NBA: Booker shines as Suns sink Clippers, Celtics dominant

Devin Booker led a second-half rally as the Phoenix Suns came from behind to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers, 123-109, and level their Western Conference playoff series 1-1 on Tuesday.

Booker scored 18 points in the third quarter before finishing with a 38-point haul to complete a battling comeback by Phoenix, who had trailed by 13 in the second quarter against the Kawhi Leonard-inspired Clippers.

The Clippers stunned Phoenix at home in Game 1 on Sunday and appeared to be well on their way to taking a commanding 2-0 series lead after surging into a 49-36 lead with just over five minutes remaining in the second quarter.

But Kevin Durant, veteran Chris Paul and Booker sparked into life for Phoenix in the closing minutes of the first half to erase the Clippers lead, and Booker drained a 27-foot three-pointer on the stroke of half-time to make it a tie game at 59-59 at the break.

Booker then took over with a flurry of scoring in the third quarter to fire Phoenix into a 92-87 lead heading into the final quarter.

Durant finished with 25 points while Paul chipped in with 16 to help see Phoenix home as the series heads to Los Angeles for game three on Thursday.

"We wanted to protect home court in game two, we got one, and now we're off to LA," Booker said afterwards.

"It's the playoffs, it's win at all costs -- doesn't matter what happened these past two games. You've got to move on to the next one -- it's a new assignment for us."

Leonard led the scoring for the Clippers with 31 points, eight rebounds and seven assists while Russell Westbrook had 28 points.

In other playoff action, Jayson Tatum starred as the Boston Celtics took a 2-0 series lead over the Atlanta Hawks, while Darius Garland delivered a 32-point gem in Cleveland's series-leveling rout of the New York Knicks.

Tatum finished with 29 points as the second-seeded Celtics overcame a slow start to dominate the seventh-seeded Hawks for a 119-106 victory at Boston's TD Garden.

"Playoffs are all about adjustments, trying to move on from game to game, seeing what you can do better -- and I think we played better," Tatum said.

"We want to be peaking at this time of year. Everybody's healthy, playing the right way, playing really well -- but we've got another level we can go to hopefully."

Atlanta jumped out to a 22-11 lead in the first quarter before Boston's offense clicked to give the Celtics a 28-25 lead heading into the second quarter.

Once in front, the Celtics never relinquished the advantage, opening up a 61-49 half-time lead and extending that to 20 points midway through the third quarter as Boston's defense shut down Atlanta's scoring.

Atlanta rallied to get within eight points of the Celtics in the fourth quarter, but Boston never looked like squandering their lead down the stretch and pulled away convincingly to ensure they will take a 2-0 advantage into game three in Atlanta on Friday.

Tatum finished with 29 points including five three-pointers, while Derrick White provided offensive support with 26 points and Jaylen Brown added 18 points.

Dejounte Murray led Atlanta's scorers with 29 points while Trae Young finished with 24.

"They won, we lost -- we've just got to be better," Atlanta playmaker Young said.

Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference on Tuesday, the Cleveland Cavaliers roared back into their best-of-seven series with the Knicks to score a 107-90 win.

Beaten 101-97 in game one on Saturday, the Cavaliers bounced back in spectacular fashion to score a blowout victory.

Cleveland opened up a 25-22 first-quarter lead and never looked back, outscoring Cleveland 34-17 in the second quarter to take a decisive grip on the contest.

New York failed to get within 15 points of the Cavs throughout the second half, as Cleveland powered on to lead by as many as 29 midway through the fourth quarter.

Cleveland point guard Garland produced a sparkling display with 32 points -- 26 of them in a devastating first-half scoring burst.

Caris LeVert added 24 off the bench while Donovan Mitchell added 17 points with 13 assists.

The Knicks offense failed to fire, with the team's 90-point total their second lowest tally of the season.

Julius Randle finished with 22 points while Jalen Brunson added 20.

Game 3 of the series takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York on Friday.

