Jayson Tatum recorded his first career triple-double in the playoffs as he had 23 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the Boston Celtics to a 114-94 victory over the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the Nationals Basketball Association (NBA) of the USA and Canada.
Thus, the Celtics took a 1-0 lead in the series, which is up to four wins in seven games.
Derrick White added 20 points and 4 assists for Boston.
Miami derailed the Celtics’ NBA Finals dreams last season, blowing a 3-0 lead in the conference finals and then beating them in Boston in Game 7.
The hosts made 22 three-pointers, and their lead in the third quarter grew to 34 points. Miami then got to within 14, but Boston was out of trouble the rest of the game.
Bam Adebayo scored 24 points for Miami, which was without star Jimmy Butler, who is out with a right knee injury, for the second straight game. Delon Wright added 17 points.
Game 2 is Wednesday in Boston.
James Harden scored 28 points, Ivica Zubac had a double-double, and the Los Angeles Clippers beat Dallas 109-97 to win their first playoff series.
Harden made 6 of 11 3-pointers and dished out 8 assists. Zubak’s 20 points were a career-high in the playoffs, and he also grabbed 15 rebounds. Paul George added 22 points.
The Clippers were without Kawhi Leonard, who has not played since March 31 with right knee inflammation.
The teams met in the playoffs for the third time in five years, with the Clippers winning both previous series.
Luka Doncic led Dallas with 33 points and 13 rebounds. Kyrie Irving recorded 31 points and 7 rebounds.
Damian Lillard scored all 35 of his points before halftime and Milwaukee overcame the absence of Giannis Antetokounmpo to beat Indiana 109-94 in its first game of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
The Bucks needed Lillard to step up without Antetokounmpo, whose return date is uncertain because he has a left calf problem that has kept him out of Milwaukee’s last three regular-season games.
Pascal Siakam had 36 points and 13 rebounds for the Pacers.
Indiana is making its first playoff appearance since 2020 and is looking to advance past the first round for the first time since 2014.
Khris Middleton had 23 points and 10 rebounds for the Bucks, while Bobby Portis added 15 points and 11 rebounds.
Shai Gilges-Alexander scored 28 points, including a key basket in the final minute, to lead Oklahoma City to a 94-92 win over New Orleans in Game 1 of the Western Conference playoffs.
New Orleans’ CJ McCullum missed a 3-pointer in the final seconds and the Thunder won their first home playoff game since 2019.
Jaylen Williams scored 19 points and Chet Holmgren added 15 points, 11 rebounds and 5 blocks for the Thunder, who will host Game 2 on Wednesday night. Trey Murphy III scored 21 points and McCullum had 20 for the Pelicans.
Gilges-Alexander made a basket with 32.5 seconds left to make it 92-90 and was fouled. He succeeded in one of two free throws for 93:90. McCullum got two points back, but Holmgren was fouled with 14 seconds left. He missed his first attempt, but was accurate on his second to make it 94-92.
