Three more games in the NBA Playoffs on Tuesday night, and three really good games to watch. We seen another first round series wrap up last night. To see video highlight’s and a recap for all three match ups in the NBA Playoffs last night, check it all out below. Recaps courtesy of Sports Illustrated.
Washington Wizards 75 – Chicago Bulls 69 (SI Link)
Wizards win series 4-1
John Wall finished with 24 points, Nene scored 20, and the Washington Wizards beat the Chicago Bulls 75-69 on Tuesday night to clinch their first-round series in five games.
Bradley Beal scored 17 points, and the fifth-seeded Wizards advanced in the postseason for just the third time since the 1970s. They will meet Indiana or Atlanta in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
It’s a huge step for a franchise that hadn’t been to the postseason since 2008, but with Wall and Beal leading the way, they won 44 games during the regular season.
The Wizards turned a halftime tie into a nine-point lead heading into the fourth quarter and hung on down the stretch.
Chicago’s comeback chances took a big hit early in the final quarter when Taj Gibson crumbled to the court clutching his left ankle after he tried to block a layup by Wall with the Wizards up by six points. He had to be helped off the court and did not return.
The Bulls cut it to 70-67 on a jumper by Carlos Boozer with 3:32 left. Wall then poked the ball away from Boozer and nailed a jumper at the shot-clock buzzer. Chicago hit two free throws with 2:18 remaining to cut it back down to three, but the Wizards grabbed three offensive rebounds while whittling more than a minute off the clock before Beal threw the ball away with a minute left in the game.
Boozer missed on a drive, but the Bulls had another chance after a shot-clock violation by Washington with 22.4 seconds left. Chicago’s Jimmy Butler missed on a layup off the inbounds, and the Wizards caught a break after Andre Miller missed two free throws.
Beal tracked down the loose ball and hit the first free throw to make it 73-69 with 14.6 seconds left before missing the second. But again, the Wizards got the rebound. This time it was Nene, and that led to two free throws by Wall with 7.8 seconds remaining.
Wall and Nene, back from a one-game suspension for grabbing Butler’s head, both had seven rebounds. Marcin Gortat scored just two points but grabbed 13 boards.
For the Bulls, a season that unfolded in ways they never envisioned is finally over. They expected to challenge Miami for supremacy in the Eastern Conference with Derrick Rose back after sitting out last season, only to lose their star to another season-ending knee injury. As if that wasn’t enough, they traded away one of their top remaining players in Luol Deng yet somehow squeezed out 48 victories. No team in the East won more games after New Year’s Eve, either, but the Wizards were too much.
Butler and Kirk Hinrich scored 16 points each and Gibson had 12. Joakim Noah added 18 rebounds and seven assists. Boozer, a candidate to be amnestied, added 10 points and nine rebounds in what might have been his final appearance for Chicago.
Hinrich’s 3-pointer gave Chicago a 46-45 lead with 9:02 left in the third. But the Bulls managed just six points the rest of the quarter – a 20-foot jumper by Noah, two free throws by Boozer and a bank shot by Butler with 2:16 left.
Beal, who scored eight points in the third quarter, answered by banking in an 18-footer and Wall added a free throw in the closing minute of the period to make it 61-52.
NOTES: Nene declined comment about his suspension at the Wizards’ shootaround, saying, ”I don’t want to talk about that.” … Former Bull Ben Gordon was on hand, and Bryan Bickell of the Blackhawks was cheered when he was shown in the second quarter.
Memphis Grizzlies 100 – Oklahoma City Thunder 99 (OT) (SI Link)
Grizzlies lead series 3-2
Mike Miller scored 21 points and the Memphis Grizzlies held off the Oklahoma City Thunder 100-99 in a record fourth straight overtime game Tuesday night to take a 3-2 lead in the first-round series.
Oklahoma City rebounded a missed 3-point attempt by Miller and called a timeout, trailing 100-99 with 2.9 seconds remaining. Kevin Durant of the Thunder missed a long 3-point attempt and teammate Serge Ibaka tipped the ball in on the rebound. The shot was reviewed and it was determined that it was released after the buzzer, ending the game.