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Booker scores 58 as Suns beat Pelicans, Thunder top Grizzlies

LOS ANGELES -- Devin Booker scored 58 points to propel the Phoenix Suns to a come-from-behind 118-114 victory over New Orleans on Saturday, his second 50-point performance of the NBA season.

Booker scored 36 points in the second half as the Suns, who trailed by as many as 24 in the third quarter, sliced the deficit to 89-84 heading into the final frame.

They took a 106-105 lead on Chris Paul's three pointer with 5:24 to play. The Pelicans would tie it up one more time before Bismack Biyombo's layup put Phoenix ahead for good with 4:11 remaining.

With his second 50-point game of the season Booker, 26, became the sixth-youngest player to score 12,000 points.

Paul scored 18 points and Mykal Bridges added 15 for the Suns.

Zion Williamson scored 30 to lead the Pelicans, who fell to 18-11 -- one game behind Western Conference leaders Memphis whose whose seven-game winning streak ended with a 115-109 loss to the Thunder in Oklahoma City.

The Grizzlies were down 61-40 when star Ja Morant was ejected in the waning seconds of the first half after he received a second technical foul apparently for criticizing the officiating while talking to a fan.

Morant, who had picked up his first technical seconds earlier complaining about a call, finished with six points and five rebounds.

Dillon Brooks drained six three-pointers on the way to 32 points for Memphis, but Oklahoma City, without offensive standouts Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey, dominated.

Lu Dort scored 24 points with seven rebounds and four assists to lead the Thunder and Isaiah Joe added 23 points as Oklahoma City snapped a five-game skid.

In Cleveland, Jarrett Allen’s dunk with 2:01 left in overtime gave the Cavaliers a 100-99 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.

The Mavs came up empty on three ensuing possessions and the Cavs notched their fifth win in five overtime games this season.

Donovan Mitchell led Cleveland with 25 points and came up with a steal in the final minute of overtime.

Dallas' Kemba Walker scored 32 points but missed a jump shot with 12.7 seconds left in OT and Christian Wood was off target as time expired.

- Miami win in Mexico -

The Miami Heat pounced late to beat the San Antonio Spurs 111-101 in Mexico City, where commissioner Adam Silver discussed the prospect of NBA expansion south of the border.

A sellout crowd of 20,160 turned out at Mexico City Arena, where the Spurs seized the initiative with a 19-0 first-quarter run.

The young Spurs team led by three at halftime and were up by four going into the final period, but Miami's experience and tough defense paid off in a 31-17 fourth quarter advantage that delivered the victory.

Jimmy Butler scored 26 points and grabbed five rebounds, Bam Adebayo added 22 points and 13 rebounds and Tyler Herro added 21 points for Miami, who won their fourth straight.

Before the game Silver reiterated his belief that the NBA could one day expand into Mexico.

"When you look at the success we've had in Canada to the north, beginning in the early '90s, it makes sense to me that we would expand to the south, as well," Silver said. "I don't have a specific timeline right now in terms of expansion, but there's no doubt we will be looking seriously at Mexico City over time."

In Los Angeles, Kawhi Leonard shook off a slow start to score a season-high 31 points and lead the Clippers to a 102-93 victory over the Washington Wizards.

Leonard missed all four of his shots in the first quarter, but found his groove to carry the Clippers who were without injured Paul George, Ivica Zubac, Reggie Jackson and Norman Powell.

Portland star Damian Lillard scored 25 points and handed out 10 assists in the Trail Blazers' 107-95 victory over the Rockets in Houston.

But it was teammate Anfernee Simons who jump-started the Blazers' offense, scoring 14 of his 32 points in the first quarter.

In Milwaukee, the Bucks had little trouble in a 123-97 victory over the Utah Jazz, despite the absence of two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo who was nursing a sore left knee.

Agence France-Presse

NBA: Suns hold off Spurs for 13th straight win

Devin Booker scored 23 points, and Deandre Ayton had 21 points and 14 rebounds, as the visiting Phoenix Suns had just enough in their tank to outlast the San Antonio Spurs 115-111 on Monday to win their 13th consecutive game.

