Because the NBA Playoffs chug along, the Blue Zone takes a take a look at some Duke products making a difference for his or her teams:
Jayson Tatum helps Celtics level series
Despite Tatum’s team-high 21 points Saturday, No. 2-seed Boston lost to No. 3-seed Milwaukee at home 101-89. The Celtics got a much-needed win Tuesday to tie the series at one apiece before traveling to Milwaukee for Game 3, beating the Bucks 109-86. In that victory, Tatum notched 29 points from an efficient 50% clip from the sector and 5-of-10 mark from three. His entire team got here out aggressive that night, headlined by Jaylen Brown’s 25 first half points. Tatum was not far behind, as he scored 19 points within the opening two periods and finished the sport with a team-high eight assists.
While the Celtics edged out a 26-point lead against the Bucks within the third quarter, the defending champions wouldn’t go away easily. With 4:30 left within the fourth quarter, Boston’s lead was cut to 12 points, but Tatum’s couple threes in the ultimate minutes quickly put the sport to bed. Tatum has established himself as a two-way player this postseason, affecting the sport on each the offensive and defensive ends. Though the Celtics played without Marcus Smart, this 12 months’s Defensive Player of the Yr, resulting from a bruised thigh in Game 1, Tatum carried the burden with three steals and a block. The teams next meet Saturday at 3:30 p.m. EST in Milwaukee.
Elimination of Pelicans brings Duke products’ futures in perspective
While No. 8-seed Latest Orleans lost to No. 1-seed Phoenix in the primary round, it didn’t go down with no fight because it took the series to 6 games behind the exquisite efforts of Brandon Ingram. The Duke product averaged 27 points from an efficient 49.5% rate from the sector and 40.7% clip from downtown in that series, all while scoring over 30 points in three consecutive playoff games for the longest such streak in franchise history. That remarkable return also put Ingram alongside Allen Iverson and LeBron James as one in all only three players in NBA history to have notched 30+ points in three of the primary 4 playoff games of their careers.
One could be remiss to debate the Pelicans without discussing All-Star Zion Williamson, who was sidelined for the 12 months by a right foot fracture suffered during last summer’s preseason training. Despite a difficult 12 months in Latest Orleans, Williamson said that if offered an extension by the Pelicans, he would sign it. While his team began the season rough and posted a negative 36-46 record before the postseason, it finished its campaign within the playoffs and gave the top-seeded Suns an unexpected run for his or her money. Despite an encouraging conclusion, it stays to be seen just how far Ingram and Williamson can take the Pelicans into future postseasons as they proceed to enhance and develop.
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