NBA Playoffs 2018: Top Scores and Highlights from Round 1 Bracket
The fishing ponds are starting to get crowded after Tuesday's NBA playoff slate sent another two teams into summer vacation.
The Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs joined the Portland Trail Blazers as casualties of the opening round. The Philadelphia 76ers and Golden State Warriors, meanwhile, punched their tickets to the conference semifinals.
Four Game 5s are on the docket for Wednesday night. While the Utah Jazz and Houston Rockets look to eliminate the Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves, respectively, 2-2 gridlocks will be broken as the Washington Wizards visit the Toronto Raptors and the Cleveland Cavaliers host the Indiana Pacers.
Even though the round is far from over, let's look back at the best moments and highlights so far.
2018 NBA Playoffs: Round 1 Results
Eastern Conference
No. 1 Toronto Raptors and No. 8 Washington Wizards tied 2-2
Game 1—Raptors 114, Wizards 106
Game 2—Raptors 130, Wizards 119
Game 3—Wizards 122, Raptors 103
Game 4—Wizards 106, Raptors 98
No. 2 Boston Celtics lead No. 7 Milwaukee Bucks 3-2
Game 1—Celtics 113, Bucks 107 (OT)
Game 2—Celtics 120, Bucks 106
Game 3—Bucks 116, Celtics 92
Game 4—Bucks 104, Celtics 102
Game 5—Celtics 92, Bucks 87
No. 3 Philadelphia 76ers defeated No. 6 Miami Heat 4-1
Game 1—76ers 130, Heat 103
Game 2—Heat 113, 76ers 103
Game 3—76ers 128, Heat 108
Game 4—76ers 106, Heat 102
Game 5—76ers 104, Heat 91
No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers and No. 5 Indiana Pacers tied 2-2
Game 1—Pacers 98, Cavaliers 80
Game 2—Cavaliers 100, Pacers 97
Game 3—Pacers 92, Cavaliers 90
Game 4—Cavaliers 104, Pacers 100
Western Conference
No. 1 Houston Rockets lead No. 8 Minnesota Timberwolves 3-1
Game 1—Rockets 104, Timberwolves 101
Game 2—Rockets 102, Timberwolves 82
Game 3—Timberwolves 121, Rockets 105
Game 4—Rockets 119, Timberwolves 100
No. 2 Golden State Warriors defeated No. 7 San Antonio Spurs 4-1
Game 1—Warriors 113, Spurs 92
Game 2—Warriors 116, Spurs 101
Game 3—Warriors 110, Spurs 97
Game 4—Spurs 103, Warriors 90
Game 5—Warriors 99, Spurs 91
No. 6 New Orleans Pelicans defeated No. 3 Portland Trail Blazers 4-0
Game 1—Pelicans 97, Blazers 95
Game 2—Pelicans 111, Blazers 102
Game 3—Pelicans 119, Blazers 102
Game 4—Pelicans 131, Blazers 123
No. 5 Utah Jazz lead No. 4 Oklahoma City Thunder 3-1
Game 1—Thunder 116, Jazz 108
Game 2—Jazz 102, Thunder 95
Game 3—Jazz 115, Thunder 102
Game 4—Jazz 113, Thunder 96
Memorable Moments
Late-Game Heroics
Even with a number of games decided by one-possession scores, the wildest sequence so far came in a six-point contest.
Before the Celtics scratched out their series-opener over the Bucks, the two teams combined to hit three three-pointers in the final 11.1 seconds of regulation.
After Malcolm Brogdon lit the lamp from 25 feet, Terry Rozier countered with a 26-foot step-back jumper. That set the stage for Khris Middleton's miracle—a 35-footer after the Bucks inbounded with only 0.5 seconds remaining.
"Before the timeout, I asked Khris if he wants the ball," Giannis Antetokounmpo said, per ESPN's Chris Forsberg. "He said, 'Yes, give the ball.' … I gave it to Khris, and thank god he knocked the shot down."
Three games later, the Celtics and Bucks were again knotted down the stretch.
This time, Antetokounmpo took matters into his own hands. After Brogdon misfired on a runner, Antetokounmpo stretched his left hand toward the sky and tipped in the game-winner with only 5.1 seconds remaining.
While this last shot came in the first quarter, we'd be remiss not to mention one of the most miraculous buzzer-beaters you'll see.
J.R. Smith, who misfired on a go-ahead three-pointer in Game 3, took an inbounds pass with 1.7 seconds on the clock in Game 4's opening stanza, dribbled once going to his left and fired across his body from about 60 feet from the basket.
This time, his prayer was answered.
Since the Cavaliers only won that contest by four points, feel free to call Smith's heave a game-winner.
Stars Shining
While individual postseason games can put the spotlight on support players—see: Bojan Bogdanovic's 30-point eruption or Ricky Rubio's 26-point triple-double—stars are the ones who deliver night in and night out.
The playoffs' scoring leaderboard reads like an MVP ballot with Anthony Davis, LeBron James and James Harden occupying the top three spots.
Each has also orchestrated a had-to-see-it-to-believe-it performance.
Harden supplied the first, burying the Timberwolves with 44 points in the series opener. He made one less three (seven) than Minnesota (eight) and singlehandedly outscored the Karl-Anthony Towns-Jimmy Butler-Andrew Wiggins trio (39).
Three nights later, the King took center stage.
After suffering the first Round 1, Game 1 loss of his career, James torched the Pacers for 46 points on a blistering 70.8 percent shooting. He was 15-of-19 inside the arc, 2-of-5 beyond it and 10-of-13 at the stripe. He also added 12 boards, five assists and three steals in 40 minutes.
Then, it was the Brow's turn.
Davis left nothing to chance in his first opportunity to clinch a series win. The single-browed superstar powered the Pelicans to their first sweep in franchise history with 47 points on 65.2 percent shooting, 10 rebounds and three blocks.
"In a close-out game and then the magnitude of the situation, this is probably the best game he's played since I've been here," Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said, per Brett Martel of the Associated Press. "He just was not going to let us lose."
We're not even one round into this postseason. Soak up as much basketball as possible for the next month-plus, because the action will keep getting better from here.
Statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
