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

Blazers squeeze past Nuggets in 4-OT marathon

CJ McCollum scored 41 points as the Portland Trail Blazers pulled out a 140-137 victory over the visiting Denver Nuggets in four overtimes Friday night in the longest NBA playoff game since 1953.

Damian Lillard added 28 points for the Trail Blazers, who took a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinals.

Jamal Murray scored 34 points, and Nikola Jokic collected 33 points, 18 rebounds and 14 assists for the Nuggets in a game that featured 24 lead changes.

Game 4 is scheduled for Sunday in Portland.

Will Barton split a pair at the line, giving Denver a 134-133 lead with one minute left in the fourth OT, but Rodney Hood's baseline jumper pushed Portland in front 135-134 with 44.9 seconds to go. Paul Millsap's layup lifted the Nuggets into a 136-135 advantage with 27.6 seconds to play.

Hood swished a 3-pointer to give the Blazers a 138-136 edge with 17.8 seconds remaining. Jokic made 1 of 2 foul shots to make it 138-137 with 5.6 seconds on the clock.

Portland's Seth Curry hit a pair at the line for a 140-137 lead with 2.8 ticks left. Denver's inbounds pass was intercepted, and the game was Portland's.

At the end of regulation, Lillard scored on a driving layup to give the Blazers a 102-100 edge with 31.6 seconds left.

Barton's layup tied it again at 102-102 with 28.6 seconds remaining. Portland's Al-Farouq Aminu missed a 3-point attempt, and it was on to overtime.

In the first overtime, Millsap scored on a jump hook to pull the Nuggets ahead 109-107 with 47.1 seconds to play.

After misses at both ends, McCollum evened the score at 109-109 on a floater with 8.7 ticks left.

After a timeout, Jokic missed a desperation 3-point attempt, forcing a second extra session.

In the second OT, McCollum's step-back jumper made it 118-116 Portland with 1:26 remaining, but Barton tied it on a layup with 1:03 left.

Neither team scored again, and it was on to a third overtime.

Millsap made it 129-125 on a turnaround jumper with 32.2 seconds remaining in the third extra session.

Lillard scored on a driving layup to trim the difference to 129-127 with 27.3 seconds left. After a Denver turnover, Lillard converted another driving layup to square it at 129-129 with 8.4 ticks left.

Murray's desperation 3-point try missed as time expired, and a fourth extra session loomed.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA: Rockets take Game 5, inch closer to dethroning Warriors

Eric Gordon sank two free throws with 2.4 seconds left, and the Houston Rockets eked out a 98-94 victory over the visiting Golden State Warriors in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals on Thursday at Toyota Center.

With the Rockets clinging to a two-point lead, Gordon sealed the victory at the foul line. The Warriors had an opportunity to pull even on their previous possession, but Draymond Green lost the basketball attempting a drive to the basket. Gordon recovered the loose ball.

The Rockets will take a 3-2 series lead back to Oakland, Calif., with a chance to close out the defending champions on Saturday.

Houston won Game 5 despite James Harden missing all 11 of his 3-point attempts while finishing with 19 points on 5-of-21 shooting. He also committed six turnovers.

The Rockets' other leader, Chris Paul, was on the bench for the final 22.4 seconds due to a right hamstring injury. Paul scored 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting in the second half after scoring two points and missing all seven of his field-goal attempts before halftime.

Gordon tallied a team-high 24 points off the bench.

Kevin Durant paced the Warriors with 29 points while Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined for 45 points on 16-of-31 shooting. 

However, Curry missed a runner off the glass with the Warriors trailing by one point down the stretch. Green had 12 points, 15 rebounds and six turnovers.

Paul hit his first basket at the 9:43 mark of the second half, a 3-pointer that lifted Houston to a 52-49 lead. That served to ignite him.

The Rockets benefitted greatly from the Warriors' lackadaisical ball security in the first half, recording nine points off eight Golden State turnovers to tread water despite their horrid shooting. 

Houston closed the half 6 of 24 from behind the arc with Harden and Paul misfiring on all 10 of their 3-point attempts while shooting 4 of 20 overall prior to the intermission.

