Day 6 of the NBA playoff bubble tipped off on Saturday afternoon with a slate of Game 3s on the campus of the league at Walt Disney World in Florida. Playoff action will be updated here throughout the day.
Milwaukee Bucks 121, Orlando Magic 107 (Bucks lead, 2-1) “data-reactid =” 22 “>Milwaukee Bucks 121, Orlando Magic 107 (Bucks lead, 2-1)
Miami Heat 124, Indiana Pacers 115 (Heat lead, 3-0) “data-reactid =” 23 “>Miami Heat 124, Indiana Pacers 115 (Heat lead, 3-0)
Oklahoma City Thunder 119, Houston Rockets 107 (Rockets lead, 2-1) “data-reactid =” 24 “>Oklahoma City Thunder 119, Houston Rockets 107 (Rockets lead, 2-1)
Los Angeles Lakers 116, Portland Trail Blazers 108
(Lakers lead 2-1) “data-reactid =” 25 “>Los Angeles Lakers 116, Portland Trail Blazers 108 (Lakers lead 2-1)Toronto Raptors 117, Brooklyn Nets 92 (Raptors lead, 3-0)
Utah Jazz 124, Denver Nuggets 87 (Jazz lead, 2-1)
Boston Celtics 102, Philadelphia 76ers, 94 (Celtics lead, 3-0)
Los Angeles Clippers 130, Dallas Mavericks 122 (Clippers lead 2-1)
Lakers flex muscles, transition into series lead vs Blazers
Analyzed by injuries and opt-outs, the error margin for the Portland Trail Blazers is almost zero against the top seed in the West. If the Los Angeles Lakers have both LeBron James and Anthony Davis gone, it could be even less than that.
After big nights of both of their superstars, the Lakers took their first series lead of the first round on Saturday with a 116-108 win.
The Lakers took control in the third quarter and kept the Blazers off. Davis awoke after a six-point first half and finished with 29 points, 11 rebounds and 8 assists, while James posted 38 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists.
The win and the stat line helped James make some new playoff history, by bringing another NBA legend into the winning playoff win and continuing with an already riding statistical lead.
Saturday marked the 67th time in LeBron James’ career that he led his team in points, rebounds and assists in a playoff game, including ties.
That’s by far the most in the NBA since 1951. Larry Bird and Tim Duncan have the following most with … 21. h / t @EliasSports pic.twitter.com/2MmRHnN9pn
– ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) August 23, 2020
A rebounding advantage of 55-38 gave the Lakers too many chances for the Blazers to handle, even on a night in which Damian Lillard again erupted for 34 points and 7 assists. Now the Lakers are halfway through the second round, and the Blazers will have to find even more of the magic that got them into the playoffs if they want to survive.
Dancer rally to defeat Rockets in OT, avoiding hole of 3-game
The team that surprised the NBA all season made it a series.
The Oklahoma City Thunder rode to a 119-107 victory to avoid a 3-game gap, driven by a classic effort by Chris Paul. The former Rocket finished with 26 points on 11-of-20 shots with 6 rebounds and 5 assists.
After several lead changes in the second half, the Thunder almost came away with the win in regulation after a pairing pass-and-shoot combination of Paul and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, with the veteran driving past James Harden and the sophomore in the angle to take a one-point lead.
A free kick by Danuel House of Houston equalized the score, and Paul’s attempt to the next possession decided to send the game to overtime.
While the game was all over and back in regulation, it was anything but in overtime. James Harden, who finished with 38 points and 8 assists, dropped out in the first minute, leaving the Thunder to open the extra period with 12 straight points.
Miami holds on, taking a 3-0 lead
The Heat blow it almost on Saturday afternoon.
After maintaining a 20-point lead in the second quarter, Miami saw that its lead in the opening minutes of the fourth quickly diminished to two points, after stopping its failure completely in the third quarter. They were also outscored by 14 in that period.
However, in the end, the Heat continued to win 124-115 against the Indiana Pacers and took a 3-0 series lead.
“I thought we basically just didn’t come up with the intensity that was needed or needed for this game,” McMillan said, via Fox Sports Indiana. ‘I thought the third quarter we started playing with that intensity. We started playing as we believed, and we played a good second half. But you can not start the game as we did … That feeling of urgency is lacking at the beginning. “
Jimmy Butler led the Heat with 27 points and eight rebounds and shot 17-of-20 from the free throw line. Bam Adebayo put up a double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds, and Goran Dragic added 22 on shooting 5-of-10 from the 3-point line.
Malcolm Brogdon led Indiana with 34 points and 14 assists, shooting 11-of-17 from the field. TJ Warren finished with 23 points, and Victor Oladipo added 20.
The Heat will try to rule out the series Monday night and advance to the next round.
Offers cruise in controversial Game 3 to take series lead
Milwaukee’s slip in Game 1 of the series is well behind her.
The Bucks flew to a dominant 121-107 win over the Orlando Magic on Saturday afternoon at Walt Disney World, taking an easy 2-1 series lead.
However, the game was not without controversy.
Halfway through the second quarter, Marvin Williams and James Ennis got into a fight under the hoop after Williams and the Bucks secured a 19-point lead.
Ennis, after a missed shot, turned to face the court and slammed his shoulder into Williams – which quickly escalated the situation.
Ennis even appeared to be throwing a bushel during the brawl, which seemed to hit an assistant coach and the official in the middle instead of Williams.
Both Williams and Ennis were removed from the game and are sure to gain the discipline of the league in the coming days.
The incident did not destroy the Bucks. They pushed the 19-point lead quickly to 34 in the third quarter and never looked back. Milwaukee cross to the win by 14 points to take the lead of the series.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee with a near-triple-double, finishing with 35 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. He also missed just two shots from the field, shooting 12-of-14. Khris Middleton added 17 points in the win, and Brook Lopez dropped 16.
DJ Augustin led Orlando with 24 points off the bench while shooting 4-of-8 from the 3-point line. Both Nikola Vucevic and Terrence Ross finished with 20 points.
The Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo shot against the Orlando Magic in Game 3 of their opening round playoff series on Saturday. (Mike Ehrmann / Getty Images)