Zach Randolph added 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Grizzlies, who will host Game 6 on Thursday.
Russell Westbrook had 30 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds for the Thunder.
Oklahoma City trailed by 20 points in the third quarter but trimmed its deficit to six by the start of the fourth quarter and finally took a 79-78 lead on a 3-pointer by Durant.
Memphis maintained its composure. Consecutive baskets by Mike Conley put the Grizzlies up 87-82 with just under 4 minutes to play.
Oklahoma City’s Caron Butler was fouled by Randolph as he hit a 3-pointer with 2:40 to play. He made the free throw to cut Memphis’ lead to 87-86.
Oklahoma City, trailing 89-88, had a chance to take the lead in the final minute of regulation, but Durant was stripped, and the ball was stolen by Conley. Tony Allen made the first free throw with 30 seconds left. He missed the second, but Marc Gasol of the Grizzlies got the rebound with 20.3 seconds to play.
Conley was stripped by Westbrook, and Westbrook dunked with 4 seconds left to tie the game at 90. Memphis didn’t get a shot off in time at the end of regulation and the teams went to overtime for a record fourth straight game.
NOTES: The Grizzlies wore their warmups inside out and the Thunder wore black socks and shoes in protest of Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling’s incendiary racial remarks. … The Grizzlies shot 60 percent from the field in the first quarter to lead 30-25. … Oklahoma City made 6 of 9 3-point attempts in the first half, but just 9 of 34 shots inside the arc. … Tulsa Shock guard Skylar Diggins attended the game.
Los Angeles Clippers 113 – Golden State Warriors 103 (SI Link)
Clippers lead series 3-2
Hours after owner Donald Sterling was banned from the NBA for life, the Los Angeles Clippers returned to an energized Staples Center and beat the Golden State Warriors 113-103 on Tuesday night to take a 3-2 lead in their first-round playoff series.
DeAndre Jordan had 25 points, a playoff career high, and 18 rebounds while Chris Paul scored 20 points.
Clippers coach Doc Rivers high-fived each of his players near the bench in an uncommon display of excitement as the final seconds ticked away. Jamal Crawford of the Clippers hugged and slapped hands with fans at courtside on the way to the locker room.
”I thought they were great,” Rivers said of his players. ”I thought they were tired a lot, and that was the result of the last few days. I just thought they had great mental toughness. They wanted to will this game, and I’m just proud of them.”
Commissioner Adam Silver also fined Sterling $2.5 million and called on NBA owners to force him to sell the team for making racist comments.
The Clippers were greeted with a standing ovation when they came out for pregame warmups. They kept on their Clippers warmup suits, unlike Sunday in Oakland, when, in a silent protest against Sterling, they tossed their sweatsuits bearing the team logo onto the court and went through their pregame routine with their red shirts on inside out.
Players from both teams wore black socks.
With so many sponsors bailing on the Clippers, there were few advertisements on the video boards. A few non-digital signs were covered over.
The PA announcer constantly reminded the crowd, ”We Are One.”
One fan wore a T-shirt that read: ”Sterling Out Equality In.”
The Clippers are on the brink of just their third playoff series victory since Sterling bought the team in 1981. Game 6 is Thursday night in Oakland.
Crawford scored 19 points for the Clippers while Blake Griffin had 18 and Darren Collison 15.
Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 21 points. David Lee and Andre Iguodala scored 18 apiece while Stephen Curry had a so-so game with 17 points, including four 3-pointers.
Griffin scored eight points in the first 6 minutes of the fourth quarter. Jordan made six of eight free throws in the final period.
With the Clippers leading by three points early in the fourth quarter, Griffin scored two quick baskets to make it 83-78.
He made a turnaround jumper to push the lead to 90-81 with 7 minutes to go.
Curry stole the ball and hit a 3-pointer to give the Warriors a 70-69 lead late in the third quarter.
Paul answered with a 3-pointer to put the Clippers up 72-70. Crawford then poked the ball away from Curry, broke free, got the pass for a dunk and a four-point lead with 1:11 left.
Paul hit another 3 with 1.1 seconds left in the third for a 77-72 lead.
Jordan had four blocks and Paul had five steals.