Durant, Warriors top Blazers’ dynamic duo
Kevin Durant scored 32 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, Stephen Curry added 29 points and the Golden State Warriors withstood sensational efforts by CJ McCollum and Damian Lillard to beat the visiting Portland Trail Blazers 121- 109 on Sunday in Game 1 of their Western Conference first- round series.
McCollum scored a playoff career- high 41 points and Lillard 34, but the Warriors made the big plays on both ends down the stretch, with the Trail Blazers playing without injured center Jusuf Nurkic ( fractured right leg).
Draymond Green contributed 19 points, 12 rebounds, nine assists and five blocked shots to help the Warriors take the first step in what they are counting on to be a championship run. Game 2 is scheduled for Wednesday in Oakland, California.
Rockets 118, Thunder 87
JamesHarden scored 37 points to outshine Russell Westbrook in a battle of MVP front- runners, and the host Houston Rockets broke open a competitive game by outscoring the Oklahoma City Thunder 59- 33 in the second half to win their Western Conference first- round opener. Game 2 is Wednesday in Houston.
Harden, who also had nine assists and seven rebounds, got plenty of help from his teammates — specifically Patrick Beverley, who added 21 points on 8- for- 13 shooting and 10 rebounds.
Westbrook had 22 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, but he shot 6- for- 23 from the field and committed nine turnovers.
Wizards 114, Hawks 107
John Wall scored a playoff career- high 32 points, Bradley Beal 22 and Markieff Morris 21 in his postseason debut as the WashingtonWizards slipped past the visiting Atlanta Hawks in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first- round series.
Wall scored 15 points in the third quarter and finished with 14 assists in the best playoff performance of his career. Morris, in his first taste of the postseason after 448 regular- season games, caught fire early in the second half to push theWizards ahead.
Dennis Schroder scored 25 points and Paul Millsap 19 for the Hawks.
Jazz’sGobert ailing
Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert was diagnosed with a hyperextended left knee and a bone bruise in the joint after a collision 17 seconds into the team’s Western Conference playoff opener Saturday against the Los Angeles Clippers. The Jazz, who won Game 1, said tests revealed no structural damage but gave no timetable for his return.