The Suns' streak is their longest since the 2006-07 season when they won a franchise-high 17 straight.

The Suns (14-3), playing the second game of a home-road back-to-back, pulled away from San Antonio early in the second quarter, and led by 13 points at halftime. Phoenix never let the Spurs closer than three points in the second half despite running out of gas in the final minutes.

Dejounte Murray's steal and running layup brought the Spurs to within 114-111 with 15.2 seconds to play but Booker hit a free throw with 9.3 seconds left and Phoenix was able to hold on.

Cameron Payne added 20 points for the Suns, with JaVale McGee scoring 14, Chris Paul 12 and Landry Shamet 11.

Derrick White led the Spurs with 19 points while Murray had a triple double (18 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds), Devin Vassell hit for 17 points, Jakob Poeltl had 15 and Lonnie Walker IV 11.

San Antonio (4-12) has lost a season-high five straight games and is off to its worst start since the 1996-97 season, when it finished 20-62.

The Suns used a late first-quarter run to tie the game at 20, then pushed their lead to a dozen after a McGee turnaround jumper at the 8:11 mark of the second period. Phoenix built its lead to as many as 15 points on Jae Crowder's 3-pointer with 3:49 to play in the quarter and took a 57-44 advantage into the break.

Ayton led all scorers with 14 points at halftime. Phoenix outshot the Spurs 50 percent to 43.2 percent and made 7 of their 14 shots from beyond the arc in the first 24 minutes.

Vassell paced the Spurs with 10 off the bench in the first half. San Antonio, which is 29th in the league in free throw percentage (69.4 percent) was just 4-for-11 from the line in the half.

-reuters-

NBA: Devin Booker guides Suns past slumping Rockets

Devin Booker recorded 27 points, nine rebounds and five assists to help the Phoenix Suns post a 123-111 victory over the visiting Houston Rockets on Thursday night.

Landry Shamet scored 19 points off the bench, Deandre Ayton added 16 points and 11 rebounds and Mikal Bridges also scored 16 points as the Suns won their third consecutive game.

Phoenix's Chris Paul registered 13 assists for his sixth double-digit effort in seven games. He also had nine points and five steals.

Kevin Porter Jr. scored 20 points and Christian Wood added 18 points and 15 rebounds for the Rockets, who lost their sixth straight game.

Houston's Jalen Green scored 16 points despite being shooting just 3 of 14 from the field. Jae'Sean Tate added 14 points, reserve Eric Gordon scored 12 and Alperen Sengun had 10.

The Rockets shot 43.7 percent from the field and were 11 of 31 (35.5 percent) from behind the arc.

Cameron Johnson added 12 points and JaVale McGee had 11 for Phoenix, which shot 47.3 percent from the field and 14 of 31 (45.2 percent) from 3-point range.

Houston led, 61-56, at halftime before Phoenix scored 37 third-quarter points to take a seven-point lead into the final stanza.

A Gordon layup with 3:20 left in the third gave the Rockets an 81-78 lead before the Suns answered with a 15-2 run. Booker's 3-pointer, Shamet's dunk and Elfrid Payton's tip-in gave Phoenix a 93-83 lead with 33.2 seconds left before Houston's D.J. Augustin connected on a 3-pointer for the quarter's final tally.

Shamet buried a 3-pointer to cap an 8-0 burst early in the final quarter as the Suns took a 101-88 advantage. Phoenix pushed the lead to 110-95 on Abdel Nader's two free throws with 8:01 remaining.

The Rockets rattled off the next eight points, the last four from Tate, to move within seven. But Booker and Paul each sank two free throws and Bridges added two baskets to make it 118-103 with 2:15 left, and Phoenix closed it out.

The Suns led, 36-30, after the opening quarter but made just 8 of 25 field-goal attempts in the second. Houston took advantage, outscoring Phoenix by 11 in the quarter to hold the five-point lead at the break.

