The Bobcats played hard once again last night but they were just a tad overmatched. Tyrus Thomas led the way for the Bobcats last night with 21 points, 9 rebounds and 1 assist in 29 minutes off the bench. Gerald Wallace also had a solid game with 17 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Boris Diaw (13 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists) and Raymond Felton (11 points and 6 assists) also pitched in offensively. The Bobcats get swept in four games by the Magic but they still had a successful season that hopefully they build on next year.

The Bobcats were outrebounded 43-33 and it killed them yesterday. Stephen Jackson had a rough shooting day as he hit only 6 of 18 shots from the floor but he still finished up with 19 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals. Gerald Wallace also had a bad day hitting only 4 of 12 from the floor as he finished up with 13 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals. Larry Hughes was one of the few bright spots for the Bobcats in this game with 14 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist in only 18 minutes on the floor. Raymond Felton pitched in with 13 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists in this game. The Bobcats have their backs firmly against the wall as they are now down 3-0 in this series.

The Bobcats fell behind 75-55 in the first three quarters and it was too much for them to overcome last night. Stephen Jackson led the way for the Bobcats last night with 27 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists. Gerald Wallace had a tough time last night after excelling in the opener as he finished with 15 points, 6 rebounds and 4 blocked shots. Nazr Mohammed was excellent off the bench with 10 points and 3 rebounds in only 16 minutes on the floor. The Bobcats are now down 2-0 in this series as it heads to Charlotte over the weekend.

The Bobcats played hard yesterday but they fell just short. They outrebounded the Magic 41-34 in this game and they were down 22 points at one point in the 3rd quarter before making a furious comeback making the last half of the 4th quarter a real game. Gerald Wallace was a beast in this game as he finished up with 25 points, 17 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 blocked shot. Raymond Felton had issues on defense but he finished up with 19 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists hitting some big shots in the second half. Stephen Jackson only shot 6 of 18 from the floor and he hyperextended his left knee but he still finished with 18 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 blocked shot in this game. The Bobcats are down 1-0 in this series.

This series is not an easy draw for the defending Eastern Conference Champion Orlando Magic. The Bobcats seem to be a team on a mission directed by crusty old Larry Brown who knows how to win the big one. Here are a closer look at the matchups in this series:

Point Guard: Raymond Felton is not a great player by any stretch of the imagination but he’s more than good enough to get the job done. He played in 80 games (all starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 33.0 minutes, 12.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.5 steals per game. His game is almost identical to Jameer Nelson’s.

Jameer Nelson makes the Magic’s offense go despite being a shoot first player. He played in 65 games (64 starts) for the Magic this season and he averaged 28.6 minutes, 12.6 points, 3.0 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game. Nelson will need to keep his teammates heavily involved in the offense because the Bobcats are a pretty good defensive basketball team.

EDGE: EVEN

Shooting Guard: Stephen Jackson has icewater in his veins. He has never seen a big shot he wasn’t willing to take. When the Bobcats traded for him early this year it signalled that they were going to play to win this season. Jackson played in 72 games (all starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 39.3 minutes, 21.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game. With Vince Carter’s failures in playoffs past I look for Jackson to have a big series.

Vince Carter has never in his NBA career saved his best for last as he has struggled in the playoffs in the past. Carter played in 75 games (74 starts) for the Magic this season and he averaged 30.8 minutes, 16.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. The Magic don’t need Carter to go off in this series but if he could average at least 15 points per game and hold Jackson down a bit the Magic will be happy.

EDGE: BOBCATS

Small Forward: Gerald Wallace is the best player on the Bobcats as he plays all out on both sides of the basketball court. He should abuse Matt Barnes in this series. Wallace played in 76 games (all starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 41.0 minutes, 18.2 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.1 blocked shots per game. He is the most likely player on the Bobcats to posterize Dwight Howard as he backs down from no one.

Sure, Matt Barnes is the Kobe “Stopper”. He will have his hands full with Wallace. Barnes played in 81 games (58 starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 25.9 minutes, 8.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. The Magic just want him to play hard and make Wallace work for everything he gets.

EDGE: HUGE FOR BOBCATS

Power Forward: Boris Diaw won’t be overmatched physically like he is on most nights as Rashard Lewis is a soft power forward also. Diaw played in 82 games (all starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 35.4 minutes, 11.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. Diaw is a defense first player who will get in Rashard Lewis’ face.

Rashard Lewis just never seemed to get into gear this season after his 10-game suspension to start the year (PED related). Lewis played in 72 games (all starts) for the Magic this season and he averaged 32.9 minutes, 14.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Lewis is still a good shooter and the Magic hope he’s on in this series.

