Home BASKETBALL NBA NBA Playoffs: SGA, Tatum Lead Blowouts; Cade’s 39 Not Enough as Pistons Fall

NBA Playoffs: SGA, Tatum Lead Blowouts; Cade’s 39 Not Enough as Pistons Fall

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Tatum Celtics’ 32-point Game 1 win over Philly


Thunder, Celtics open playoffs with blowouts Sunday. OKC led by 39. Boston posted biggest Game 1 win ever. Magic stunned Pistons despite Cade’s 39.


Celtics crush Sixers 123-91 behind Tatum, Brown. Thunder win big with SGA scoring 25. Magic hold off Pistons as Cunningham drops 39...


The Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics opened their NBA playoff runs with big wins Sunday as Orlando stunned the Detroit Pistons.


The Thunder, looking to become the first team since Golden State in 2017 and 2018 to repeat as champions, routed their Game 1 opponent 119-




The Celtics, seeded second in the East behind Detroit, dominated the Philadelphia 76ers 123-91. The Pistons trailed the entire game in a 112-101 loss to the Magic.

 
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning NBA MVP and Finals MVP, scored 25 points. He shot just 5 of 18 from the field but went 15 of 17 at the free-throw line.

 
He added seven assists and two blocks before sitting out the entire fourth quarter.




Jalen Williams added 22 points and Chet Holmgren scored 16 for the Thunder, who are trying to become the first team since the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018 to repeat as champions.


They seized control quickly in front of a raucous Paycom Center crowd, leading by as many as 25 on the way to a 21-point halftime lead and by as many as 39 in the fourth.


Devin Booker scored 23 points for Phoenix, but the Suns, who made the play-in to claim the West’s eighth seed, were largely helpless against a Thunder team that posted the league’s best record with 64 regular-season wins.


“It was a great defensive performance,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “I thought the guys were really competitive, played on a string, great communication, covered for each other. (It) wasn't perfect, but we had each other's backs.


“We forced them to earn everything.”


While the well-rested Thunder came out firing, the Pistons looked rusty after a week off. The Magic, who beat Charlotte on Friday to secure their playoff spot, took full advantage.



Paolo Banchero scored 23 points and Franz Wagner added 11 of his 19 in the fourth quarter as the Magic withstood a 39-point night from Pistons star Cade Cunningham.


Detroit fell behind by as many as 13 in the first and by 11 early in the third. A Cunningham three-pointer tied it at 7:04 of the third, but the Magic pulled away again.


“I liked our composure the whole game, our energy,” Wagner said after the Magic handed the Pistons their 11th straight home playoff loss, a streak dating to 2008.


Dominant From Tip to Buzzer

Boston, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined for 51 points as the Celtics led wire-to-wire against the Sixers, who have now dropped their last six playoff series against Boston.

 
The duo capitalized on Philadelphia’s cold shooting to deliver the Celtics’ biggest margin of victory ever in a playoff opener.


Tatum set the tone with 21 first-half points. Brown took over after halftime, dropping 16 in the third quarter alone to put the game out of Philadelphia’s reach.


Both sat for most of the fourth, resting for Tuesday’s Game 2 at home before the best-of-seven series shifts to Philadelphia. Boston’s lead kept growing in the wire-to-wire win.

 
In one of the NBA’s classic rivalries, Boston has won its last six postseason series against the Sixers, a run that dates to the 1985 Eastern Conference Finals.


Tatum showed no ill effects from the torn Achilles he suffered nearly a year ago, showing why his return has made the surging Celtics a popular pick to win this year’s NBA title.


He finished with 25 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists.


“It's an incredible feeling. You know, not too long ago, I wasn't even sure if I was going to be able to play this season - let alone get an opportunity to play in the playoffs,” said Tatum.



“Today was probably the most excited and, like, relaxed and grateful I've been in... my nine years of being in the playoffs.”


Later Sunday, the San Antonio Spurs face the Portland Trail Blazers.






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