Champion Boston contained Minnesota’s comeback and Jimmy Butler was decisive with Miami against Dallas on Sunday in the NBA.
Boston contains Minnesota
Champion Boston emerged victorious in a close match against the Minnesota Timberwolves (107-105), finalists of the Western Conference in the spring.
In the wake of Jaylen Brown (29 points), author of the first 15 points of the match for his team, the Celtics controlled the match for a long time and were 19 points ahead in the middle of the 3rd quarter, before seeing the Wolves come back gradually.
Anthony Edwards (28 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists) and his teammates, however, completely missed their last possession, which could have allowed them to snatch an overtime or win at the siren.
Boston remains 2nd in the East (14 wins – 3 losses), while Minnesota is only 11th in the West (8-8).
Butler shines against Dallas
After 5 days without playing, the Miami Heat offered a pleasant end to the match for its audience with a success after overtime against NBA finalist Dallas (123-118).
The final minutes were marked by stars Kyrie Irving (27 points, 6 assists), leader of Dallas in the absence of Luka Doncic (touched in the right wrist), and Jimmy Butler (33 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists).
After an acrobatic layup from Butler, Irving allowed Dallas to take the lead again 55 seconds from the end of the 4th quarter, then stole the ball from Butler’s hands at 14 seconds, before the latter managed to snatch overtime with a dunk.
Butler distributed well in overtime before giving the Heat a 4-point lead, a sufficient advantage as Dallas then appeared clumsy.
The Clippers continue, Philadelphia in the tough
The Los Angeles Clippers crushed the Philadelphia 76ers (125-99), who were in great difficulty at the start of the season.
The Clippers, who were up to 33 points ahead, never trembled, in the wake of James Harden (23 points, 8 assists), for a 5th victory in a row.
The crisis is brewing in Philadelphia, beaten for the 13th time of the season (3 wins), during a new match without Joel Embiid and Paul George.
Cleveland still sovereign
Only beaten once by Boston, the Cleveland Cavaliers continued their incredible start to the season with a success against the Toronto Raptors (122-108), with three players with more than 20 points: Donovan Mitchell (26), Ty Jerome (26) and Jarrett Allen (23).
Toronto led the score for 18 seconds at the start of the game before seeing the Cavaliers escape, who sit at the top of the standings in the East (17 wins – 1 loss).
With AFP