Golden State closed the second quarter with an 8-0 spurt and pulled even at the break after Durant kept them afloat with 18 first-half points.

After combining for zero points on 0-of-4 shooting in the first quarter, Curry and Thompson started building momentum in the second and closed the half with 18 combined points. 

When Thompson scored through a foul on the first possession of the second half, the Warriors captured their first lead of the game at 47-45.

Each team wound up with as many turnovers as assists. The Warriors had 18 of each, the Rockets 12 of each.

Houston won despite being outshot from the floor 44.4 percent to 37.2 percent.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

WATCH: Steph Curry's third-quarter explosion keys Warriors' win

It took three games, but the scoring outburst that everyone expected from Stephen Curry finally happened.

Struggling in the first two games of their Western Conference finals series against the Houston Rockets, Curry got untracked in Game 3 to propel the Golden State Warriors to a huge 126-85 win.

The result put the defending NBA champions on top, 2-1, in their best-of-seven series.

Curry scored a game-high 35 points, 18 of which came in an intense third-quarter flurry that allowed the Warriors to break the game open.

After making only one three-pointer each in the first two games of the series, Curry drilled five of his 12 attempts from beyond the arc in Game 3.

"For four days everybody's been talking about him, and what he did tonight didn't surprise any of us because that's just who he is," Golden State head coach Steve Kerr said of Curry.

"He's got unbelievable character, great talent, and always rises when he needs to," he added.

Curry also added six rebounds and an assist to his stat line. The Warriors outscored the Rockets by 24 points during his 34 minutes on the floor.

Before his Game 3 explosion, Curry averaged 17 points in the first two games and made only two of 13 attempts from the three-point area.

Game 4 of the series is on Tuesday in Oakland (Wednesday in Manila).

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Warriors' Curry says 'no panic' after big loss to Rockets

LOS ANGELES, United States - Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Stephen Curry said there's "no panic" in the Golden State Warriors locker room after a 22-point loss to the Houston Rockets in game two of the Western Conference finals.

Curry looked significantly off his game on Wednesday night, connecting on just seven of 19 shots from the floor, including one of eight from three-point range. He finished with 16 points but never established the remarkable range that can stretch opposing defenses to the breaking point.

His 16 points -- on the heels of an 18-point performance in game one -- marked the first time Curry has failed to reach at least 20 points in consecutive playoff games since the 2016 NBA Finals, when he was nursing a knee injury.

His struggles were mirrored by most of his teammates. Kevin Durant was a predictable rock with 38 points, but Klay Thompson scored just eight, Draymond Green six and Andrea Iguodala five as the Warriors offense stagnated.

"No panic," Curry insisted after the game. "No houses-on-fire type of mentality in our locker room. We're in pretty good shape right now."

The Warriors, indeed, headed home to host games three and four on Sunday and Tuesday having shocked the 65-win Rockets in game one.

And Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he was certain Curry would find his groove.

"I'm not worried about Steph," Kerr said. "He's the kind of competitor and player who will bounce back from a tough night."

Both Kerr and Curry himself were adamant that Curry's troubles were unrelated to the sprained knee ligament that sidelined him for 16 games until his return in the second game of the Warriors' second-round series against the New Orleans Pelicans.

"I'm feeling great," Curry said. "I didn't find a rhythm early. I had some decent looks from three that could have changed the momentum of the game of the game early in the first half."

Curry said he and the Warriors need look no further for inspiration than Durant.

"He has been amazing," Curry said. "I think we all need to feed off that focus and that determination. If he can continue to do what he does, I'll shoot the ball better and play better defense, other guys will get involved and we'll be in great shape."

bb/js

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Durant, Warriors cruise past Spurs for 3-0 lead

Kevin Durant scored a game-high 26 points Thursday night as the Golden State Warriors moved within one game of a first-round playoff sweep of the San Antonio Spurs with a 110-97 victory in San Antonio.

The second-seeded Warriors can advance to the Western Conference semifinals with a victory in Game 4 at San Antonio on Sunday afternoon.

No team has ever rebounded from a 3-0 deficit to win an NBA playoff series.

