SAN ANTONIO VS. LOS ANGELES PHILADELPHIA VS. MILWAUKEE

Wednesday, May 30 Mashburn fails in clutch again Associated Press MILWAUKEE – Jamal Mashburn let down the Charlotte Hornets in the clutch again. Mashburn Mashburn, who has a reputation of not producing in pressure situations, shot a dismal 7-for-25 as the Hornets lost 104-95 to the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals Sunday. Mashburn finished with 21 points, but nine came in the first 10 1/2 minutes of the first quarter. He was 0-for-7 from the floor in the second quarter with only one point. Mashburn had such a rough day that Charlotte coach Paul Silas left him on the bench when the fourth quarter started with the Hornets trailing by nine. When he was fouled by Glenn Robinson with 2:51 left in the game, Mashburn, who made all 25 of his free throws in the first round, missed the first shot. Mashburn has been fingered as a player who can't get it done in the big games since his days with the Miami Heat. He got the blame for many of the Heat's playoff losses – including last year's 83-82 loss to the New York Knicks in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. He was only 3-for-15 in that game, but even worse was his decision to give up the ball in the closing seconds. Instead of taking a shot from the top of the key, he passed to Clarence Weatherspoon, who is not an outside threat. Weatherspoon's 12-footer clanged off the rim. The Heat were done for the year, and Mashburn was done in Miami. Traded to Charlotte Aug. 1, he seemed poised to salvage his reputation with a breakout playoff performance. Against the Heat, he made all free throws, a playoff record, as the Hornets upset Miami. Against Milwaukee, he scored 36 points in Game 3, then followed with 31 in Game 4, making him the first Hornets player to score 30 or more points in consecutive playoff appearances. He was averaging 25.3 points in the playoffs. But in the biggest game in Hornets history, Mashburn didn't get it done. He was hot early, drilling a 3-pointer, then scoring on a bank shot to give Charlotte a 20-12 lead with 4:19 left in the first. But after his layup with 1:33 left, Mashburn faded. His only point in the second quarter was a free throw with 21 seconds left. With the Hornets clinging to a 58-56 lead with 5:47 left in the third quarter, Mashburn made two costly mistakes on one possession. He had the ball out on the left wing with about 10 seconds left on the shot clock. Instead of taking the open baseline jumper, he drove to the basket. About 10 feet from the basket, he passed to David Wesley at the top of the key. There was one problem – there was about one second on the shot clock, not even enough time for Wesley to catch and shoot. Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories

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