THE NBA playoffs Continue on Tuesday with three games 2, including the return of the Lakers to the action against the Timberwolves after an astonishing defeat of the game 1 at home.
Discover Yahoo Sports’ Predictions for each first -round seriesIn addition to Kevin O’Connor ranking of 40 best players in the NBA qualifiers.
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Here are the results and key dishes for Tuesday matches:
Pacers 123, Bucks 115
A series already animated between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Indiana Pacers intensified on Tuesday.
But The return of Damian Lillard It was not enough for a Milwaukee victory, the Pacers held a Bucks delay rally for a 123-115 victory. The Bucks set up a 13-0 rally in the fourth quarter to reduce a two-point 115-100 Pacers. But the Pacers found their composure to keep the victory despite 34 points, 18 rebounds and seven assists by Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The series is now traveling to Milwaukee with the Pacers having a 2-0 lead.
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Lillard is not limited, but fight on the ground
Lillard has returned to the Bucks range on Tuesday for the first time since March 18 due to deep vein thrombosis in his right calf. He started and did not take his first break before 2:20 am playing at the first quarter on the way to play the allocation of a complete 37 -minute starter. He scored 11 points in the first half but had trouble after half-time and finished the match with 14 on 4 shots out of 13.
The Pacers, on the other hand, took an advance of 31-16. It was in addition to a 19 -point victory in match 1 in which Indiana led up to 28 points. Each pacers starter marked two figures while Indiana drew 48.9% in the field and 44.4% (16 out of 36) out of 3.
Milwaukee’s attack improved after an effort of 98 points in match 1, but not enough to follow the Indiana’s effective attack. The Doc Rivers coach must find adjustments to Milwaukee to avoid a 3-0 hole.
The center of Milwaukee Bucks Brook Lopez (11) and the center of Indiana Pacers Myles Turner (33) are fighting for a rebound in the first mid-Mardi in Indianapolis. (APPO / Michael Conroy)
(Associated Press)
These teams do not love each other
From Celebration of the time of the lady of Halibruton in 2023 to Ball game game a few days later For the Pacers, upsetting the bucks of the last season, there is a lot of bad blood between these two rivals of division.
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He spilled more heaps in the first two games in the series.
Lillard mixed it in match 1 in street clothes in a back and forth heated with Haliburton who prompted Pascal Siakam and Gary Trent Jr. to get involved.
On Tuesday, Lillard struck his first bucket in the series in the first quarter during his first action in more than a month. Haliburton quickly responded with a 3 -point pointer on Lillard’s face and had a few words for the goalkeeper from Bucks going down the ground.
A few minutes later, Trent threw Siakam on the ground during a fight for a rebound.
Siakam returned and went to Trent in front of the players and an official intervened. A brief fight ensued, and Trent and Benédict Mathurin d’Insiana were struck by technical faults.
The series had only five quarters and the players were already in the throat of the other.
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Then, in the fourth quarter, Kevin Porter Jr. de Milwaukee caught the foot of Thomas Bryant of Indiana while Bryant ran on the ground, pulling a blatant fault for anti -portive driving.
Then, with 1:22 to play, Lillard and Haliburton exchanged words once again – and unlikely the last.
With at least two games to play in the series, there is a lot of potential so that things can boil.
Match 3 is scheduled for Friday evening (8 p.m. and | Espnu, Nbatv) in Milwaukee.
Thunder 118, Grizzlies 99
JA MORANT said after the Thunder 131-80 coloring in match 1 that “We will never play so badly. “A match later, it is so good, but not as much that Memphis needed in another two -digit Thunder victory.
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Shai Gilegous-Alexander collected 27 points, Jalen Williams had 24 points and Chet Holmgren collected 20 points (plus 11 rebounds and five blocks) in another victory downstream from the OKC. The best that can be said for Memphis is that they prevented it from being worse.
Grizzlies leaves the Payy Center with somewhat intact dignity
Tuesday’s match seemed to be heading for another historic beat, with OKC from 23 to the second quarter, but the Grizzlies managed to look like a real team of playoffs in the third, which they won 27-20.
It is really not an excellent sign that we are talking about the way the grizzly greeks looked competitive after seven quarters of basketball, but there is not much to say on a team against thunder. When OKC plays its defense to sign, harassing the competition on three levels and committing seven reversals in attack, it is mathematically impossible to beat them.
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Grizzlies showed life, then the Thunder opened the fourth quarter on a 14-2 sequence to remove it. Maybe the Denver Nuggets or Los Angeles clippers will do the next round.
Alex Caruso remains a threat
The Thunder trade for the veteran guard of the last off -season looked like something like a hat on a hat, but it is quite obvious that the Thunder believes that you can never have too many out -of -competition defenders.
Caruso was up to this billing on Tuesday, stifling each threat of perimeter that approached him. The Thunder has outlined the 18 -point grizzly greeks with it on the ground, the best of all the players in match 2.
With 13 points on the bench, plus four rebounds and three assists, Caruso was the kind of double -meaning assets of which the team of the playoffs needs. Of course, thunder is full.
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Match 3 is scheduled for Thursday evening (9:30 p.m. HE | TNT) in Memphis.
Lakers 94, Timberwolves 85
Leaving the box score, it was a 94-85 flight victory Tuesday evening for the Los Angeles Lakers. And yet, they still have a lot to work.
The host Lakers won match 2 against the Minnesota Timberwolves – thanks to an almost triple -double -double by Luka Dončić – on the first round series as she heads for twin cities. Match 3 is scheduled for Friday at the Target Center at 9:30 p.m. he.
Dončić pulled 9 out of 20 from the ground, but struck his 11 free throws and added 12 rebounds and nine assists.
The vibrations were definitely extinguished for the Lakers (and Timberwolves)
The Lakers took a two -digit lead in the first quarter and maintained an advance of at least nine points for the rest of the match, but it was paradoxically a frustrating game, which left Head coach JJ Redick curses his team in the third quarter While the Timberwolves were trying to play it.
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The Lakers again obtained very little from their bench – Dorian Finney -Smith and Gabe Vincent provided all the non -starter production with 13 points in total – but that did not matter on Tuesday because the Minnesota was so bad.
Los Angeles overwhelmed Minnesota in defense, LeBron James leading a renewed effort to the point of attack and on the line of 3 points. And in attack, James and Luka Dončić combined 52 points, 23 rebounds and 16 assists. The Lakers obtained the matches they wanted, notably Dončić against Rudy Gobert on the perimeter, but their strategy finally encountered decreasing yields while the Timberwolves adapted and shaken big problems.
Fortunately, LeBron James can overcome many errors.
The game was anything but beautiful
It was generally a ugly game, the two teams combining to spend 11 out of 54 from 3 points with 46 faults (and 45 free launching attempts). The Minnesota was likely to have the fourth quarter really sweat, but his only coherent night player was Julius Randle, who scored 27 points.
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Jaden McDaniels, Mike Conley, Donte Divincenzo and Nickeil Alexander-Walker combined to go 5 out of 26 on the field. Even Anthony Edwards was a bit offbeat, marking 25 points on a shot of 10 out of 22.
None of the two coaches seemed satisfied with his team during the contest, but the Lakers at least obtained the victory. The question is now whether it can find a more fluid game in front of a crowd hostile to Minnesota.