The only negatives for Golden State were Durant rolling his left ankle and guard Shaun Livingston turning his right ankle in the fourth quarter. Durant left the game for good with the Warriors ahead by 15 points.

Afterward, Warriors coach Steve Kerr said, "Both sprained ankles, but I think they'll be all right."

The Spurs played Game 3 without coach Gregg Popovich, whose wife, Erin, died Wednesday. Assistant coach Ettore Messina filled in for Popovich.

Golden State put itself in a commanding position in the series by gradually pulling away from the seventh-seeded Spurs, who had the third-best home record in the NBA during the regular season.

Five Golden State players, including Durant, bombed in 3-pointers in the third quarter, as the Warriors turned a 58-56 advantage into an 84-68 margin late in the period.

Durant hit nine of his 17 shots to help Golden State outshoot the Spurs 51.2 percent to 42.5 percent from the floor.

Durant also collected a team-high nine rebounds and handed out six assists.

Klay Thompson contributed 19 points, Livingston 16 and Quinn Cook 12 for Golden State, while Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala added 10 apiece.

Green had a game-high seven assists to go with six rebounds and four blocked shots for the Warriors, who have won at least one road game in their past 17 playoff series.

The win was the Warriors' 11th in their past 12 meetings with the Spurs, and also was the 50th for Kerr in 65 playoff games. He became the fastest in NBA history to reach the milestone.

LaMarcus Aldridge posted an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double for the Spurs, who lost in the first round of the playoffs just four times in their previous 20 visits.

Tony Parker had 16 points, Patty Mills 14 and Rudy Gay 11 for San Antonio, which shot just 7-for-33 (21.2 percent) from 3-point range.

--Field Level Media

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Mills scores 32 to spark Spurs over Bobcats

CHARLOTTE - Australian guard Patty Mills came off the San Antonio bench to score a game-high 32 points and lift the Spurs over Charlotte 104-100 in an NBA game Saturday.

The 25-year-old from Canberra made 10-of-13 shots from the field, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range, and sank 8-of-9 from the free throw line while also contributing seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.

Mills rescued the Spurs on a night when their starters struggled to find their shooting touch.

French guard Tony Parker went 3-of-13 and scored only nine points, while countryman Boris Diaw had 13 points and French reserve guard Nando de Colo added 15 points.

Spurs big man Tim Duncan had 16 points and 13 rebounds but made only 6-of-13 from the floor. In all, San Antonio starters went 18-of-48 from the floor.

Charlotte center Al Jefferson had 26 points and nine rebounds, while Bobcats guard Gerald Henderson added 23 points in a losing cause.

The Spurs improved to 37-14, the second-best record in the Western Conference, to stretch their Southwest division lead with a fourth win in their past five games.

Charlotte sank to 22-29, still in the eighth and final playoff position in the Eastern Conference.

The score was deadlocked at 82-82, when the Spurs seized command with a 12-4 run sparked by a Mills jumper and a floating loft shot.

Charlotte pulled within 100-97 with 10.4 seconds remaining, but de Colo added two free throws to stretch San Antonio's lead.

A Henderson three-pointer gave the Bobcats their final points, but de Colo sank two final free throws to seal Charlotte's fate.

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Kobe urges fans to vote young players for All-Star Game

MANILA, Philippines – Injured Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant doubts he can return to peak form in time for the 2014 All-Star Game and is instead urging NBA fans to vote for younger players, such as Portland guard Damian Lillard.

Bryant, a 15-time All-Star, is the second-leading vote-getter in the Western Conference. But he suffered a fractured left tibial plateau in a game against the Memphis Grizzlies last December 17, which will cause him to miss at least six weeks.

If he follows the timetable, Bryant will only have been playing one or two weeks by the time the All-Star Game rolls around on February 16 in New Orleans.

“I probably won’t be able to come back soon enough to put my stamp or make my mark on the game,” said Bryant, a four-time All-Star Game MVP, in an ESPN interview. “My advice would be to focus on these younger players, the Damian Lillards of the world, because they’re more than deserving to be playing on that weekend.” [http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/story/_/id/10248816/kobe-bryant-flattered-all-star-votes-touts-young-players]

Portland’s Lillard is the reigning NBA Rookie of the Year and has helped lead the Trail Blazers to a 26-8 record, tied for second best in the West.

