Pelicans sweep Blazers

Wolves stop Rockets; 76ers, Jazz prevail

NEW ORLEANS – Anthony Davis sat on the court, a scowl on his face and his biceps flexed on each side of his head.

The Pelicans All-Star had just converted a layup as he fell to the court after a hard foul. His strength-projecting celebration afterward was that of a franchise player determined to lay the foundation of his playoff legacy with a dominant performance in the clutch.

“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. “He just was not going to let us lose.”

Davis scored 33 of his franchise playoff-record 47 points in the second half – including 12 points in the final five minutes – and New Orleans completed a first-round playoff sweep of the Portland Trail Blazers with a 131-123 victory on Saturday night.

And when Davis wasn’t devastating the Blazers, Jrue Holiday was giving Portland fits with explosive drives or pull-up jumpers. Holiday capped his 41-point night with an 18-footer that gave the Pelicans a six-point lead with 40 seconds left.

In Minneapolis, Jimmy Butler hit four 3-pointers among his 28 points and Karl-Anthony Towns snapped back from a bad start to the series with 18 points and 16 rebounds, leading the Timberwolves past the Rockets, 121-105, in Game 3 for their first postseason victory in 14 years.

Jeff Teague scored 23 points and Andrew Wiggins pitched in 20 points with another four 3-pointers, helping the Timberwolves match the NBA’s best 3-point shooting team with 15 makes apiece from long range. Minnesota took 27; Houston launched 41.

In Miami, Ben Simmons became the first rookie since Magic Johnson in 1980 to have a playoff triple-double, JJ Redick led Philadelphia with 24 points and the 76ers moved one win from the second round by topping the Miami Heat, 106-102, to take a 3-1 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series.

In Salt Lake City, Ricky Rubio had 26 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for Utah’s first playoff triple-double in 17 years, and Donovan Mitchell added 22 points to lead the Jazz to a 115-102 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder and a 2-1 lead in their first-round series.

Joe Ingles, who had 21 points, made two three-pointers around two free throws to spark a 13-0 surge that ended on Mitchell’s triple to put Utah up by 20 points in the fourth quarter.