Friday, May 15, 2015

NBA Playoffs: Hawks, Warriors Wrap Up Respective Series, Advance To East And West Finals Respectively

The NBA Playoffs continued on Friday with two games.

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

At Washington:

DeMarre Carroll scored a playoff-career-high 25 points and grabbed ten rebounds while Paul Milsap (to go with his 13 boards) and Jeff Teague each added 20 as the Atlanta Hawks held off the home-standing Washington Wizards 94-91 to win their conference semifinal series four games to two and advanced to their first conference or divisional playoff final since 1970.  

For the Wizards, Bradley Beal scored 29 points while John Wall added 20 (to go with his 13 assists).  Paul Pierce appeared to have scored the three-point basket at the end of regulation that would have sent the game into overtime.  However, the basket was waved off after video replay show that the shot was taken after time expired.

The Hawks will open the Eastern Conference finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers at home in Atlanta on Wednesday.

The Hawks last reached the NBA Finals in 1961, when they were based in St. Louis, three years after having won their only league crown.



WESTERN CONFERENCE:

At Memphis:

Stephen Curry, who scored 32 points (and dished out ten assists), made eight three-point shots, including one from 62 feet out as time expired in the third quarter, helping the Golden State Warriors defeat the Memphis Grizzlies 108-95 on the road and won their conference semifinal series four games to two.  Klay Thompson added 20 points for the Warriors, who advanced to their first conference final since 1976, the year after they last won the NBA title.

Marc Gasol scored 21 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for the Grizzlies.

Golden State will have home-court advantage in the upcoming Western Conference finals, which will open on Tuesday in Oakland, against the winner of the Houston Rockets-Los Angeles Clippers series (currently deadlocked at three games apiece; to be decided on Sunday in Houston).

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