LOS ANGELES (AFP) – A pair of eighth-seeded teams delivered stunning upsets in their playoff openers on Tuesday as the Portland Trail Blazers and Orlando Magic surprised the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks.
Damian Lillard scored 34 points as the Trail Blazers toppled the West’s number one seeded Lakers, 100-93, and Nikola Vucevic tallied 35 points as the Magic defeated the East’s top seeded Bucks, 122-110, at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.
In another playoff encounter, James Harden scored 37 points to lift the Houston Rockets to a 123-108 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Orlando 122, Milwaukee 110
(Orlando leads series 1-0)
Miami 113, Indiana 101
(Miami leads series 1-0)
Houston 123, Oklahoma City 108
(Houston leads series 1-0)
Portland 100, Los Angeles Lakers 93
(Portland leads series 1-0)
Despite not having Russell Westbrook for the fifth time in six games, the Rockets offence was sizzling, combining for 76 points in the second and third quarters.
The Miami Heat ran away for a 113-101 win over the Indiana Pacers after Tyler Herro’s jump shot with 8:52 remaining broke a tie.
The last time both NBA top seeds lost their playoff openers was 2003 when the San Antonio Spurs and Detroit Pistons stumbled out of the gate.
Game two is Thursday in Orlando, Florida
Lillard drained several long three-pointers including one from 36 feet with just over three minutes left to break a 89-89 tie. Three-pointers are something he has been working on in practice.
CJ McCollum had 21 points and Bosnian Jusuf Nurkic scored 16 points and 15 rebounds for the Blazers, who made 13 of 34 three-pointers. Carmelo Anthony added 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Anthony Davis finished with 28 points and 11 boards, while LeBron James had 23 points, 17 rebounds and 16 assists for the Lakers, who struggled from beyond the arc making just five of 32 attempts. Kyle Kuzma chipped in 14 points.
James is the first player in history to record a 20 point, 15 rebound and 15 assist triple double in the postseason.
The Magic got off to a quick start to seize a double-digit lead then blunted a second-half rally by the Bucks, who boast the league’s top player Giannis Antetokounmpo, who finished with 31 points, 17 rebounds and seven assists.
Milwaukee closed the gap to 62-52 at the half, then began the third quarter on a 16-7 run to cut Orlando’s advantage to one.
