Tatum has 39 points, Celtics beat Nets for 3-0 series lead
Jayson Tatum scored 39 points, Jaylen Brown had 23 and the Boston Celtics took a 3-0 lead over the Brooklyn Nets with a 109-103 victory Saturday night.
Again making things difficult on Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving with their suffocating defense, the Celtics put themselves in position to sweep their way into the second round with a victory tonight in Brooklyn, The Associated Press reported.
Durant took only 11 shots,
finishing with 16 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Irving was 6 for 17 and also had 16 points for the Nets, who have to decide if they will give Ben Simmons his debut in an elimination game.
Series tied
Rudy Gobert gave Utah the lead with an alley-oop dunk with 11.0 seconds left and the Jazz held off Dallas Mavericks in Game 4 to tie the series.
Spencer Dinwiddie missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer for Dallas.
Jordan Clarkson scored 25 points for Utah, Donovan Mitchell added 23 points and seven assists, and Gobert had 17 points and 15 rebounds – 10 off the offensive glass. He was 3 of 8 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter and 9 of 18 overall.
Dallas star Luka Doncic had 30 points, 10 rebounds four assists in his return from a three-game absence because of strained left calf.
Jalen Brunson added 23 points, and Dorian Finneysmith, Dwight Powell and Reggie Bullock had 11 points apiece.
Utah held the Mavericks to 18 points in the fourth quarter after surrendering a double-digit lead in the second half. Dallas made just two baskets through the first seven minutes of the fourth and shot 33% overall in quarter.
Game 5 is tonight in Dallas.
Elsewhere, Pascal Siakam scored 15 of his 34 points in the fourth quarter, Gary Trent Jr. added 24 points and Toronto Raptors beat Philadelphia 76ers to a avoid a series sweep.
Game 5 is tonight in Philadelphia. No team has come back from a 3-0 deficit to win an NBA playoff series.
Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid started despite a right thumb injury that required him to wear a brace. Embiid shot 3 for 10 in the first half. He finished 7 for 16 and scored 21 points in 39 minutes. Before the game, 76ers coach Doc Rivers said Embiid is expected to undergo an MRI.
James Harden had 22 points for the 76ers.