Stephen Curry led a balanced attack with 27 points and the Golden State Warriors notched a season-extending 121-106 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals on Wednesday.
Facing elimination, the defending champion Warriors took the lead late in the second quarter and never trailed again to force the series back to Los Angeles for Game 6 on Friday.
Andrew Wiggins had 25 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Draymond Green had his best game of the series with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting, nine boards and four assists.
Gary Payton II (13 points), Jordan Poole (11) and Klay Thompson (10) also reached double figures for Golden State.
The Warriors led by as many as 17 in the third quarter, but the Lakers trimmed the deficit to 104-95 on Austin Reaves' 3-pointer with 5:25 remaining. Curry, however, sank a jumper and a three to put Golden State up 14.
LeBron James scored 25 points and Anthony Davis had 23 and nine rebounds before he left in the fourth quarter after taking what appeared to be an inadvertent elbow to the head from Golden State's Kevon Looney. Davis grabbed his head grimacing before going to the locker room late in the game.
Brunson goes distance as Knicks force Game 6
Jalen Brunson scored 38 points and the New York Knicks kept their season alive with a 112-103 victory over the Miami Heat in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Brunson played all 48 minutes, shot 12 of 22 from the field and hit 4 of 10 3-pointers while adding nine rebounds and seven assists.
RJ Barrett added 26 points, including four free throws in the final two minutes to preserve the lead, and Julius Randle scored 24 with four threes to get New York within 3-2 in the series.
Jimmy Butler led Miami with 19 points and Bam Adebayo had 18 and eight boards. Duncan Robinson scored 17 points and hit three of his five 3s in the fourth quarter as the eighth-seeded Heat nearly came all the way back after trailing by 19 in the third quarter.
Miami got the deficit down to 103-101 before Isaiah Hartenstein slammed home a follow dunk with 2:07 left. Barrett followed with a pair of free throws and hit another two after Adebayo's dunk to make it 109-103 with under a minute remaining.
The fifth-seeded Knicks will try to force the series back to New York with a road win in Game 6 on Friday.
Pacers star Haliburton reportedly out for Game 3 vs. Celtics
The Indiana Pacers reportedly won't have star Tyrese Haliburton for Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics on Saturday.
Haliburton exited in the third quarter of Thursday's 126-110 loss at Boston due to a left hamstring injury, and won't be able to play in the first game in Indianapolis, according to Shams Charania and Joe Vardon of The Athletic.
Thursday's defeat dropped the Pacers to 0-2 in the series.
Haliburton experienced pain in the same hamstring earlier this season, missing 10 games in January.
The two-time All-Star had 25 points, 10 assists and made six 3-pointers in 40 minutes in the series opener before playing only 28 minutes in Game 2. He had 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting and eight assists before departing.
With Haliburton out, the Pacers will likely again rely on Pascal Siakam for offence and need Andrew Nembhard and T.J. McConnell to step up.
Kidd lauds 'special' Doncic's love of the big stage after game-winning 3
Luka Doncic loves the big stage, and that's what makes him "special" to Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd.
Doncic again displayed his ability to perform in the biggest moments on Friday as he drained a 3-pointer over four-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert to lead the Mavericks to a 109-108 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, one that leaves them 2-0 up in their Western Conference final.
The Mavericks came back from an 18-point deficit to tighten their grip on the series, with Doncic leading the way. The five-time All-Star ended the game with 32 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds, becoming just the fourth player in NBA history to manage four triple-doubles across a five-game postseason span.
Kidd hailed Doncic's game-winning impact, saying there was no other option but to try and get him the ball when deciding what play to run during the timeout with 13 seconds remaining
"As you've seen, he loves that stage," Kidd told reporters. "He doesn't run from it. He made a big shot. Luka is special. He loves those type of moments.
"The play was to get Luka the ball and let Luka do what he does in those moments."
Doncic believes the comeback, the Mavericks' third-biggest in their postseason history, was down to his team's mindset as he ruthlessly snatched the game away from the Timberwolves.
"Like I always say, stay together, positive energy," Doncic explained. "We believed until the end.
"I just saw some space and decided to shoot a 3. Get to my spot, step back. That's it."
NBA: Doncic's late 3-pointer gives Mavericks 2-0 lead
Luka Dončić drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 3 seconds remaining and finished with a triple-double as the Dallas Mavericks rallied for a 109-108 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves and a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference finals on Friday night.
Doncic had 32 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds for his eighth triple-double in 42 career playoff games for the Mavericks, who erased a 16-point deficit midway through the third quarter.
After winning two on the road, the Mavericks look to take a commanding 3-0 lead as the series shifts to Dallas on Sunday night.
Naz Reid scored 23 points with seven 3-pointers, but his last shot at the buzzer rimmed out as the Timberwolves endured another off night from stars Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns. Edwards had 21 points on 5-of-17 shooting and Towns scored 15 on 4 of 16 from the field.
Jaden McDaniels, who had 20-plus points in each of Minnesota’s last three games, didn’t make a basket until midway through the third. He finished with two points on 1-of-6 shooting.
Kyrie Irving scored 13 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter, including a 3 from the corner with 65 seconds left that drew Dallas within 108-106.
Minnesota committed two turnovers, the last one by Edwards, who recklessly threw the ball out of bounds off a drive with 13 seconds to go.
Doncic took the inbounds pass and dribbled to set up a screen for Dereck Lively II that triggered a switch by the Wolves. Rudy Gobert covered Doncic, but the Mavs superstar sank the 3 and then flexed his arms and yelled at the stunned crowd as his teammates mobbed him.
The Wolves pushed their lead to 68-52 on Mike Conley’s free throw with 9:07 left in the third quarter, but Dallas scored eight straight points and was within 79-77 on Irving’s basket with 1:22 to play in the quarter.
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