Jayson Tatum bounced back with 27 points and the Boston Celtics received a balanced effort in a 114-102 road win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday.
The victory gave Boston a 2-1 lead in the second-round series with Game 4 set for Sunday.
Each Celtics starter reached double figures, with Jaylen Brown scoring 23, Al Horford adding 17 and Marcus Smart contributing 15.
Malcolm Brogdon had 15 points, including a 3-pointer with 5 1/2 minutes left to give Boston a 100-92 lead. Horford hit one of his five 3s to put Boston up seven with 3:25 remaining.
James Harden's 3-pointer with just over two minutes left drew the 76ers within 105-99 but Tatum, who was limited to seven points in Game 2, responded with a 3 of his own, then sank a pair of free throws to make it 110-100 with 1:18 to play.
Joel Embiid had 30 points and 13 rebounds for Philadelphia after he received his MVP trophy in a pregame ceremony. Harden struggled with 16 points on 3-of-14 shooting and is 5 for 28 from the field in the past two games – 2 of 13 from long range - following a 45-point performance in the series opener.
Boston's Grant Williams suffered a bloody mouth late in the game when he was hit in the head by a falling Embiid.
Suns take Game 3 from Nuggets behind Booker, Durant
The Phoenix Suns were in desperate need of a win and Devin Booker and Kevin Durant made sure they got it, combining for 86 points in a 121-114 victory over the visiting Denver Nuggets on Friday.
No other Suns player scored in double digits, but Booker and Durant’s heroics were enough as Phoenix trimmed the second-round series deficit to 2-1.
Booker tied his playoff career high with 47 points on 20-of-25 shooting, including 5-of-8 from 3-point range. Durant wasn’t as efficient with his shot, connecting on 12-of-31 but still finished with 39 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.
Jamal Murray led Denver with 32 points and Nikola Jokic tallied his ninth career postseason triple-double with 30 points, 17 rebounds and 17 assists, one off his personal best.
Cameron Payne started for Phoenix in place of 12-time All-Star Chris Paul and was limited to seven points but hit a 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter and added six assists.
TJ Warren only made three baskets for the Suns but two came in the final 2 ½ minutes. His 3 with 2:23 left put Phoenix up eight and he sank a driving floater less than a minute later to make it 114-107.
The Suns will try to even the series on Sunday.
Knicks salute 'warrior' Brunson after inspirational injury return in Pacers win
Jalen Brunson was hailed "a warrior" by team-mate Donte DiVincenzo after his return from injury inspired the New York Knicks to a second-half turnaround against the Indiana Pacers.
The Knicks ran out 130-121 winners in Game 2 at Madison Square Garden to take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semi-final series.
Things did not look good for the hosts, who also lost OG Anunoby in the third quarter to a hamstring injury, as Brunson was forced to exit during the first quarter with a foot problem.
However, with the Knicks trailing 73-63 at half-time, the point guard received a raucous ovation from the home supporters as he returned to warm up in a bid to shake off his injury.
"He's a warrior," said DiVincenzo, who finished with 28 points. "There was no doubt in my mind he'd be back."
"He's a great leader, and the players all have respect for that when a guy tries to give whatever he has. It says a lot about him," coach Tom Thibodeau added.
"To me, the actions say a lot more than the words. It says that you care a lot about your team and your team-mates."
Brunson's return certainly inspired New York, who were already without Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and Bojan Bogdanovic due to season-ending injuries.
He notched up 24 of his 29 points during the second half as the Knicks moved halfway towards reaching their first Eastern Conference final since 2000.
"It was really cool," Brunson said of his half-time reception. "But I just knew I had to get my mind in the right place to figure out how I was going to attack in the second half."
NBA: Brunson returns from injury to spark Knicks to 2-0 lead
Jalen Brunson shook off a right foot injury to score 24 of his 29 points in the second half, and the New York Knicks withstood an injury to OG Anunoby for a 130-121 win over the Indiana Pacers to take a 2-0 lead on Wednesday in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Brunson was forced to exit in the first quarter with the injury but returned to warm up at halftime, sending the Madison Square Garden crowd into a frenzy.
He fell short of becoming the second player in NBA history to score 40 or more points in five straight playoff games, but still provided the spark to move the Knicks halfway to their first East finals appearance since 2000.
The series shifts to Indiana for Game 3 on Friday.
Anunoby scored a career playoff-high 28 points before leaving in the third quarter with a left hamstring injury. New York is already playing without three key players (Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and Bojan Bogdanovic) due to season-ending injuries.
Donte DiVincenzo also scored 28 points with six 3-pointers, Josh Hart had 19 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists and Isaiah Hartenstein added 14 points, 12 boards and eight assists for the Knicks, who hit nearly half of their 3-point attempts (14 for 30).
Tyrese Haliburton bounced back from a poor Game 1 with 34 points, nine assists and six rebounds for the Pacers, who hurt themselves by shooting 10 for 17 from the free throw line.
Nuggets centre Jokic wins third NBA MVP Award
Denver Nuggets centre Nikola Jokic has added to his legacy by winning a third NBA MVP Award.
The NBA announced the Serbian superstar beat out the Oklahoma City Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Dallas Mavericks' Luka Doncic for the Michael Jordan trophy on Thursday.
Jokic won back-to-back awards in 2020-21 and 2021-22, and with this year's trophy, he becomes the ninth player to win three or more MVPs, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (six), Jordan and Bill Russell (five), Wilt Chamberlain and LeBron James (four), and Moses Malone, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson (three).
Jokic won the 2023-24 award in a runaway, capturing 79 first-place votes. Gilgeous-Alexander received 15 first-place votes, Doncic had four and the Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo had one.
Jokic led the Nuggets to the franchise's first NBA title last season and the second seed in the Western Conference play-offs in 2023-24 after averaging 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9.0 assists.
He was the only player in the NBA to rank in the top 10 in scoring, rebounding and assists, and his 25 triple-doubles were one fewer than the Sacramento Kings' Domantas Sabonis for the most in the league.
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