Magic Look To Stay Strong At Home
By Dan Bruno
The Orlando Magic play host to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference First-Round Playoffs at Kia Center on Saturday afternoon.
After the Cavs earned back-to-back wins in Cleveland, the Magic countered with their first win of the series as they returned to Orlando for Game 3. The Magic jumped out to a strong start in Game 3, as they led by 10 points after one quarter. They kept control in the second and pushed their lead up to 16, by halftime. The hosts kept the pressure on the third and charged to a 35-point advantage heading into the final quarter. The Cavs had no answers down the stretch, as the Magic closed out the win with the largest margin of victory so far in series.
Paolo Banchero delivered a masterclass with 31 points, 14 rebounds, five assists and a steal, in just 29 minutes in Game 3. Jalen Suggs followed up with 24 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block, while Franz Wagner totaled 16 points, five rebounds and eight assists. The Magic shot 51.1 percent from the field, including 13-for-37 from long range in the win. They also hauled in 14 offensive rebounds and out-rebounded the Cavs, 51-32, overall. No Cavs' player scored more than 15 points in Game 3, as Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert finished with 15 each. Darius Garland was limited to just five points, while Donovan Mitchell had 13 in the loss.
The Cavs went 22-19 on the road this season and need to gather themselves after such a disheartening loss. On the other side, the Magic were 29-12 at home this season and will be looking to keep the momentum going with a chance to even up the series.
After the Cavs earned back-to-back wins in Cleveland, the Magic countered with their first win of the series as they returned to Orlando for Game 3. The Magic jumped out to a strong start in Game 3, as they led by 10 points after one quarter. They kept control in the second and pushed their lead up to 16, by halftime. The hosts kept the pressure on the third and charged to a 35-point advantage heading into the final quarter. The Cavs had no answers down the stretch, as the Magic closed out the win with the largest margin of victory so far in series.
Paolo Banchero delivered a masterclass with 31 points, 14 rebounds, five assists and a steal, in just 29 minutes in Game 3. Jalen Suggs followed up with 24 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block, while Franz Wagner totaled 16 points, five rebounds and eight assists. The Magic shot 51.1 percent from the field, including 13-for-37 from long range in the win. They also hauled in 14 offensive rebounds and out-rebounded the Cavs, 51-32, overall. No Cavs' player scored more than 15 points in Game 3, as Jarrett Allen and Caris LeVert finished with 15 each. Darius Garland was limited to just five points, while Donovan Mitchell had 13 in the loss.
The Cavs went 22-19 on the road this season and need to gather themselves after such a disheartening loss. On the other side, the Magic were 29-12 at home this season and will be looking to keep the momentum going with a chance to even up the series.
Pelicans and Thunder Set for Game 3 clash
The Oklahoma City Thunder take on the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center on Saturday afternoon in Game 3 of their Western Conference quarterfinal-round series. The Thunder leads the series, 2-0.
The Thunder (2-0) barely squeaked by in Game 1, but Oklahoma City asserted its will and talent to much greater degree during a 124-92 drubbing of the Pelicans in Game 2 on Wednesday night to take a commanding series lead. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 33 points, adding five assists, three rebounds and two steals. Chet Holmgren furnished 26 points, seven rebounds, one assist and two blocks. Jalen Williams supplied 21 points, seven assists, five rebounds and one steal. Luguentz Dort turned in 15 points, two assists, one rebound and one steal. Josh Giddey registered 13 points, six rebounds and three assists.
The Thunder comes into Saturday's game without any injuries to report.
The Pelicans (0-2) have now managed to only score 92 points apiece in the first two games of the series, with the ongoing absence of Zion Williamson (hamstring) unsurprisingly looming very large. In Game 2, Jonas Valanciunas led the Pelicans with 19 points, supplementing them with seven rebounds and two assists. Brandon Ingram and Herbert Jones produced matching 18-point contributions while adding four and two rebounds, respectively. CJ McCollum delivered 15 points, five boards, four assists and two steals. Naji Marshall finished with 10 points, two rebounds and one steal.
The Pelicans will remain without Williamson for Saturday's game.
Saturday's game marks the sixth meeting between the teams since the start of the regular season. The Thunder has won four of the first five games.
The Thunder (2-0) barely squeaked by in Game 1, but Oklahoma City asserted its will and talent to much greater degree during a 124-92 drubbing of the Pelicans in Game 2 on Wednesday night to take a commanding series lead. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 33 points, adding five assists, three rebounds and two steals. Chet Holmgren furnished 26 points, seven rebounds, one assist and two blocks. Jalen Williams supplied 21 points, seven assists, five rebounds and one steal. Luguentz Dort turned in 15 points, two assists, one rebound and one steal. Josh Giddey registered 13 points, six rebounds and three assists.
The Thunder comes into Saturday's game without any injuries to report.
The Pelicans (0-2) have now managed to only score 92 points apiece in the first two games of the series, with the ongoing absence of Zion Williamson (hamstring) unsurprisingly looming very large. In Game 2, Jonas Valanciunas led the Pelicans with 19 points, supplementing them with seven rebounds and two assists. Brandon Ingram and Herbert Jones produced matching 18-point contributions while adding four and two rebounds, respectively. CJ McCollum delivered 15 points, five boards, four assists and two steals. Naji Marshall finished with 10 points, two rebounds and one steal.
The Pelicans will remain without Williamson for Saturday's game.
Saturday's game marks the sixth meeting between the teams since the start of the regular season. The Thunder has won four of the first five games.
Celtics, Heat Collide In South Beach
The Miami Heat will host the Boston Celtics at Kaseya Center on Saturday in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference first round. The series is tied 1-1.
