John Wall and Bradley Beal took over in the fourth quarter as the Wizards overcame a second half deficit and beat the Hawks, 109-101 to take a 2-0 series lead on Wednesday. The House of Guards combined for 63 points, led by Wall with 32 and Beal with 31. Marcin Gortat also notched another double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds as the Wizards protected home court.
The Rockets started hitting shots and Russell Westbrook missed most of his down the stretch to send Houston up 2-0.
It was a disheartening first half of basketball for Houston, but the game eventually evolved into a microcosm of both the individual seasons for both teams and the MVP race, as the Rockets rebounded in the second half to take down the Oklahoma City Thunder 115-111 to lead their first-round playoff series 2-0.
Great effort is not rewarded as Memphis loses their legs and falls to 0-2 in the series.
The Memphis Grizzlies showed the grit that led their city to fall in love with them as they clawed their way back from a 26-point deficit in the second quarter. They got the Spurs advantage down to four points with 10 minutes left in the final frame, but San Antonio finished the game strong while the exhausted Grizzlies failed to complete the potentially miraculous comeback. Memphis lost 96-82 and they now trail the Spurs 0-2 in their best-of-seven game first round series in the 2017 NBA Playoffs.
The Raptors needed their two stars and head coach to come through in Game 2. They did.
Doubt is a pervasive force more powerful than optimism. Two quarters of piss-poor basketball on Saturday washing away a month of excitement over the Raptors’ post-season promise was proof of that.
The Cavaliers take a 2-0 lead over the Indiana Pacers
If there’s one thing that’s consistent with the Cleveland Cavaliers, it’s that they have a knack for making things more difficult than they need to be. This was once again the case with their 117-111 win in game two.
Rajon Rondo set the tone early, and the Bulls pulled away in the second half to grab control of the series
After losing Game 1 on an emotional night in Boston, I figured the Celtics would come out fast in Tuesday’s Game 2. That happened as Boston jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead, but the Bulls quickly turned things around and then ran away from the Celtics in the second half to earn a 111-97 victory to take a stunning 2-0 series lead heading to Chicago.
San Antonio should roll in this series.
In a traditionally hard-fought showdown between two Western Conference foes, the No. 2 San Antonio Spurs and seventh-seeded Memphis Grizzlies go head-to-head in a lopsided first-round playoff matchup.
When is a blowout not a blowout? When, despite your superior efforts, your opponent kills you from the three-point arc and the free-throw line, but you get the win anyway.
In what felt like a 20-point rout that was never more than a few possessions from happening, the Clippers shrugged off the hot-shooting Utah Jazz for a crucial 99-91 win, evening the first round series at one victory apiece.
Porzingis was not a fan of Phil Jackson’s comments about Carmelo Anthony.
The dysfunction of the New York Knicks is reaching new levels. According to ESPN’s Ian Begley, Kristaps Porzingis skipped his exit interview with the team on Friday due to being unhappy with all of the drama circulating around the team.