-reuters-

NBA: Suns hold on to take 3-1 series lead over Clippers

Devin Booker scored 25 points before fouling out and Deandre Ayton added 19 points with 22 rebounds as the Phoenix Suns moved one game from their first NBA Finals appearance in 28 years by holding on for an 84-80 victory Saturday over the host Los Angeles Clippers.

Chris Paul, in his second game back from COVID-19 protocol, had 18 points and seven assists as the Suns took a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference finals. Paul made five free throws in the final seven seconds to seal the victory.

The Suns now have three chances to earn their spot in the Finals, with their first opportunity coming in Game 5 on Monday at Phoenix.

Paul George had 23 points and 16 rebounds for the Clippers, but shot 5 of 20 from the field and 1 of 9 from 3-point range, while Reggie Jackson scored 20 points.

Los Angeles shot just 32.5 percent from the field as it played without Kawhi Leonard for the sixth consecutive playoff game because of a knee injury.

Trailing 50-36 at the half, the Clippers got back in the game by outscoring the Suns 30-19 in the third quarter. Los Angeles then had multiple chances to take the lead in the fourth quarter, but both teams went through a nearly four-minute scoreless stretch to keep the Suns ahead at 71-70.

Neither team shot well from the field in the fourth quarter, with the Suns shooting 21.1 percent to 15.8 percent for the Clippers. With the Clippers in need of somebody to lean on while playing without Leonard, George was just 1 of 7 from the field in the final period.

Terance Mann got the Clippers within 79-76 on a layup with 58.5 seconds to play, shortly after Booker fouled out after a charge on the offensive end. Two free throws from Paul with 7.0 seconds remaining gave the Suns an 81-78 lead.

After an exchange of free throws, George made one for the Clippers with 3.2 seconds left to get Los Angeles within 82-80. He missed the second intentionally, but the Suns got the rebound and Paul made two foul shots to put the game away.

The Clippers finished just 5 of 31 (16.1 percent) from 3-point range in the game, while the Suns were 4 of 20 (20 percent). Phoenix shot 36 percent overall.

Mikal Bridges had 13 rebounds for the Suns, while Ivica Zubac had 13 points and 14 rebounds for the Clippers. Mann had 12 for Los Angeles.

-reuters-

NBA: Devin Booker leads Suns to blowout win, 3-2 lead over Lakers

Devin Booker recorded 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists to help the host Phoenix Suns steamroll the Los Angeles Lakers 115-85 on Tuesday night and take a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference first-round series.

Cameron Payne added 16 points off the bench and the Suns led by as many as 36 points while notching their second consecutive win in the seven-game series.

LeBron James registered 24 points, seven assists and five rebounds for the Lakers, who played without Anthony Davis (groin).

Game 6 is Thursday night at Los Angeles.

Chris Paul of the Suns reinjured his right shoulder while battling for rebounding position with 6:47 left in the third quarter and didn't return. He was officially ruled out early in the fourth quarter due to a contusion.

Paul had nine points, six assists and four rebounds in 23 minutes on a night in which Phoenix tallied 29 assists and committed just four turnovers. Los Angeles had 16 turnovers.

The Suns' domination included a 30-point halftime lead that was the largest in franchise playoff history, while it marked Los Angeles' second-largest halftime playoff deficit. The Lakers trailed the Portland Trail Blazers 75-41 in a first-round playoff game on April 23, 1992.

Mikal Bridges tallied 13 points for Phoenix, which shot 45.7 percent from the field and made 14 of 42 from 3-point range.

Kyle Kuzma added 15 points for the Lakers, who connected on 34.5 percent of their shots, including 12 of 35 from behind the arc.

The Lakers led 10-5 in the opening minutes before Phoenix scored the next 16 points to take the lead for good.

Booker scored 18 points in the opening stanza as the Suns held a 34-26 lead entering the second period.

Phoenix began the second quarter with a 16-1 burst, opening up a 50-27 lead on Paul's basket with 6:37 left.

