Bucks fend off late Celtics rally, Warriors blow out Grizzlies
Bucks 103, Celtics 101 — At Milwaukee, Giannis Antetokounmpo poured in 42 points and the Bucks overcame a fourth-quarter comeback by visiting Boston on Saturday to take a 2-1 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
After trailing by 13 in the fourth quarter, the Celtics came all the way back to take a one-point lead with 1:49 remaining, when Jaylen Brown made a pair of free throws.
After Antetokounmpo scored to put the Bucks back into the lead, Jrue Holiday sank a turnaround jumper with 11 seconds remaining and Milwaukee was back up three.
Marcus Smart was fouled with 4.6 seconds remaining and after he made one free throw, he intentionally missed the second, the Celtics got the rebound but Smart missed a fadeaway as the clock was running out and Al Horford's tip-in came just after the final buzzer.
Antetokounmpo added 12 rebounds and eight assists on 16-of-30 shooting. Holiday contributed 25 points and seven rebounds, and Brook Lopez chipped in 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Warriors 142, Grizzlies 112 — At San Francisco, Stebined phen Curry, Jordan Poole and Klay Thompson combined for 78 points, and Golden State rode an offensive masterpiece to a victory over visiting Memphis on Saturday night.
The Warriors take a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference semifinal series.
Curry had a team-high 30 points, Poole 27 off the bench and Thompson 21 in his most productive effort of the series, helping Golden State run off to the first one-sided victory in the best-of-seven series.
Game 4 is scheduled for Monday night, also in San Francisco.
Coming off a 47-point explosion in a Game 2, Ja Morant led all scorers again with 34 points before taking the final 6:19 of the game off to have his right knee examined.
Morant suffered the injury seconds earlier when it appeared he clashed knees with Poole. The Memphis star played for about another minute, but then with his team down by 17, Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins pulled Morant and sent him straight to the locker room.
Jonathan Kuminga, who at age 19 became the youngest player in NBA history to start a playoff game, added 18 points for Golden State.