Wizard Wall shows magic

THE Wizards and Celtics advanced to the next round of the NBA playoffs while the Clippers defeated the Jazz to force a decisive Game 7.

John Wall (pictured) scored 42 points, Bradley Beal added 31 and the Washington Wizards withstood a furious Atlanta comeback to close out the Hawks with a 115-99 victory Friday night, winning the Eastern Conference openinground playoff series 4-2.

The Hawks fell behind by 22 early in the third quarter before making a game of it down the stretch. But the home team never led, and Wall stymied the rally with huge plays at both ends of the court.

Wall’s block of Dennis Schroder’s layup kept the Hawks from closing within a single point, and Wall hit every big shot in the closing minutes.t He scored 19 points in the fourth quarter, ensuring that Washington picked up the first road victory by either team in the series.

The Wizards advanced to face Boston in the Eastern Conference semi-finals.

Avery Bradley scored 23 points, and the hot-shooting Celtics pounded the Chicago Bulls 105-83 to win their firstround series 4-2 on Friday night. The top-seeded Celtics simply torched Chicago to finish off a tougher-than-anticipated series and advance in the playoffs for the first time since 2012.

Bradley finished one point shy of a playoff career high he set in Game 5. He nailed three 3-pointers and the Celtics hit 16 of 39 from long range.

Gerald Green scored 16 and Isaiah Thomas had 12 before heading home to Washington state for his sister Chyna’s funeral on Saturday. Her death in a car accident the day before the playoff opener dealt a blow to the Celtics. But Boston rallied around its star player and regrouped when the series might have slipped from reach.

Los Angeles Clippers defeated Utah 98-93 to force their series into a decider.