Deandre Ayton's basket with 48 seconds remaining gave the Suns a 66-36 halftime lead. Phoenix outscored Los Angeles 32-10 in the stanza.

The Suns increased the lead to 36 points on Booker's basket with 7:30 left in the third quarter, shortly before Paul was reinjured. But the loss of its floor leader didn't bother Phoenix as it continued to lead comfortably while finishing off the rout.

Los Angeles' Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (knee) played 15 scoreless minutes before leaving. He missed Game 4 due to the injury.

-reuters-

NBA: Booker nets 26 as Suns dump slumping Timberwolves

Devin Booker had 26 points and three 3-pointers and Kelly Oubre Jr. had 24 points on his 24th birthday when the host Phoenix Suns pulled away from the Minnesota Timberwolves for a 125-109 victory Monday night.

Dario Saric had 20 points and was a rebound short of his fifth double-double in the last eight games and Ricky Rubio had 16 points and 14 assists for the Suns, who beat Timberwolves for the second time in 17 days to get within one game of .500.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 33 points and 15 rebounds, Andrew Wiggins had 23 points and Jeff Teague had 16 points and four assists off the bench for the Timberwolves, who extended a season-long losing streak to five.

The teams yoyo-ed through 15 lead changes and 16 ties through the first 27 minutes before the Suns opened some space when Booker made back-to-back 3-pointers for a 73-68 lead. The Suns gradually pulled away, stretching their lead to as many as 19. Minnesota was never closer than seven in the final nine minutes after Cam Johnson's trey made it 100-90.

Suns center Aron Baynes, who had missed the previous four games and nine of the last 10 with injuries, had 12 points and four rebounds in 15 minutes. His 3-pointer late in the third quarter made it 92-81, the Suns' largest lead to that point.

The Suns made 16-of-40 3-pointers, their eighth game with at least 15 makes this season. Oubre, Saric, Rubio, Johnson, Baynes and Frank Kaminsky had two 3-pointers apiece.

Rubio has at least 13 assists in his last three games and at least nine assists in six straight games, the longest streak by a Suns player since Goran Dragic in March 2013. The Suns have 29 or more assists in their last seven, their longest stretch since 2007.

Minnesota lost all four games on the trip that ended in Phoenix, by a total of 52 points. They gave up 121, 137 and 142 points in the first three losses.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Hot-shooting Suns cruise past Kings

Devin Booker scored 22 points and Kelly Oubre Jr. added 21 to lead a balanced attack as the host Phoenix Suns pulled away from the Sacramento Kings 124-95 on Wednesday in the season opener for both teams.

Deandre Ayton had 18 points and 11 rebounds, and new point guard Ricky Rubio contributed 11 points and 11 assists in his Suns debut after signing a three-year, $15 million free agent deal this summer.

Six Suns scored in double figures in coach Monty Williams' debut, and Booker handed out 10 assists.

Buddy Hield had 28 points and sank six 3-pointers, Marvin Bagley III scored 14 points, Harrison Barnes had 12 and Cory Joseph 10 for the Kings in coach Luke Walton's debut. Walton spent the previous three seasons as the Los Angeles Lakers' coach.

The Suns outscored the Kings 70-36 in the second half and shot 59.7 percent from the field in the half, climbing to 50 percent for the game. The Kings shot 39.1 percent and were 11 of 40 (27.5 percent) from the field in the second half.

The Suns broke the game open with a 34-15 run that began midway through the third quarter, jumping from a 64-64 tie to take a 98-79 lead with 7:37 left in the game.

During the surge, Phoenix reserve guard Jevon Carter made two consecutive 3-pointers to stretch the lead to 83-73 late in the third quarter. Reserve guard Tyler Johnson made two threes and a mid-range jumper to cap the run.

Hield, planning his first game since finalizing a four-year, $94 million max contract extension Monday, had 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting with five treys in the first half. He was 2-for-7 from the floor with one 3-pointer in the second half.

