Paul perfect as Suns advance
NEW ORLEANS — Ex-Rocket Chris Paul went 14-for-14 in the best shooting night in NBA playoff history, Devin Booker returned from a hamstring injury to hit a late 3-pointer, and the Phoenix Suns beat the New Orleans Pelicans 115-109 on Thursday night to finish off the firstround series in six games.
Paul had the most field goals without a miss in a playoff game, hit all four of his free throws, and had eight assists as the top-seeded Suns overcame a 10-point halftime deficit.
Phoenix will face Dallas in the second round.
Paul helped put the Suns up for good, at 102101, with an assist on Deandre Ayton’s dunk with 2:12 left. Ayton had 22 points on 10 of 12 shooting.
The Suns erased the 10-point halftime deficit
by making 13 of their first 14 shots in the third quarter to take a 77-74 lead. At that point, Paul was 10of-10 from the field and Ayton was 6-of-6. Paul had 13 points in the quarter, but New Orleans used an 11-5 run to take an 85-82 lead into the final period.
Booker played for the first time in nine days since injuring his right hamstring after scoring 31 points in the first half of Game 2. He scored 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting and had five rebounds and three assists in 32 minutes.
Phoenix coach Monty Williams said Booker ramped up his conditioning while nursing a hamstring injury by playing one-on-one with assistant coach Jarrett Jack the past several days.
“He’s been on the floor with Jack a few times, doing the best he can to get to that point,” Williams said.
Brandon Ingram led the Pelicans with 21 points.
The game got chippy in the second quarter — there were 16 fouls called — and the Pelicans seemed to revel in the physical play, outscoring the Suns 30-20 to take a 58-48 halftime lead.
MAVERICKS 98, JAZZ 96
Luka Doncic and Jalen Brunson each scored 24 points as Dallas won Game 6 in Salt Lake City to wrap up the firstround series.
After Brunson hit a 3-pointer from the corner, Mike Conley was called for traveling with five seconds remaining, and Brunson made one of two free throws with 4.3 seconds to play.
The Jazz got an open look for Bojan Bogdanovic on the left wing, but he came up short and the Mavericks moved on.
Doncic also had nine rebounds, eight assists, two blocks and two steals. Spencer Dinwiddie added 19 points, and Dorian Finney-Smith had 18.
Donovan Mitchell had 23 points, nine assists and eight rebounds for Utah. Bogdanovic finished with 19 points.
The Mavericks won in the first round for the first time since since winning the 2011 NBA championship.
76ERS 132, RAPTORS 97
Joel Embiid had 33 points and 10 rebounds, former Rocket James Harden added 22 points and 15 assists, and Philadelphia won Game 6 in Toronto to end the firstround series.
Philadelphia will face Miami in the second round.
Tyrese Maxey scored 25 points, going 5-for-12 from 3-point range, and Tobias Harris had 19 points and 11 rebounds to help the 76ers finish off the Raptors with a blowout after losing the past two games.
Chris Boucher had 25 points and 10 rebounds for Toronto, and Pascal Siakam fouled out with 24 points.
Toronto played without all-star guard Fred VanVleet, who missed his second straight game because of a strained left hip flexor.