 2004. UEFA Cup 2003. Primeira Liga 2003, 2004. Taca de Portugal 2003. Supertaca Candido de Oliveira 2003.
Chelsea: Premier League 2005, 2006. FA Cup 2007. League Cup 2005, 2007
Inter Milan: Champions League 2010. Serie A 2009, 2010. Coppa Italia 2010. Supercoppa Italiana 2008.
Real Madrid: La Liga 2012, Copa del Rey 2011, Supercopa de Espana 2012.
"We will play with Diego Lopez, Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Raphael Varane, Fabio Coentrao, Sami Khedira, Xabi Alonso, Mesut Ozil, Gonzalo Higuain, Cristiano Ronaldo and hopefully Angel Di Maria," he added.


Real Madrid beat Real Betis 3-1 on Saturday but midfielder Luka Modric and defender Marcelo sustained injuries. French striker Karim Benzema, who scored one goal and set up another, was also substituted late on with a leg injury.
Real met Dortmund in the group stages, with Ozil scoring a last-minute equaliser to rescue a point for Mourinho's side from a 2-2 draw in Madrid in November, while Jurgen Klopp's German side won 2-1 in Dortmund a month earlier.
But Mourinho put those results down to individual errors and believes his side deserve to win the Champions League.
He said: "All four goals we conceded against Dortmund in the group stage were mistakes by us. We hope we will not concede that many goals in the next games.


"I hope that my team, which I value tremendously as individual players as well as a team, will be able to convince on Wednesday and in the return leg.


"The team has great players who give everything they have and also deserve to win this competition. With a few exceptions, none of them have won this competition so far and I wish it for my team that they can win the Champions League, as they deserve to do so."

Boston Celtics vs New York Knicks April 23, 2013

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The Boston Celtics visit the New York Knicks in Game 2 of an Eastern Conference first-round series on Monday night.

touches and better shots in the postseason (this after he had a quiet Game 1, offensively). How does Garnett get himself easier looks? "Just play basketball, man," he said. "Our sets are called and our plays are designed for, obviously, movement, opportunity. Within those opportunities, I've just got to be aggressive with those, without coming out of formality or what we've been doing since this point. When I get baskets it's because I've taken advantage of options within the offense and I haven't over-stepped or anything outside of that. So I'm going to stick with that, but obviously being more aggressive with the opportunities that I do get."

The Celtics were plagued by 21 turnovers in Saturday's Game 1 loss. What's more, many of those turnovers were what Paul Pierce dubbed "boneheaded" plays. Celtics coach Doc Rivers thinks it's as simple as making better decisions with the ball -- and lowering the degree of difficulty on some passes. "I thought most are turnovers were forced, guys were trying to do too much with the pass," said Rivers. "The good news is they were trying to pass, the bad news is they were trying to pass. Some of the passes, really, should have just been down the sideline and to the post, instead of the guy with the ball was trying to make the pass. Again, they are correctable, but give the Knicks credit, some of those turnovers were forced by Kidd and some by their hands."

The Boston Celtics enter Game 2 in Madison Square Garden with plenty of reason to believe they can tie the series at one game apiece. Boston held the Knicks to 85 points in the first game, but their lack of offensive punch was on display. The Celtics made only 27 of their 65 field goals but lost by just eight points -- a margin that can easily be overcome if they tighten up their offensive decision-making and take advantage of the Knicks' defense.

New York's half-court defense focused on Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, but Boston can take advantage of the Knicks' overcommitment by slowing down the remaining "big two." Here are a few areas that Boston can exploit the Knicks and open up their offense.

Milwaukee Bucks vs Miami Heat April 23, 2013

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With the first two days of the NBA playoffs in the bag, fans are starting to make series predictions. Some teams are struggling without key players, while some are clicking on all cylinders.

One team that seems to be pretty much unstoppable has to be the Miami Heat.

The Heat are facing the Milwaukee Bucks and seem to have the advantage in every aspect of the series. I bumped into my boy Lance Fresh out in Miami, and we broke down the “swag" matchup going on between the Heat and the Bucks.

We talked “Best Jerseys,” “Best Dressed,” “Best Player Celebrations” and more in a “Best-of-Seven” matchup.

Which team has the most swag? Which category did you disagree with? Comment below.

No. 1 Miami Heat (66-16) vs. No. 8 Milwaukee Bucks (38-44)

Game 1 in Miami: Sunday, April 21, 7, TNT
Game 2 in Miami: Tuesday, April 23, 7:30, NBATV
Game 3 in Milwaukee: Thursday, April 25, 7, TNT
Game 4 in Milwaukee: Sunday, April 28, 3:30, ABC
Game 5 in Miami: Tuesday, April 30
Game 6 in Milwaukee: Thursday, May 2
Game 7 in Miami: Saturday, May 4
Season series: Heat won 3-1.

Points per game (per 100 possessions): Heat 102.9, Bucks 98.9 (Heat 110.3, Bucks 100.9).

Points allowed per game (per 100 possessions): Heat 95.0, Bucks 100.4 (Heat 100.5, Bucks 102.3).

Matchups worth watching: Bucks center Larry Sanders vs. Heat center Chris Bosh, Bucks point guard Brandon Jennings vs. Heat point guard Mario Chalmers.

Scoring leaders: Heat forward LeBron James (26.8 PPG), Bucks guard Monta Ellis (19.2 PPG).

Why Miami will win: The Heat are the best team in the NBA and clearly the best team in this series. James and Dwyane Wade are much better than their Bucks counterparts and shouldn't have issues dominating. And Milwaukee has struggled in April.