basketball
NBA: Knicks reach quarterfinals – Milwaukee out
Isaiah Hartenstein (r) reached the next round with the New York Knicks. photo
© Phil Long/AP/dpa
Isaiah Hartenstein and the New York Knicks advance to the second round of the NBA playoffs. Main round winner Milwaukee Bucks, on the other hand, has already been eliminated. Los Angeles will have to wait.
The New York Knicks with national basketball player Isaiah Hartenstein have reached the playoff quarterfinals in the North American professional league NBA for the first time since 2013. The Knicks won 106-95 at the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night, early winning the best-of-seven series 4-1.
Jalen Brunson scored the best point for the team from New York with 23 points, Hartenstein scored one point, two rebounds and two assists in just under twelve minutes of play. The Knicks will face the Miami Heat in the semifinals of the Eastern Conference.
Show by Butler
Led by another stunning Jimmy Butler, Miami won a dramatic fifth game at the Milwaukee Bucks to knock out the regular-season best team. After extra time and a 16-point deficit, Miami prevailed with 128:126 and surprisingly won the series 4:1.
Butler scored 42 points and was the guarantee for victory. With less than a second to go before the end of regular time, he saved his team into overtime in the first place. An equally strong performance by superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo was not enough for the Bucks, the Greek had 38 points and 20 rebounds.
Lose Lakers
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers around Dennis Schröder missed the early entry into the next round. The Lakers lost 99-116 to the Memphis Grizzlies, but the California team still leads the streak 3-2 on wins and is now home.
Lakers star LeBron James remained below his chances with 15 points, the strong performance of his teammate Anthony Davis (31 points, 19 rebounds) was not enough for the 17-time champion. In the Grizzlies, the duo of Desmond Bane (33 points, ten rebunds) and Ja Morant, who contributed 31 points to the win, convinced. Schröder remained without points in 19 minutes.
Defending champions Golden State Warriors, for their part, made a big step towards the next round. In the California duel against the Sacramento Kings, the Warriors won 123-116 and took a 3-2 lead in the playoff series. Stephen Curry was the best player on his team with 31 points.