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In this episode, Santiago and Hal recap Celtics defeating 76ers in Game 7, and previewing Lakers vs Nuggets in Western Conference Finals.
Contributors
Santiago Leon – @sleon
Ryan Christa – @maddawgreport
Celtics 112 – 76ers 88
Jason Tatum scored 51 points, the most in a Game 7 in NBA history, to lead the Celtics to a 112-88 victory to advance to the Eastern Conference finals. Tatum broke the record set two weeks ago by Stephen Curry, who scored 50 points in Game 7 of the Golden State Warriors’ first-round series against the Sacramento Kings.
Tatum went 17-of-28 from the field and added 13 rebounds and five assists, becoming the fifth player in NBA history with at least 50-10-5 in a playoff game.
Sixers led after the first quarter and trailed 55-52 at halftime, staying in the game despite both of their stars struggling. Then Boston raced past Philadelphia in the third quarter, outscoring the Sixers 33-10 to break the game open. Tatum scored 17 points in the third quarter alone, nearly doubling the Sixers’ total and pushing the game out of reach.
The Celtics rallied from down 3-2 in the series with two consecutive victories to close it out.
The Celtics have now won seven series when trailing 3-2, the most by any team in NBA history, according to research by ESPN’s Stats & Information.
With the other top seeds in the conference eliminated, the Celtics opened as -500 favorites to beat the Heat (+380) at Caesars Sportsbook.
Lakers 122 Warriors 101
Los Angeles took down the defending champion Golden State Warriors 122-101 in Game 6 on Friday to advance to the Western Conference finals. The No. 7-seeded Lakers will go on the road to play the West’s top seed, the Denver Nuggets, in Game 1 on Tuesday.
Lebron James had 30 points on 10-for-14 shooting, 9 rebounds and 9 assists as he snapped a personal streak of 18 straight playoff games scoring under 30 points.
The Lakers jumped to a 27-10 lead with Ham’s starting lineup shift — Dennis Schroder replacing Jarred Vanderbilt — sparking the offensive jolt. Davis, who left Game 5 early after taking an inadvertent shot to the side of the head, was locked in from the start, with nine of his 17 points and 10 of his 20 rebounds coming in the opening frame.
But the Warriors, behind reigning Finals MVP Stephen Curry, cut it to five by the start of the second quarter. Curry scored 12 of his game-high 32 points in the opening frame, while his team struggled to find its rhythm against the Lakers’ defense (3-for-14 from 3).
The Lakers doubled the lead to 10 by halftime 56-46, with Austin Reaves’ half-court heave falling through the net to beat the second-quarter buzzer. Reaves would finish with 23 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds — one of five Lakers in double figures.
Los Angeles kept up the pressure to start the third and quickly pushed its cushion to 19 with 7:35 remaining in the quarter — the Lakers’ largest lead yet.
Los Angeles took a 14-point lead into the fourth quarter and the Warriors cut it to 11 before the Lakers responded with an 11-0 run to double their edge. Ham emptied his bench in the final minutes as the Lakers’ crowd got to celebrate the 42nd conference finals berth in team history.
Heat 96 Knicks 92
The Heat eliminated the Knicks 96-92 in Game 6 Friday in their Eastern Conference semifinal series. Jimmy Butler had 24 points, eight rebounds and four assists, and Bam Adebayo had 23 points and nine rebounds. Kyle Lowry chipped in 11 points, nine assists, three steals and one block off the bench.
New York’s Jalen Brunson committed a turnover with 16 seconds left in the fourth quarter, and two Butler free throws extended Miami’s lead to 94-90.
Mark Jackson to interview with Bucks
Ja Morant in trouble again with gun in IG Live
The two teams have met each other in four Eastern Conference Finals: 2012, 2020, 2022, and 2023.
PREDICTIONS
LAL-DEN
HP: DEN in 6
MIA-BOS
HP: BOS in 6
Santiago Leon is the Founder and CEO of the Sports Cast. He covers NFL, NBA, and world soccer. He’s also founder of sleon productions, which he specializes in technology and serves clients with solutions to make their business grow.