Durant shines in Golden State playoff debut
OAKLAND, Calif. — Kevin Durant patted his chest after two big baskets in the fourth quarter and let everybody know “I got this!” Stephen Curry knocked down a timely baseline 3-pointer, reached his hand high and gestured to further ignite a raucous sellout crowd.
On a day Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum put on a dazzling display of shotmaking for Portland, the NBA’s top-seeded team of superstars found its touch down the stretch and defended with purpose.
Durant had 32 points and 10 rebounds in his Golden State playoff debut, Curry scored 29 points, and the Warriors withstood that sensational day by the Trail Blazers’ dynamic backcourt duo to win Game 1 of the first-round series 121-109 on Sunday.
McCollum scored a playoff career-best 41 points, and Lillard had 34, but the Warriors made the crucial big plays on both ends down the stretch with Portland
BULLS 106, CELTICS 102 missing injured Jusuf Nurkic.
“When they got it going, they’re hitting tough shots in the first half, some you’ve just got to live with, we played great defense,” Curry said. “They were just center able to finish, but over the course of 48 you just try to wear them down.”
Draymond Green had 19 points, 12 rebounds, nine assists, five blocked shots and three steals to help last season’s second-place team take the first step in what it is counting on to be a championship run.
Durant shot 12 for 20, showing no issues with a recent left knee injury that sidelined him 19 games before he returned for the final three regular-season contests with the NBA-best Warriors.
“The game ratchets up when you get into the playoffs,” Durant said. “I definitely felt good out there.”
Game 1 featured a little of everything: physical play, trash talk, deep 3-pointers, monster blocked shots and dazzling dunks. After one flurry of a third-quarter sequence
WIZARDS 114, HAWKS 107 when several players on both teams hit the floor trying to secure a loose ball, four towel guys frantically wiped down the court.
Durant got going fast. KD drove the lane for a onehanded slam midway through the first then knocked down a 3 from the top about a minute later. After missing a dunk but getting fouled, Durant pounded the basket stanchion with his right fist in frustration.
As the final period got underway, Ian Clark did what he often does to give the Blazers fits and chipped in during a 15-2 run on the way to 12 points off the bench. The 6-foot-3 guard scored a putback off his own miss in the paint one possession then knocked down a 3-pointer the next as Golden State went ahead 97-90 with 8:59 remaining.
McCollum shot 11 of 15 in the first half, then began the second 2 for 7 and finished his day 16 of 28. Lillard went 12 for 26.
“You’ve got to give them a lot of credit, they got it going,” Green said. “At some point you have to make them miss.”
HOUSTON — James Harden scored 37 points to outshine Russell Westbrook and the Houston Rockets pulled away in the third quarter and coasted to a 118-87 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday night in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series.
The Rockets were up by 20 when Harden came off the bench with about seven minutes left. He went right to work — making two 3-pointers in a 10-0 run.