Apr 21, 2017; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (0) drives to the basket between Houston Rockets forward Trevor Ariza (1) and Houston Rockets guard Eric Gordon (10) during the fourth quarter in game three of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Photo Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
OKLAHOMA CITY — Russell Westbrook’s second missed free throw of the closing seconds kept the door open for James Harden heroics, but he missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Houston Rockets 115-113 on Friday night at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
The Rockets lead the series 2-1 going into Sunday’s Game 4. Westbrook finished with 32 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists.
Harden hit a 3-pointer with 52 seconds left to lift the Rockets into a tie for the first time since early in the second half. Westbrook followed with his first 3-point attempt of the game. It bounced off the rim, but Steven Adams was there to put it back up for the lead. Then the teams traded free-throw tries until Harden’s drive in the final seconds with the Rockets down two.
Westbrook had his triple-double — his 44th of the season — by the end of the third quarter. He became the first player with back-to-back triple-doubles in the same playoff series since Jason Kidd in the 2002 Eastern Conference finals.
Harden finished with 44 points and 18 free throws.
Clippers 111, Jazz 106
SALT LAKE CITY — Chris Paul scored 24 of his 34 points after halftime to help Los Angeles rally in the fourth quarter in Game 3 against Utah.
DeAndre Jordan had 17 points and 13 rebounds and Luc Mbah A Moute added 15 points for the Clippers. Los Angeles took a 2-1 lead and notched its first-ever playoff win in the state of Utah after going 0-5 in previous trips.
Blake Griffin scored 11 points and collected six rebounds before leaving with a bruised right big toe late in the second quarter. He did not return in the second half.
Gordon Hayward scored a career-high 40 points to lead the Jazz. George Hill added 26 points and Joe Johnson chipped in 15 off the bench for Utah.
Celtics 104, Bulls 87
CHICAGO — Al Horford scored 18 points, Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder added 16 apiece to help Boston beat Chicago in Game 3.
Four Boston starters reached double figures. Avery Bradley scored 15 points and Terry Rozier finished with 11 off the bench to round out the balanced scoring attack.
Dwyane Wade scored 18 points and Jimmy Butler added 14 for Chicago, which struggled to play with the pace it had in the first two games before Rajon Rondo injured his thumb.