“I really enjoy watching what the younger guys are doing and how they’re performing,” Bryant said. “Even though there’s so much respect from me to be able to go out there and play for the fans, I’d much rather see the young guys play in the game because they’ve obviously put the work in to be in it.”

“I’d much rather go out there and see them participate,” he added.

Bryant played in only six games this season. He returned to action last December after suffering an Achilles tendon injury in April, but soon injured his left knee.

“I’m pretty restricted in terms of what I can do, just staying on the (stationary) bike,” Bryant told the Los Angeles Times. “I’m focusing on staying in shape.”

Bryant said the time off is also helping the recovery of his torn Achilles.

“It helps. You get a chance to get the Achilles even stronger and rest even more where it’s not a concern whatsoever,” he added.

The Lakers currently have a 14-20 record, 13th in the Western Conference.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Kobe powers Lakers past Trail Blazers

Kobe Bryant scored 47 points to lead the visiting Los Angeles Lakers past the Portland Trail Blazers, 113-106, solidifying their hold on the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.


Playing all 48 minutes of the contest, Bryant also had eight rebounds, five assists, three steals and five blocked shots against only one turnover. His 47 points was a season-high, and set a Rose Garden record for the most points scored in a game by a Blazers opponent.

"He imposed his will on us tonight," Portland forward LaMarcus Aldridge said of Bryant. "He didn't want to lose the game."

Despite giving up 41 points to the Blazers in the opening period alone, the Lakers managed to come to the halftime break down only by eight points, 61-69.

They opened the third quarter on a 17-2 run to seize control, 78-71, but Rookie of the Year front-runner Damian Lillard brought the Blazers back to the contest after scoring seven points in a span of 24 seconds.

The two squads went back-and-forth early in the fourth period, with the Blazers taking their last lead of the game at 100-98 after a jumper by Will Barton.

A lay-up by Steve Blake off a feed from Pau Gasol sparked a 8-0 run for the Lakers, and two alley-oop dunks by Dwight Howard in the final three minutes sealed the victory.

The Blazers closed to within 108-104 with 1:15 left, but point guard Steve Blake grabbed two crucial rebounds in the final minute to preserve the win for Los Angeles.

"Lillard came out and just started torching us,"Bryant said of the Blazers rookie, who had 17 points in the opening frame. "I figured I'd try to keep the pace. It was like a marathon run, where a runner takes off, and the guy behind him doesn't really want to chase him, but has to just to keep pace."

The Lakers are now at 42-37, a full game ahead of the Utah Jazz for the final playoff spot in the West.

Gasol finished with 23 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, while Howard had 20 points and 10 boards.

Lillard wound up with a career-high 38 points and nine assists in a losing effort for Portland, who dropped to 33-45 this season. – With a report from Reuters

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Thunder beat Spurs in duel of West's top teams

OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma - Russell Westbrook scored a game-high 27 points Thursday to lead Oklahoma City to a 100-88 NBA victory over San Antonio in a duel between the top teams in the Western Conference.

Westbrook also grabbed seven rebounds and handed out seven assists for the Thunder, who whittled the Spurs' lead in the race for the best record in the West to one-half game.

Kevin Durant added 25 points, nine rebounds and six assists for the Thunder, while veteran Derek Fisher drained five three-pointers in contributing 17 points off the bench.

Oklahoma City have now won two straight games and five of their last six.

Tim Duncan and Kawhi Leonard both notched double-doubles for the Spurs, but San Antonio have lost three of their last four games.

Both Duncan and Leonard scored 24 points, Duncan adding 11 rebounds and Leonard pulling down 14.

The Spurs were again without injured Manu Ginobili, who is battling a hamstring problem.

Guard Tony Parker, who missed Wednesday's 98-84 Spurs win over Orlando, returned but scored just two points, connecting on just one of six shots from the floor.

source: abs-cbnnews.com