UNDATED (AP) — Victor Oladipo scored 23 points, Bam Adebayo added 20 points and 11 rebounds, and the Miami Heat moved into the Eastern Conference semifinals by beating the Atlanta Hawks 97-94.
Tyler Herro scored 16, Max Strus scored 15 and Caleb Martin added 10 for the top-seeded Heat, who ousted the eighth-seeded Hawks in five games. And Miami got the series-clincher without Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry, both of whom sat out Tuesday with injuries. Trae Young’s rough series for Atlanta remained that way: He finished 2 for 12 from the floor, scoring just 11 points. For the series, the Hawks’ guard shot 32% against Miami’s swarming defense.
In more playoff action:
— Mikal Bridges scored 31 points, Chris Paul added 22 points and 11 assists and the top-seeded Phoenix Suns beat the New Orleans Pelicans 112-97 to take a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference first-round series. The Suns never trailed but also never totally pulled away against the feisty Pelicans. Phoenix improved to 50-0 this season when leading after three quarters. Bridges closed the Suns’ scoring with two emphatic dunks in the final minute. Brandon Ingram scored 22 points to lead the Pelicans.
— Ja Morant scored on a layup with a second left, and the Memphis Grizzlies rallied from 11 points down in the fourth quarter to edge the Minnesota Timberwolves 111-109 and grab a 3-2 lead in their first-round Western Conference series. The NBA’s most improved player scored 18 in the fourth quarter and finished with 30 and had 13 rebounds and nine assists. Karl-Anthony Towns led the Timberwolves with 28 points.
