Game Capsules from The Sports Network:
April 27, 2015:
Cleveland 101, Boston 93
Boston, MA (SportsNetwork.com) - LeBron James and the Cavaliers escaped a physical Game 4 with a sweep of the overmatched Celtics. They did it mostly without Kevin Love after his left arm was jarred from its socket by Celtics big man Kelly Olynyk, who was accused by Cavaliers players of doing it on purpose. Love suffered a dislocated shoulder, touching off a series of increasingly chippy plays that threatened to derail a game the Cavs led comfortably almost from the start. James had 27 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists and No. 2-seeded Cleveland advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals with a 101-93 win over Boston on Sunday. The Cavs swept a playoff series for the first time since running the table against Detroit and Atlanta in 2009 with James leading the way. They will face either Chicago or Milwaukee in the semifinals, but likely won't have to play again until next weekend. Love's availability is up in the air. He was injured when Olynyk clutched his arm as the players scrambled for a loose ball midway through the first quarter. The motion pulled Love's arm down away from his body, causing him to grab at his shoulder as he ran down the court, past the Cavs bench and into the tunnel. Love will have tests in Cleveland to determine the extent of his injury, the team said. Speaking to reporters after the game, he called the incident "bush league" and said he had "no doubt" Olynyk did it on purpose.
LA Clippers 114, San Antonio 105
San Antonio, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - Chris Paul and the Clippers rebounded to even their first-round playoff series with the Spurs. They did it on the heels of the worst postseason game in franchise history. Paul had 34 points and seven assists and No. 3-seeded Los Angeles held on for a 114-105 win over San Antonio in Game 4 on Sunday. The Clippers shot better than 53 percent from the floor two days after scoring 73 points and shooting just 34.1 percent in Game 3, both franchise lows in the playoffs. They snapped a two-game losing streak in the series and will head home to host Game 5 on Tuesday night in Los Angeles. Paul, who had seven points in Friday's 100-73 loss, was 11-of-19 from the field and scored 22 of his 34 points in the second half of this one as the Clippers stayed ahead of the reigning NBA champions. Blake Griffin chipped in 20 points, 19 rebounds and seven assists, J.J. Redick added 17 points and Austin Rivers and Jamal Crawford combined to score 31 off the bench in the win. NBA Defensive Player of the Year Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs on offense again, scoring 26 points after setting a postseason career-high with 32 on Friday. Tim Duncan warmed up after a slow start to get 22 points and 14 rebounds, but the Spurs never led over the last 14-plus minutes.
Washington 125, Toronto 94
Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - Paul Pierce had his arms wrapped around John Wall and Bradley Beal as the trio shared a laugh on the bench in the fourth quarter. A smiling Wall waved his towel and strutted in the corner as he cheered on some of his seldom-used teammates. Sunday's series finale between the Washington Wizards and Toronto Raptors was never in doubt. Marcin Gortat had 21 points and 11 rebounds, Wall added 14 points and 10 assists and Washington routed Toronto 125-94 to sweep their Eastern Conference first- round set. The Wizards have won their first-round playoff series in consecutive years after winning just two in the 34 seasons prior. Sunday also marked the first time they swept an opponent in a seven-game series. Washington immediately raced out to a big advantage and led by as many as 37 in the second half. Toronto, meanwhile, failed to win a playoff game after setting a franchise record for victories. Beal posted 23 points, five assists and four steals and Pierce scored 14 for the fifth-seeded Wizards, who shot 55.4 percent (41-of-74) from the field and made 15-of-26 from beyond the arc. They will play either top-seeded Atlanta or eighth-seeded Brooklyn in the conference semifinals. The Hawks lead that series 2-1. Kyle Lowry recorded 21 points, eight rebounds and four assists for Toronto, which has tallied just one playoff series victory in its history -- a first-round win over New York in 2001.
Dallas 121, Houston 109
Dallas, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - Trailing 3-0 in a best-of-seven playoff series is as good a time as any to make adjustments to your starting lineup. J.J. Barea and Al-Farouq Aminu each contributed double-doubles in their first starts of the postseason and Monta Ellis scored 31 points as the Dallas Mavericks held off the Houston Rockets 121-109 to extend their first-round series to a fifth game. After struggling in the first two games of this series -- both double-digit Rockets wins -- Ellis poured in 34 points with nine assists in Game 3. He had a chance to put that game in overtime, but was off the mark with a jumper from the top of the key at the end of regulation.
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