NBA Playoffs for Sunday 5-7-17: Cavaliers sweep Raptors, Wizards rout Celtics, Rockets over Spurs to tie series

LeBron James scores 35 points, Cavaliers sweep Raptors

IAN HARRISON, Associated Press

TORONTO (AP) — LeBron James scored 35 points, Kyrie Irving added 27 and the Cleveland Cavaliers completed a four-game sweep of Toronto, beating the Raptors 109-102 on Sunday to give James his seventh consecutive trip to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Kyle Korver scored 18 points to help the Cavaliers become the first team to win eight straight playoff games the year following a title, and the first team to win eight straight in consecutive postseasons.
Channing Frye had 10 points, and Cleveland finished 16 for 41 from 3-point range.
They finished off the Raptors about an hour before Game 4 between the Celtics and Wizards tipped off in Washington.
That series won’t end until Wednesday night at the earliest, and could run until Monday night, meaning the Cavaliers will have plenty of time to rest before the Eastern Conference Finals.
James added nine rebounds and six assists. Irving had nine assists.
Serge Ibaka scored 23 points, and DeMar DeRozan had 22 for the Raptors.

Wizards use 26-0 run to rout Celtics in Game 4, tie series

STEPHEN WHYNO, AP Sports Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Bradley Beal scored 29 points and Washington Wizards used a 26-0 third-quarter run to beat the Boston Celtics 121-102 on Sunday night to tie the second-round series at two games apiece.
John Wall added 27 points and 12 assists for Washington. Wall had seven points, three assists and two steals during the third-quarter spree that featured eight Celtics turnovers. Otto Porter scored four of his 18 points in the dominant six-minute span that also included five points from Markieff Morris.
Trailing 53-48 before the run, Washington led 74-53 on Porter’s layup with 5 minutes left in the third. The Wizards led by as many as 26 and outscored the Celtics (237-191) in the two games in D.C.
Isaiah Thomas had 19 points for Boston, but scored 17 in the first 15 minutes and was held to 1-of-6 shooting after.
Game 5 is Wednesday in Boston. The series winner will face Cleveland in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Harden, Rockets rout Spurs 125-104 to tie series

KRISTIE RIEKEN, AP Sports Writer

HOUSTON (AP) — James Harden scored 28 points, Eric Gordon added 22 and the Houston Rockets rebounded from consecutive losses to beat the San Antonio Spurs 125-104 on Sunday night and tie the Western Conference semifinal at 2-2.
The Rockets never trailed and used hot 3-point shooting to pull away in the third quarter.
Game 5 is Tuesday night in San Antonio.
Jonathon Simmons had 17 points for the Spurs, and Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge added 16 apiece.
Houston made 22 3-pointers in a blowout win in Game 1, but had struggled from long-range in its two losses. The Rockets’ 3-point shooting, a hallmark of their success in the regular season, got back on track Sunday when they made 19 of 43, led by six from Gordon.