Kings guard De'Aaron Fox, limited by foul trouble, had eight points, five assists and five turnovers. He picked up three fouls in the first half and played only 27 minutes.

The Suns had 68 points in the paint to the Kings' 34.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Booker shines but Celtics roll on

LOS ANGELES -- Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker scored 38 points but it was not enough to prevent the Boston Celtics rolling on to their 20th victory of the season on Saturday.

Booker produced a scoring masterclass and contributed four rebounds and five assists only to see his efforts end in a 116-111 defeat at the TD Garden.

Booker's scoring display came after he scored 70 points at the same venue during a defeat last season.

Afterwards the 21-year-old said he had been inspired by the venue.

 
"Every time you step in a building of this (history), you get that feeling," he said. "It kind of reminds you of that Madison Square Garden, Staples Center feel where it's just, you can feel the rich history coming through here.

"Me growing up a big fan of the game just watching all the battles that have been in Boston my whole life and before my life. You know there's some rich tradition here."

Boston, who improved to 20-4 to consolidate their position at the top of the Eastern Conference standings, outlasted the Suns thanks to an all-round offensive effort.

Kyrie Irving once again led the way for Boston, scoring 19 points on a day when six Celtics players made double figures.

Irving, who scored five of his points in the last two minutes, said Boston had adopted a simple gameplan: "Stop Devin Booker, honestly."

Jaylen Brown added 17 points while Jayson Tatum had 15 points and Al Horford 14 points. Horford also snared five rebounds and had 11 assists.

Marcus Morris and Marcus Smart both made valuable contributions from the bench, with 17 and 13 points respectively.

Brown was similarly awed by Booker's scoring display.

"(Booker) doesn't have a conscious -- he can shoot with no remorse," Brown said. "He can let it fly whenever he wants and he's really good. He has the green light and that's what makes it tough."

Boston were set on the way to victory after making a fast start, opening up a 31-22 lead in the first quarter which ultimately allowed the Celtics to keep the Suns at arm's length throughout.

Phoenix reduced the deficit to six points at half-time after outscoring Boston in the second quarter, but the Celtics rallied in the third to open up a 89-79 lead heading into the final period.

Phoenix closed to within two points after Tyson Chandler's alley-oop dunk made it 105-103.

But a three-pointer from Irving on the next attack put Boston 108-103 ahead with just under two minutes left.

Irving also produced another moment of magic with a driving layup to give Boston a 112-106 lead before the Celtics closed out the win.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

LeBron, Love carry Cavaliers past Suns

LeBron James had 21 points and nine assists and forward Kevin Love had 21 points and 11 rebounds in the Cleveland Cavaliers' 115-93 victory over the Phoenix Suns.

Rookie guard Devin Booker scored 16 points for the Suns, who have lost their last 12 road games and 16 of their last 18 overall.

The Cavs scored the first 12 points of the third quarter to blow the game open.

The Suns committed turnovers on four of their first five possessions in the quarter and went scoreless for the first three minutes of the second half, allowing the Cavs to open a 17-point lead.

Cleveland stretched the lead to 28 and were never threatened.

Guards J.R. Smith and Kyrie Irving each had two steals in the third quarter and the Suns committed nine turnovers in the quarter -- nearly as many as they had in the first half (10).

Smith scored 18 points and center Timofey Mozgov had 10 off the bench. Irving finished with eight points, three assists and three turnovers.

Forward P.J. Tucker had 13 points and seven rebounds for the Suns. Forward Markieff Morris scored 13 points off the bench.

The win capped an emotional day for James, who earlier fired back at critics who have labeled him a coach killer.

"I think it does (stink) that people want to throw my name in dirt for no particular reason, because of speculation or whatever the case may be," James said.

"But you can't worry about it too much. I got 14 guys here. I got a fan base here and a fan base all over the world that loves what I do and they respect what I do and I can't worry about a select group of people that want to use their negative energy to take away my positive energy.

"I can't allow that to happen." (Editing by Amlan Chakraborty)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com