The First-Round of the NBA Playoffs is over. This weekend defined the last two teams qualified for the Conference Semifinals. One of them was the Golden State Warriors, who had to win Game 7 to advance and knock out the Sacramento Kings. This was the only series to have a Game 7 in the First-Round.
In order for this series to have a Game 7, the Sacramento Kings had to break a drought. They won a Playoff game on the road for the first time since 2004. The fact happened on Friday, when the Kings beat the Warriors by 118-99 in San Francisco, tying the series in 3-3 and forcing Game 7.
Stephen Curry was the Game 6’s top scorer, with 29 points, but it wasn’t enough to avoid the loss. Malik Monk and De’Aaron Fox, with 28 and 26 points respectively, helped the Kings to win the game after such a long period. Fox also had 11 assists, meaning he scored a double-double. Keegan Murray, with 15 points and 12 rebounds, also had one.
But yesterday (30), on Sunday, the Warriors had their redemption after managing to win Game 7 and advance. The defendant champions beat the Kings in Sacramento, by 120-100, and knocked out the franchise on their return to the Playoffs. Among the great individual performances in this game, Stephen Curry broke the record of points scored in a Game 7 (and also a playoff career-high), with 50. Other than him, Kevon Looney also had a great performance with a double-double (11 PTS/21 REB).
Other Qualified
Prior to Friday’s slate, we still had two series to be defined. Besides the Warriors-Kings matchup, the Los Angeles Lakers faced the Memphis Grizzlies. And playing in LA, the Lakers managed to beat the Grizzlies 125-85 and close the series in 4-2. That means now we know the eight teams qualified for the Conference Semifinals.
D’Angelo Russell had a great 31-point performance and was the game’s top scorer. LeBron James dropped 22 points, five rebounds and six assists. And Anthony Davis recorded the only double-double in the match, with 16 points and 14 rebounds.
Now, both teams mentioned in this piece of news will face each other in the next round. The series between the Golden State Warriors and the Los Angeles Lakers starts tomorrow (2) with the Game 1 being played in San Francisco.
