Lakers breeze past Trail Blazers
The Los Angeles Lakers breezed past the Portland Trail Blazers Saturday to go ahead in their first round Western Conference playoff series.
LeBron James scored 38 points to lead the Lakers to a 116-108 win in Game 3 and a 2-1 advantage in their best-of-seven playoff series.
Teammate Anthony Davis backed up LeBron, scoring 29 points in the second half.
An injured Damian Lillard tallied 34 points and seven assists to lead the Blazers. CJ McCollum had 28 points and eight rebounds while Carmelo Anthony added 20 points.
Bucks rout Magic
The Milwaukee Bucks routed the Orlando Magic 121-107 to take a 2-1 lead in their first round Eastern Conference playoff series.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 35 points and pulled down 11 rebounds.
He went 12-of-14 from the field in 30 minutes of action for the Bucks.
Khris Middleton bounced back from a two-point performance in Game 2, scoring 17 points for Milwaukee.
Brook Lopez chipped in 16 for the Bucks.
Heat a game away from 2nd round
The Miami Heat is one game away from advancing to the second round as they triumphed over the Indiana Pacers 124-115.
Jimmy Butler scored 27 points, Goran Dragic added 24 and Bam Adebayo had 22 points for Miami, who now look to sweep Indiana Monday.
Malcolm Brogdon led the Pacers with 34 points and 14 assists.
Thunder survive Rockets
The Oklahoma City Thunder had a new lease in life after surviving the Houston Rockets in Game 3 of their Western Conference playoff series.
Chris Paul sank a triple, triggering a 12-0 run in overtime that resulted in a 119-107 win over Houston.
Houston still leads the series 2-1. The two teams were tied 104-104 at the end of regulation.
Raptors' Nurse named Coach of the Year
Nick Nurse of the Toronto Raptors was named NBA Coach of the Year for the 2019-2020 season Saturday.
Nurse is in his second season as head coach following five seasons as an assistant coach for the Raptors.
He guided the Raptors to a 53-19 record during the regular season (second best in the NBA) and set a franchise-record with a .736 winning percentage.
The Raptors were happy to see Nurse with the award.
“When you see Nick on the sidelines, that’s who he is as a person. Relaxed, but so hard-working. Creative and dynamic. Always setting the tone for our team – attacking our next championship, rather than defending our last,” Raptors president Masai Ujiri said.
“That is who Nick is, that is why we believe in him. His journey to this tremendous honor has been a long one – we are so happy to see him recognized this way.”
Williams, Ennis ejected for fighting midgame
Marvin Williams of the Milwaukee Bucks and James Ennis of the Orlando Magic were ejected for fighting in their game Saturday.
The fracas under the basket happened with 5:39 left in the first half and the Bucks with a 19-point lead, 53-34.
The Bucks missed a shot and as their teammates went up court, Ennis shoved Williams, who pushed back and grabbed Ennis' jersey before Ennis appeared to swing a fist in a bid to free himself.
Bucks assistant coaches, players, and referees stepped in to separate them. Both players were ejected later.
Orange County honors Kobe Bryant on his birthday
It's Kobe Bryant's 42nd birth anniversary on Sunday, Aug. 23.
In honor of Kobe, Orange County declared Aug. 24 (8/24) as Kobe Bryant Day.
Kobe wore jerseys No. 8 and 24 when he played his entire career with the Los Angeles Lakers.
He was killed in a helicoper crash last January with his daughter and seven others.
Bryant was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Aug. 23, 1978. (Compiled by Tristan Lozano)