NBA Playoffs: Celtics Crush Cavaliers 113-98 to Advance to the Eastern Conference Finals; Mavericks Lead Thunder
In the NBA Conference Semi-Finals, the Boston Celtics defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 4-1 in a series by winning 113-98 at TD Garden. With a victory at home on Saturday, the Dallas Mavericks, who now lead the Oklahoma City Thunder 3-2, can go to the West finals.
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NBA Eastern Conference Semi-Finals: Boston Celtics defeat Cleveland Cavaliers
The Boston Celtics won 113-98 at TD Garden to take a 4-1 series lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Conference Semi-Finals. The Dallas Mavericks, who now have a 3-2 lead over the Oklahoma City Thunder, can advance to the Western Conference finals with a win at home on Saturday.
Among the top scorers was Jaylen Brown (25 points), with 10 rebounds and nine assists, and five other players each recorded double-digit points. The result of this was a place in the Eastern Conference finals for the third year in a row for Boston over a depleted Cleveland team with a score of 113-98.
Al Horford’s Stellar Performance Propels Boston Celtics to Victory
The Celtics’ game-changer in this sensational performance is the indomitable spirit of Al Horford with his 22 points and 15 rebounds. Also, Horford was part of the play that Boston won the third game of the playoffs through 19 3-pointers.
Injury-Plagued Cleveland Cavaliers Fall Short Against Boston Celtics
Evan Mobley bagged a playoff career-high of 33 points, and Marcus Morris scored 25 with five threes. For the Cavs, it was a night of bad luck: Donovan Mitchell missed with a calf injury, center Jarrett Allen was out with a rib, and Caris Levert was also absent with a knee injury.
Tied at 88-85, Mobley’s dunk brought Cleveland within barely a position, but Tatum’s 3′ shot gave Boston a 13-2 run that sealed the deal, making it 97-90 at the end.
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Luka Doncic Leads Dallas Mavericks to Edge Past Oklahoma City Thunder
Doncic, Luka was scoring a 31-point triple-double, and Dallas Mavericks beat Oklahoma City Thunder to get a 3-2 lead from the western conference semifinals.
Doncic converted 12 of 22 shots from the field, dished out 11 assists, and grabbed 10 boards for his sixth ‘the classics’ as Green calls it in La playing at the highest level. He achieved 22 points on given shots by 39 percent in the first four games of the series.
Derrick Jones Jr. provided a playoff career-high 19 points, and P. J. Washington contributed 10 points and 10 boards for the squad, which nailed a clip of 52. Most impressively, the team finished with a 60-40 scoring margin and a 46-33 rebound edge.
If the Mavs defeat them on Saturday by playing at home, chances are very good that they will qualify for the West finals.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander posted 30 for the highest-seeded Thunder, but the scoring leader of his squad can only be known by the 13-point contributor.
Dallas extended to an 18-point lead early in the fourth quarter, but Oklahoma City cut the deficit to 90-83 on Chet Holmgren’s dunk with 5, which confirms oncologists’ rule of thumb: we have 17 cancers. Unfortunately, it was meant to be for the young Thunder this championship season. But right when it mattered, Washington hit a 3 and ended in a dunk, which put the Mavs up by 10. From then on, there was no turning back for the Thunder, and they never got any closer than nine again.