ROYCE O'NEALE

Jayson Tatum scored 31 points and had nine rebounds and the Boston Celtics rolled to a 139-96 win over the short-handed Brooklyn Nets.

Kevin Durant had 33 points and 10 rebounds and the Brooklyn Nets outlasted the short-handed New Orleans Pelicans 108-102 on Friday night.

No Kevin Durant, no Kyrie Irving, no problem for the Brooklyn Nets. Missing their entire starting lineup and three of their four top bench players by minutes per game, the Nets somehow managed to defeat the Indiana Pacers 136-133 on the road. Cam Thomas, who entered the game averaging 6.1 points in 14.4 minutes per game, led the way with 33 points off the bench on 13-of-20 shooting. Kessler Edwards, who had played a team-low 39 minutes all season, led the Nets in minutes with 34. Yes, they were playing the Pacers, but the Pacers are 14-13 and unlike Nets, wereplaying their starters.

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 of his 32 points after halftime, Bojan Bogdanovic finished with 26 and the Utah Jazz opened the playoffs with a 99-93 victory over Dallas.

Jazz Warriors Basketball Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, left, drives to the basket against Utah Jazz guard Mike Conley during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Sunday, Jan. 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) (Jeff Chiu)SAN FRANCISCO — (AP) — Jordan Poole scored 20 points to lead a balanced Golden State scoring attack, and the Warriors held off a late Utah rally to beat the Jazz 94-92 on Sunday night. That streak dates back to exactly a year ago, when the Jazz won 127-108 in Utah on Jan. 23, 2021. Warriors: Veteran Andre Iguodala sat out as Golden State manages his left hip injury. ... Golden State took care of the ball, committing just 10 turnovers.

(AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) (Rick Bowmer)SALT LAKE CITY — (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 45 points to lead the Utah Jazz to a 112-109 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinals series on Tuesday night. Mitchell did most of his work in the second half, scoring 32 points to rally the Jazz from a double-digit deficit. The Jazz trailed by as many as 14 points before rallying and overtaking the Clippers in the fourth quarter. Hot outside shooting buoyed Los Angeles in the second quarter and kept Utah at arm’s length. Mitchell scored back-to-back baskets to fuel the run and assisted the go-ahead layup from Royce O’Neale.

Donovan Mitchell scored 45 points to lead the Utah Jazz to a 112-109 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinals series.

Donovan Mitchell scored 10 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter and the top-seeded Utah Jazz beat the Memphis Grizzlies 121-111 on Saturday night to take a 2-1 lead in the first-round series.

Grizzlies Jazz Basketball Memphis Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks (24) lays the ball up as Utah Jazz forward Royce O'Neale (23) looks on during the first half of Game 1 of their NBA basketball first-round playoff series Sunday, May 23, 2021, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer) (Rick Bowmer)SALT LAKE CITY — (AP) — Dillon Brooks had 31 points and seven rebounds and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Utah Jazz 112-109 Sunday night in the opening game of their first-round playoff series. Rudy Gobert added 15 rebounds and 11 points, and Derrick Favors finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Bogdanovic hit five free throws in the final minute to help Utah cut Memphis’ lead to 110-109 with 6.4 seconds left. Memphis went ahead 17-14 on a three-point play by Dillon Brooks, but could not gain further ground against the Jazz defense.

Dillon Brooks had 31 points and seven rebounds and the eighth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies beat the top-seeded Utah Jazz 112-109 in the opening game of their first-round playoff series.

Devin Booker scored 31 points, Mikal Bridges added 18 and the Phoenix Suns pulled into a tie for the top spot in the Western Conference by beating the Utah Jazz 121-100 on Friday night.

New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) goes to the basket over Utah Jazz forward Georges Niang, left, and center Rudy Gobert, right, in the first half of an NBA basketball game in New Orleans, Monday, March 1, 2021. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)NEW ORLEANS – Zion Williamson had 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and the New Orleans Pelicans held off a late Utah charge to beat the NBA-leading Jazz 129-124 on Monday night. Williamson scored 15 points and added a pair of assists in the quarter. ... Utah had its highest scoring second quarter of the season with 41 points ... Utah shot 45.5% (46 of 101), including 17 of 43 from 3-point range. Pelicans: Hart scored 13 points to go with seven rebounds.

Miami Heat forward Kelly Olynyk (9) goes to the basket as Utah Jazz forward Royce O'Neale defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Friday, Feb. 26, 2021, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)MIAMI – The Miami Heat don't believe in statement wins. “A high-level game," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, “and we had some big plays down the stretch." Duncan Robinson scored 15 and Kendrick Nunn added 12 for the Heat, who held Utah to 29% shooting in the fourth quarter. It was the sixth game in Heat history in which both teams had at least 94 points through three quarters.

Los Angeles Clippers guard Patrick Beverley, right, celebrates with forward Kawhi Leonard during the second half of the team's NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz in Los Angeles, Friday, Feb. 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Kelvin Kuo)LOS ANGELES – Kawhi Leonard scored 29 points, reserve Lou Williams had 19 and the Los Angeles Clippers edged Utah 116-112 on Friday night, snapping the Jazz's nine-game winning streak. Los Angeles played without a center in the fourth, when Morris was added to the rotation and scored 10 points. “We got our guys back and we wanted to win this game,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. His pair of free throws sent Los Angeles into the fourth leading 79-75.

He helped the Jazz break open the game in the third quarter and increase the lead to 31 in the fourth. His performance was on the heels of scoring a Jazz playoff-record 57 points in a 135-125 overtime loss in Game 1. Jordan Clarkson scored a personal playoff-best 26 points on a day the Jazz shot 51.7% from the floor. We need the same energy and intensity.Nuggets rookie Michael Porter Jr. had 28 points, and Nikola Jokic added 28 points and 11 rebounds. All of our games are usually close games and this one got away from us, Nuggets coach Michael Malone said.