Top Stories

• Cavs steal Game 2 on the road

• Mavericks stun Thunder

• Patrick Beverley suspended 4 games

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Games of the day

Last Night’s Top Games! (link to the box scores of every game from yesterday)

Jayson Tatum scored 25 for Boston, and Jaylen Brown added 19 points. But Derrick White, whose 25 points in Game 1 helped the Celtics coast to a 120-95 win, managed just 10 points, missing seven of his eight 3-point tries. Evan Mobley had 21 points and 10 rebounds for his third straight double-double, and his fifth of this postseason. Caris LeVert scored 21 off the bench for Cleveland, hitting a jumper midway through the fourth quarter that gave the Cavaliers a 20-point lead and sent most fans to the exits. A lot of those who stayed began booing. Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis missed his third straight game with a strained calf muscle. Mobley started at center in place of Jarrett Allen, who has missed five straight games with bruised ribs, and reached a new career playoff high in points. The teams now head to Cleveland for Games 3 and 4 on Saturday and Monday.

Luka Doncic bounced back with 29 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists to help the Dallas Mavericks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 119-110 and even the Western Conference semifinals at one win apiece. P.J. Washington added 29 points and 11 rebounds for the Mavericks. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 33 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists, and Jalen Williams added 20 points for the Thunder, who lost for the first time in the postseason and allowed more than 100 points for the first time in their six playoff games. The teams head to Dallas for games 3 and 4 on Saturday and Monday.

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Around the League

• Milwaukee Bucks guard Patrick Beverley has been suspended four games without pay for forcefully throwing a basketball multiple times at spectators and an inappropriate interaction with a reporter during media availability. He threw the ball at the fans during Milwaukee's Game 6 loss to the Pacers and then refused to allow an ESPN producer to participate in his postgame media session because she did not subscribe to his podcast. For his part, Beverley said the situation was "not fair" before acknowledging he has "to be better." he offered a more sincere apology on his podcast in the aftermath. "Unfortunate situation that should've never happened," Beverley said. "What I did was bad, and that should have never happened. I have to be better and I will be better. That should have never happened, regardless of what was said, simple as that." The veteran is slated to become a free agent this offseason, so whichever team signs him will do so knowing he will be suspended for the first four games of next season.

• Injury Updates: Kristaps Porzingis (calf) is likely out for the entire second round. Bojan Bogdanovic (foot and wrist) had surgery and is out for the season. Mitchell Robinson (ankle) has a fracture and will b out 6-8 weeks. Maxi Kleber (shoulder) is out indefinitely. Julius Randle (shoulder) is out for the season. Benedict Mathurin (shoulder) underwent surgery and is out for the season. We wish all these guys speedy and successful recoveries.

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NBA Playoff Matchups

Eastern Conference

(1) Boston vs (4) Cleveland: Series is 1-1

With a healthy Jarrett Allen, Cleveland has the size and defense to contend with Boston. Expect them to actually give Boston a run for their money.

(Game 1) Boston did what was expected of them, holding down homecourt. Both teams were missing their starting centers, but the Cavs got beat so bad it didn’t matter who was missing.

(Game 2) The Celtics did what they tend to do, playing down to their competition and getting embarrassed. Now with an even series, Boston now has to play from behind to regain homecourt advantage.

Prediction: Celtics in 7

(2) Knicks vs (6) Pacers: Series is 1-0

Indiana doesn’t play both sides of the ball like New York does, and Tyrese Haliburton is going to have to actually play defense.

(Game 1) New York continues to execute in the clutch, coming back to beat Indiana in the final minutes of the 4th (albeit with the help of some questionable calls). Tyrese Haliburton had 6 points…

(Game 2) Haliburton bounced back and had a good game, but despite Jalen Brunson missing part of this game with an injury Indiana couldn’t overcome Donte DiVincenzo and Isaiah Hartenstein at the end of the game.

Prediction: Knicks in 5

Western Conference

(1) OKC vs (5) Dallas: Series is 1-0

OKC has enough shooting to keep up with the Mavs, but the duo of Luka/Kyrie plus their size will ultimately be the deciding factor.

(Game 1) OKC was able to keep Luka in check, holding him to 19 points. He needs to find a way to deal with Lu Dort if they want a chance to win.

(Game 2) Luka was back to his old self, and with a balanced team effort Dallas stole a game on the road. Now with the blueprint to win, which is ignoring Josh Giddey and Gordon Hayward, Dallas is set up for success.

Prediction : Dallas in 6

(2) Nuggets vs (3) Timberwolves: Series 0-2

(Game 1) Minnesota came out guns blazing, with Ant Man dropping 43 points. If Joker can’t find a way to be effective and efficient against the bigs of Minnesota, Denver could be in serious trouble.

(Game 2) Even without the likely DPOY Rudy Gobert missing the game due to the birth of his first child, Minnesota won by 26, holding Denver to 80 points (their lowest of the entire season). The Nuggets are in unfamiliar territory, being down 0-2 in a series for the first time in years.

Prediction: Wolves in 6

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Overtime Thoughts

Hoopgrids

Hoopgrids is a daily basketball trivia game. You cross match each category to find a player that fits both. The rarer the player, the lower the score. The goal is to get the lowest rarity score possible.