>> NBA basketball playoff round 1 game Boston – Atlanta, April 25, 2023. Atlanta's Trae Young, right, and Boston's Jaylen Brown.
Boston – Atlanta basketball players won on the board of Boston 119:117 and kept the chance to advance in the NBA playoffs. They reduced the round of 16 series to 2:3 per game. Especially Trae Young took care of it, who gave 38 points, including the winning three-pointer with two seconds left. Devin Booker performed even better, with 47 points, 8 rebounds and 10 assists to lead Phoenix to a 136-130 win over the Los Angeles Clippers and advance to the next round. The Suns took a 4-1 lead in the series, as did Denver, who sealed the sweep with a 112-109 win over Minnesota. Nikola Jokič contributed to this with a triple double for 28 points, 17 rebounds and 12 assists.
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Czech representative Vít Krejčí watched the match again only from the bench in Atlanta's jersey. And he saw his teammates already losing by 13 points. But in the last quarter, the Hawks rejected the end of the season and turned the score around by 37 points. Among other things, they helped themselves with 19 three-pointers.
Young saved the best for the last attack. Boston took the lead with seven seconds left, but Atlanta's key player took the ball and hit a long 3-pointer just short of the halfcourt logo to seal the game. “I just believed in what I was doing my whole life. I had to be confident,” Young said. “He loves these decisive moments. He wants those big shots and he showed why again today,” added John Collins, who contributed 22 points.
Denver was able to lean on its key players against Minnesota. In addition to Jokic, Jamal Murray also played great, scoring 35 points. At the same time, the Timberwolves entered the match excellently and quickly led by 15 points, but the Nuggets gradually turned the score around in the last quarter and held a tight lead. six points in the last minute. Anthony Edwards, the author of 29 points, tried to match the three-pointer with the horn, but only hit the rim.
The Los Angeles Clippers also did not want the series to end and almost erased a twenty-point deficit on the Phoenix scoreboard in the last quarter. The Suns scored a whopping 50 points in the third quarter and led by 20 points with 11 minutes left. But then the Clippers made a chase and three minutes before the end, the difference was only two points. Nine points in a row was helped by Mason Plumlee, who collected 20 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.
However, Phoenix did not allow a turnaround when Booker first cut off the opponent's onslaught with a basket, and then Kevin Durant sealed the win with four points, which in total gave 31 points. But the Suns mainly helped themselves with the goal, when they did not allow the Clippers to make a field goal in the last two and a half minutes.
Phoenix will now face Denver in the quarterfinals.
1. NBA playoff round:
Eastern Conference – Game 5:
Boston – Atlanta 117:119, series status 3:2.
Western Conference – 5 .matches:
Denver – Minnesota 112:109, final series 4:1, Phoenix – LA Clippers 136:130, final series 4:1.