EDGE: EVEN

Center: The Bobcats will likely be fouling Dwight Howard a lot with Tyson Chandler, Theo Ratliff and Nazr Mohammed sharing time in the middle. That’s 18 fouls to play with. Tyson Chandler will be the first center in for the Bobcats. He played in 51 games (27 starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 22.8 minutes, 6.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 0.3 assists and 1.1 blocked shots per game. Chandler is no match for Dwight Howard.

Dwight Howard will be fouled a lot in this series and it’s a good strategy for the Bobcats to take. Howard played in 82 games (all starts) for the Magic this season and he averaged 34.7 minutes, 18.3 points, 13.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 2.8 blocked shots per game. If Howard can keep himself from getting frustrated due to the fouling he should have a big series.

EDGE: HUGE FOR THE MAGIC

BENCH: Both of these teams use their benches a lot. Tyrus Thomas (10.1 points, 6.1 rebouds, 0.9 assists and 1.5 blocks) will be a force in this series as he will push Rashard Lewis around when he is on the court. Nazr Mohammed (7.9 points, 5.2 rebounds) and Theo Ratliff (5.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocked shots) will both be needed down low to counter Dwight Howard in this series. Larry Hughes, D.J. Augustin and Stephen Graham will also all likely get some P.T. in this series for the Bobcats.

J.J. Redick (9.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists) and Mickeal Pietrus (8.7 points, 2.9 rebounds) will be the two reserves used most in this series against the Bobcats. Don’t forget how solid Marcin Gortat played for the Magic last season as they can go with a Twin Tower look at times. Ryan Anderson, Jason Williams, Brandon Bass and Anthony Johnson are all capable players who could get some P.T. in this series.

EDGE: MAGIC

COACH: Larry Brown is one of the better coaches in NBA history. He led the Bobcats to a 44-38 record (53.7%) this season. He has a two year record with the Bobcats of 79-85 (48.2 %). Brown has now compiled a 1,089-885 record (55.2%) as a NBA head coach during the regular season and his teams are 100-89 (52.9%) in the post season. He led the Pistons to a NBA Championship during the 2003-04 season.

Stan Van Gundy is a great coach in his own right. He led the Magic to a 59-23 (72%) record during the regular season. He has now been in Orlando three years and he has a 170-76 record (69.1%) and he is 18-16 (52.9%) in the post season with the Magic.

EDGE: EVEN

PREDICTION: I see home court advantage being big in this series and I like the Magic in 6 games.

Larry Brown doesn’t like to use the kids much as he is focused on winning now wherever he goes and that’s usually a good thing. The Bobcats are going to the playoffs this year so who cares if he gets the rookies P.T. 22-year old forward Derrick Brown was the rookie who looked the best this year for the Bobcats. He played in 57 games (0 starts) for the Bobcats this year and he averaged 9.4 minutes, 3.3 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Brown shot pretty well hitting 46.3% from the floor as a rookie. I think he is a keeper for the Bobcats. Gerald Henderson on the other hand did not do much to inspire confidence from the Bobcats’ front office. He played in 43 games (0 starts) for the Bobcats this year and he averaged 8.3 minutes, 2.6 points, 1.3 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Henderson only shot 35.6% from the floor this year but he didn’t really get enough P.T. to get into a rhythm shooting the ball. He better improve his game a bit over the summer if he wants to get more of a chance next season with the Bobcats.

The Bulls outrebounded the Bobcats 41-33 at it was a big reason for the loss last night. Tyrus Thomas filled up the stat sheet against his old team with 16 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots in only 26 minutes on the court. Gerald Wallace (15 points, 2 steals) and Stephen Jackson (14 points, 3 rebounds and 2 steals) also pitched in for the Bobcats last night. The Bobcats finish the season with a 44-38 record and they will open up against the Orlando Magic in the playoffs starting this weekend.

The Bobcats played great defense last night holding the Nets to 39.3% shooting from the floor and that was a big reason for this huge win. The Bobcats are slotted #7 in the Eastern Conference right now with matches them with the Magic in the first round of the playoffs. Stephen Jackson led the way for the Bobcats last night with 17 points, 9 rebounds and 2 assists in only 24 minutes on the court. Gerald Henderson had his best game of the year for the Bobcats last night with 14 points and 7 rebounds in only 21 minutes. Tyrus Thomas pitched in with 13 points and 3 rebounds in only 22 minutes last night. Boris Diaw (10), Larry Hughes (10), Raymond Felton (12) and D.J. Augustin (11) each pitched in with double figures in scoring last night. The Bobcats are now 44-37 on the season.

Veteran shooting guard Larry Hughes has not helped the Bobcats much since signing with them last month. He has played in 10 games (0 starts) for the Bobcats this year and he is averaging 17.7 minutes, 6.2 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Hughes is only shooting 26.1% from the floor with the Bobcats so maybe he should start passing more. Signing Hughes looks like a waste of time and money.