NEW YORK — Trevor Ariza scored 23 points, and James Harden added 20 points and 14 assists as the Houston Rockets jumped on the San Antonio Spurs in the opening minutes and rolled to a 126-99 victory on Monday night in Game 1 of a Western Conference semifinal series.
The Rockets led by 11 after the first quarter, by 30 at halftime and by 29 at the end of the third quarter, after which Harden and Ariza were removed from the game. Houston reserve center Nene was ejected at the end of the third quarter after a verbal altercation with San Antonio's Dewayne Dedmon. Dedmon was later ejected as well.
Houston's 22 made 3-pointers were a playoff high for a San Antonio opponent. The Rockets' starters outscored the Spurs' first-line players 77-44 in the first three quarters.
Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs with 21 points and 11 rebounds. He also sat out the fourth quarter with no hope that San Antonio could mount a comeback.
Cavaliers 116, Raptors 105
LeBron James scored 35 points, and Cleveland continued its playoff dominance of Toronto with an easy win in Game 1 of an Eastern Conference semifinal.
James added 10 rebounds and four assists. He also tied Kobe Bryant for second place in league history with his 88th playoff game scoring at least 30 points.
Kyrie Irving had 24 points and 10 assists for Cleveland. Tristan Thompson contributed 11 points and 14 rebounds, and Kevin Love finished with 18 points and nine rebounds.
The Raptors, who were bounced by the Cavs from the Eastern Conference finals in six games last season, were led by 20 points from Kyle Lowry and 19 from DeMar DeRozan. P.J. Tucker finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds, Serge Ibaka added 15 points, and Lowry had a game-high 11 assists.
Celtics look like top seed; Warriors rested for Jazz
For the first time this postseason, there is a calm beginning to settle over the Boston Celtics. The top-seeded Celtics struggled to find their footing at the outset of their first-round series with Chicago after their leader Isaiah Thomas' sister was killed in a car accident.
But after four straight wins to finish off the Bulls and overcoming a slow start and lost tooth by Thomas to earn a double-digit win over the Wizards in the opener of the East semifinals, Boston now resembles the team it looked like at the end of regular season. It plays Washington in Game 2 on Tuesday night.
In the night's other game, Golden State, the West's top seed, is playing on eight days' rest as it opens its semifinal matchup with Utah. The Jazz are coming off a Game 7 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday night.
Before Game 1 of the Boston-Washington series, Celtics coach Brad Stevens was asked about the lack of deep playoff experience for a team that hadn't made it out of the first round the past two seasons.
He acknowledged that while experience "certainly is a talking point" when comparing the rosters of the two teams, "there's a lot of power in having some naiveté, too."
His team's production seems to be underlining that assessment. Following his game-high 33-point effort on Sunday, Thomas now has three 30-point games this postseason after just one in his previous 10 playoff games.
What's more, offseason acquisition Al Horford also is producing at the level the Celtics hoped he would after being slowed by injury in the regular season.
He's coming off 21 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds in Game 1, when he recorded his second double-double of the postseason. He has had at least 12 points, five rebounds and five assists in a career-high three straight playoff games.
"I would say probably the last couple weeks of the season is when I felt like I started to get in some sort of a rhythm," Horford said. "Some guys can go right in and just do their thing, and others it takes a little more time before you're fully comfortable with the system and what's expected."
Washington could have a tougher time containing Horford in Game 2. The status of forward Markieff Morris is up the air after he landed awkwardly on Horford's foot and sprained his ankle early in Game 1. — Agencies
