Pacers outlast Magic, march to 2nd round
Indianapolis — Danny Granger scored 25 points to help the Indiana Pacers beat the Orlando Magic 105-87 on Tuesday and clinch their first-round NBA Eastern Conference playoff series 4-1.
It was Indiana’s first series win in the playoffs since 2005 and its first homecourt clincher since the first round of the 2000 playoffs. The Pacers will play Miami or New York in the second round.
Darren Collison scored 15 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter and George Hill added 15 points for the Pacers, who trailed by two at the end of the third quarter but outscored the Magic 36-16 in the final 12 minutes.
Jameer Nelson led Orlando with 27 points and made 5 of 8 3-pointers. Glen Davis, a thorn in Indiana’s side throughout the series, scored 15 but made just 6 of 17 shots. The Magic made just 5 of 16 shots in the fourth quarter.
Hawks 87, Celtics 86
In Atlanta, the hosts edged Boston in a thrilling Game 5, avoiding elimination and cutting the series deficit to 3-2.
Al Horford scored 19 points in his first start since January, and the Atlanta Hawks held on for an 87-86 victory over the Boston Celtics in a thrilling Game 5 of the Eastern Conference playoffs Tuesday night.
The Celtics lead the series 3-2 heading back to Boston for Game 6 on Thursday. If the Hawks can steal one on the road, the deciding game would be Saturday in Atlanta.
Boston had a chance to clinch the series when Rajon Rondo stole Josh Smith’s inbounds pass with 10 seconds remaining and raced down the court, looking for the winner. But he got hemmed in along the sideline and Smith knocked away a desperation pass, the ball rolling away as time ran out.
A relieved Smith collapsed on the scorer’s table.
Bulls 77, 76ers 69
In Chicago, the hosts prevailed in a dour defensive contest, beating Philadelphia and slicing the series deficit to 3-2.
Luol Deng scored 24 points and Carlos Boozer added 19 points and 13 rebounds for the top-seeded Bulls, who finally won without point guard Derrick Rose, building a nine-point halftime lead and staying in control through the second half.
It’s been a brutal series for the Bulls, with Rose tearing the ACL in his left knee late in the opener and center Joakim Noah spraining his left ankle in Game 3. He sat out his second straight game, but Chicago refused to bow out quietly. /ap
