Dallas Mavericks 94, New Orleans Hornets 99: The Mavericks made a late push at the end of the game to try and salvage the season, but it was an oh-so-feeble attempt to end their imminent doom. Chris Paul had 24 points and 15 assists — 11 of which came in the first half alone — and David West led all Hornets with 25. Dallas exits in the first round for the second year in a row, and there’s speculation that Avery Johnson’s job may be on the line. I’d squash the speculation: If you’re looking for a finger to point, point it at the guy that pulled the trigger on the Jason Kidd trade. Wait. He’s the owner. Bye, Avery.

Philadelphia 76′ers 81, Detroit Pistons 98: Three games into the series, it looked as if Philly may actually steal one. Five games into the season, it doesn’t look like they stand much of a chance. Detroit manhandled Philadelphia, going up 12 at the half, 20 by the third, and then coasted to victory through the fourth. Chauncey Billups led the Pistons with 21 points, followed by Rip Hamilton (20), Rasheed Wallace (19), and Tayshaun Prince (17). Detroit now has a 3-2 lead heading back to Philadelphia.

Utah Jazz 69, Houston Rockets 95: It’s odd the Jazz swept the first two games at home, went back to Utah, where they had a 37-4 record through the regular season, are playing Tracy McGrady — who’s known for choking it up in the first round — and this thing is still going on. Not only going on, but Houston is beating the ever living hell out of them. Utah was 36 percent from the field and 22 percent from beyond the arch. Carlos Boozer led the Jazz with 19 points on 8-18 shooting. T-Mac led the Rockets with 29 points. The series is 3-2, and resumes Thursday night in Utah.

Phoenix Suns 87, San Antonio Spurs 92: They said it would be one of the best first round series ever, and I agreed. Problem is, it wasn’t. The Spurs won the series 4-1 last night, on the back of two solid performances by Tony Parker (31 points), and Tim Duncan (29 points and 17 rebounds). Shaq finished with 13 points and nine boards in only 29 minutes of play, posing the question: Why the hell did they trade for a guy that can’t run the court for more than 29 minutes? Good call, Steve Kerr, it’s nice to see you’re still helping the Spurs win Championships.