The 76ers passed the Raptors 112-101 and the Blazers broke the Nuggets 119-108 to force both Game 7 of their semifinal series in the NBA playoffs.
The winner of the tie between Philadelphia and Toronto will collide in the next instance with the Milwaukee Bucks, who beat the Boston Celtics the day before by a 4-1 aggregate, while the winner of the duel between Denver and Portland will face each other with the one that advances between the Warriors and the Rockets, who lead the first 3-2.
The Raptors visited Philadelphia with the intention of closing their pass but they were not rivals against more active and successful locals and in which all their players contributed to the victory.
In past games, the Sixers had based their success on stellar and solo performances by forward Jimmy Butler, but on Friday their starting five destroyed the Canadians, where only forward Kawhi Leonard and Cameroonian power forward Pascal Siakam made the cut.
Butler finished with 25 points and eight assists, the Australian point guard Ben Simmons with 21 points and six rebounds and the Cameroonian goalkeeper Joel Embiid with 17 points and 12 sacks while for the Raptors Kawhi signed 29 and 12, Siakam 21 and 6 and the center. Spaniard Marc Gasol went unnoticed again with 7 and 3.
In a duel of extreme sets during the first 18 minutes, in which one team answered 10-0 with another similar interval, Butler threw the Sixers on his back and Simmons finally shined to add a 15-point lead to the rest (58-43).
Toronto lived one of its most erratic evenings since the triple (3/17) and could not stop Simmons’ engine or the actions of Butler, author of 11 points in the second quarter (19 at halftime), including a robbery to Kawhi at the end and a basket on the cicada to the joy of the fans.
Meanwhile, the star post of the locals, Embiid, doubts until the last due to physical problems, marked differences in defense, with the Sixers being 40 points better than their opponents with him on the court.
After the restart, nothing changed. Philadelphia increased its rent, answered only when Embiid was resting and in the garbage minutes already with all the substitutes on track, and now both teams will play their ticket to the East finals in the last game, in Toronto, on Sunday.
– Lillard to the rescue –
Meanwhile, in Portland, the Blazers beat the Denver Nuggets 119-108 and will play their pass on Sunday in Colorado.
After a first quarter in which the Nuggets were better (34-26), Portland turned the game around and won the next three to stay alive in the tie.
After a 32-20 in the second, the Blazers went four goals up at halftime (58-54) and came to enjoy a maximum income of 14 units in the last period to scratch a capital triumph in their aspirations to advance to the end of your area.
Damian Lillard added 32 points -17 of them in the third quarter- and five assists and McCollum contributed 30 and three decisive passes, with the invaluable contribution of Rodney Hood from the bench, author of 25 as a substitute.
I’ve kept trying. I have kept my confidence high and have remained focused, “said Lillard after the contest.
For the Nuggets, the Serbian center had 29 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists and Jamal Murray 24 and 10 sacks. AFP