Timberwolves, Magic, Thunder, Knicks win
- The Orlando Magic beat the Detroit Pistons 113-105, the Oklahoma City Thunder topped the Phoenix Suns 121-109, the New York Knicks handled the Atlanta Hawks 114-98, and Minnesota beat Denver 112-96 on Saturday. - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 42 points as Oklahoma City moved ahead 3-0, while Minnesota’s 3-1 edge over Denver became the day’s biggest series swing and New York pulled even at 2-2. - Saturday left the Thunder one win from a sweep, put the Timberwolves on the brink, and reset Knicks-Hawks into a best-of-three. (nba.com)
Saturday’s four-game National Basketball Association playoff slate ended with wins by Orlando, Oklahoma City, New York and Minnesota. (nba.com) The Orlando Magic opened the day by beating the Detroit Pistons 113-105 at Kia Center and taking a 2-1 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series. Paolo Banchero finished with 25 points and 12 rebounds, Franz Wagner added 17 points and nine assists, and Desmond Bane scored 25 for Orlando. (nba.com 1) (nba.com 2) Detroit got 27 points and nine assists from Cade Cunningham, but the Pistons committed 16 turnovers and were held scoreless over the final 2:52. Orlando outscored Detroit 35-28 in the second quarter and never gave back the lead for good. (nba.com 1) (nba.com 2) In Phoenix, the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Suns 121-109 and moved to 3-0 in the series. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 42 points on 15-for-18 shooting, with 11-for-12 from the free-throw line and eight assists. (nba.com 1) (nba.com 2) Phoenix had four starters score at least 15 points, including 33 from Dillon Brooks and 26 from Jalen Green, but Oklahoma City shot 49.5% from the field and turned eight Thunder turnovers into a manageable number. The Suns are now one loss from elimination. (nba.com) (nba.com) The New York Knicks then beat the Atlanta Hawks 114-98 at State Farm Arena to even that series at 2-2. OG Anunoby scored 22 points, Karl-Anthony Towns had 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, and Jalen Brunson added 19 points. (nba.com) (nba.com) Atlanta got 23 points from CJ McCollum, but the Hawks committed 16 turnovers and shot 43.8% overall. New York shot 49.4%, made 14 three-pointers and turned Game 5 on April 28 into the pivot point of a now-even series. (nba.com) (nba.com) The late game brought the biggest standings shift: Minnesota beat Denver 112-96 to take a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference series. Naz Reid scored 31 points in 27:45 off the bench, Julius Randle added 15, and Rudy Gobert finished with 15 rebounds. (nba.com) (nba.com) Minnesota outscored Denver 62-42 in the second half and won the paint 54-42. Denver shot 37.9% overall and 21.4% from three-point range, leaving the Nuggets one loss from elimination before Game 5 on April 27. (nba.com) (nba.com) Sunday’s bracket now shows Oklahoma City up 3-0, Minnesota up 3-1, Orlando up 2-1 and New York-Atlanta tied 2-2. One Saturday sweep threat is live, one upset is close, and two series are still moving game by game. (nba.com)
