Celtics oust defending champs Raptors; Nuggets stay alive
MANILA, Philippines — The Boston Celtics booted out defending champions Toronto Raptors, 92-87, in a do-or-die Game Seven on Friday (Saturday, Manila time) to enter the NBA Eastern Conference Finals.
The Celtics' stingy defense caused numerous turnovers on Toronto's end, while resulting in baskets for the Brad Stevens-mentored squad.
The Celtics will face the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown paced the Celtics on offense in the first two quarters while star Kemba Walker struggled to find his shot early.
Sloppy ballhandling in the final quarter seemed to have doomed the Canadian squad, but a final offensive run in the last three minutes of the game got them back into the picture, 87-89.
While a split from the free throw line from Tatum left the door open for Toronto to come back, a botched 3-point attempt from VanVleet sealed the Raptors' losing fate.
Walker tacked on two more free throws with 7.9 ticks left as the icing on the cake.
Tatum top-scored for the Celtics with 29 points, he also had 12 rebounds and seven assists.
Brown finished with 21 points, eight rebounds, two assists and four steals. Walker, for his part, contributed 14 points, six rebounds and four dimes.
For Toronto, VanVleet led on offense with 20 points and six assists. Siakam chipped in a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Kyle Lowry fouled out of the game with 35 seconds left in the game and finished with 16 points and six assists.
Earlier, the Denver Nuggets clawed back from a 16-point deficit against the Los Angeles Clippers to win Game Five, 111-105, and stay alive in the series, 2-3.
They are now 4-0 in do-or-die games in the playoffs this year.
Jamal Murray paced Denver on offense with 26 points and seven assists.
Michael Proter Jr. converted on a dagger 3-pointer that led to the Nugget's win.
Porter Jr. ended up with just seven points.
Nikola Jokic posted a double-double of 22 points and 14 boards.
Meanwhile, Kawhi Leonard starred for the Clippers with 36 points. He also had nine rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Paul George also stood out with 26 points, six rebounds and six assists.
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