Online Reporter
Buddy Hield scored 33 points, Stephen Curry tallied 19 of his 22 points in the second half, and the Golden State Warriors rode a stifling defensive performance to a 103-89 road victory over the Houston Rockets on Sunday and a 4-3 victory in this Western Conference first-round series.
The seventh-seeded Warriors advanced to play the sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves, with Game 1 set for Tuesday in Minneapolis.
Their Game 7 win over the Rockets prevented the Warriors from blowing a 3-1 series lead and resulted in their fifth playoff series win over Houston since 2015.
Curry came alive when the Warriors needed him most, producing a driving layup and a 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter that extended the Golden State lead to 75-62. Hield drilled a 3-pointer with 8:18 left for his first basket of the second half before Curry scored again for an 82-70 lead.
Hield shot 12 for 15 overall and 9 for 11 from behind the arc. Curry added 10 rebounds and seven assists to his ledger while Jimmy Butler posted 20 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Draymond Green added 16 points, six rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots.
The Warriors repeatedly stuffed the Rockets at the rim. Houston had little success in the paint — excluding Amen Thompson, who thrived with 24 points on 9-of-16 shooting and nine rebounds.
Meanwhile, Andrew Nembhard scored 23 points and Tyrese Haliburton had 22 points, 13 assists and three blocked shots as the Indiana Pacers pulled away for a 121-112 road win over the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday night.
Pascal Siakam and Aaron Nesmith each scored 17 points, and Myles Turner had 13 points, 11 rebounds, three steals and two blocks for fourth-seeded Indiana, which handed the Cavaliers their first loss of the postseason.
“We’re definitely the heavy underdog, but we’re trying to control what we can,” Haliburton said. “It gives us a lot of momentum for sure, but this is the best team in our conference. They don’t lose much.”
Haliburton’s 3-pointer with 6:21 left put the Pacers ahead for good at 104-102.
“Being the point guard is like being the mom, trying to take care of everybody,” Haliburton said. “I guess if we win the game, it means I’m a good mom.”
Cleveland shooting guard Donovan Mitchell scored 33 points, but he shot just 13 of 30 from the field and 1 of 11 on 3-point attempts. The six-time All-Star broke Michael Jordan’s NBA record with his eighth straight 30-point game in a playoff series opener. – Reuters.
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