The Heat did something few teams accomplished in the regular season: defeating the Celtics at TD Garden. Their 111-101 win in Game 2 of the series puts Miami in an excellent position ahead of the rest of the series, as the Heat simply need to win their three games at home to pull the upset and eliminate the team that posted the best record in the league during the regular season. Of course, that’s easier said than done. The Heat went 22-19 at home this campaign, so they’re far from a juggernaut when playing in South Beach. Plus, the fact that the Heat are without Jimmy Butler can’t be overlooked. Miami overachieved in the Game 2 win, and the chances of them playing with that same intensity throughout the rest of the series are highly unlikely.
Delon Wright (personal) is a game-time call for Saturday. Jimmy Butler (knee) and Terry Rozier (neck) are out. Josh Richardson (shoulder) is out for the rest of the season.
The Celtics posted a league-best 64-18 mark during the regular season and went 27-14 on the road. In other words, they are not overly worried after losing one of their two contests against the Heat at home. The Celtics are at full strength and should be confident about their chances of stealing at least one from Kaseya Center, as that’s everything Boston needs to recover the home-field advantage. Carried by the star power of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the versatility of Kristaps Porzingis, and the defensive tenacity of the Derrick White - Jrue Holiday backcourt duo, few teams are as deep and as dangerous as the Celtics in the league. The Celtics will aim to show that in Game 3 to recover the home-field advantage.
Luke Kornet (calf) is listed as a game-time call for Saturday.
The Heat did something few teams accomplished in the regular season: defeating the Celtics at TD Garden. Their 111-101 win in Game 2 of the series puts Miami in an excellent position ahead of the rest of the series, as the Heat simply need to win their three games at home to pull the upset and eliminate the team that posted the best record in the league during the regular season. Of course, that’s easier said than done. The Heat went 22-19 at home this campaign, so they’re far from a juggernaut when playing in South Beach. Plus, the fact that the Heat are without Jimmy Butler can’t be overlooked. Miami overachieved in the Game 2 win, and the chances of them playing with that same intensity throughout the rest of the series are highly unlikely.
Delon Wright (personal) is a game-time call for Saturday. Jimmy Butler (knee) and Terry Rozier (neck) are out. Josh Richardson (shoulder) is out for the rest of the season.
The Celtics posted a league-best 64-18 mark during the regular season and went 27-14 on the road. In other words, they are not overly worried after losing one of their two contests against the Heat at home. The Celtics are at full strength and should be confident about their chances of stealing at least one from Kaseya Center, as that’s everything Boston needs to recover the home-field advantage. Carried by the star power of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the versatility of Kristaps Porzingis, and the defensive tenacity of the Derrick White - Jrue Holiday backcourt duo, few teams are as deep and as dangerous as the Celtics in the league. The Celtics will aim to show that in Game 3 to recover the home-field advantage.
Luke Kornet (calf) is listed as a game-time call for Saturday.
Lakers Look to Avoid Sweep Against Denver
The Los Angeles Lakers play host to the Denver Nuggets in Game 4 of the Western Conference First-Round Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena on Saturday.
Denver leads this series, 3-0.
The Nuggets (3-0) have trailed by double-digits in all three games of this series, but they've pulled out every game. That shows the championship mentality of this team, riding some monster second halves to their comeback wins. Amazingly, the Nuggets have outscored the Lakers by 42 points in the second half of this series. Aaron Gordon was the hero in Game 3, collecting 29 points and 15 rebounds on 12-of-18 shooting. Nikola Jokic wasn't too bad either, providing 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists on 9-of-13 shooting. That's scary because Jamal Murray hasn't been able to find his shot in this series, but he'll get hot eventually, too!
The Lakers (0-3) could be up 3-0 in this series if they took care of business, but they've blown double-digit leads in every game. That's hard to believe, but it's more understandable since Anthony Davis hasn't scored in the fourth quarter in the last two games. That's even more discouraging since D'Angelo Russell went scoreless in Game 3 on 0-of-7 shooting. No starting point guard should ever go scoreless in a must-win playoff game, and it's hard to see where LA goes from here. AD and LeBron have been performing pretty much every game, but they don't have much help outside of that. If one of these role players doesn't step up, LA's season could be over by Sunday.
Denver swept their playoff series over LA last season and has won 11 straight games over them in total. No team has ever overcome a 3-0 deficit in NBA history.
Denver leads this series, 3-0.
The Nuggets (3-0) have trailed by double-digits in all three games of this series, but they've pulled out every game. That shows the championship mentality of this team, riding some monster second halves to their comeback wins. Amazingly, the Nuggets have outscored the Lakers by 42 points in the second half of this series. Aaron Gordon was the hero in Game 3, collecting 29 points and 15 rebounds on 12-of-18 shooting. Nikola Jokic wasn't too bad either, providing 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists on 9-of-13 shooting. That's scary because Jamal Murray hasn't been able to find his shot in this series, but he'll get hot eventually, too!
The Lakers (0-3) could be up 3-0 in this series if they took care of business, but they've blown double-digit leads in every game. That's hard to believe, but it's more understandable since Anthony Davis hasn't scored in the fourth quarter in the last two games. That's even more discouraging since D'Angelo Russell went scoreless in Game 3 on 0-of-7 shooting. No starting point guard should ever go scoreless in a must-win playoff game, and it's hard to see where LA goes from here. AD and LeBron have been performing pretty much every game, but they don't have much help outside of that. If one of these role players doesn't step up, LA's season could be over by Sunday.
Denver swept their playoff series over LA last season and has won 11 straight games over them in total. No team has ever overcome a 3-0 deficit in NBA history.