NBA roundup: Pelicans head home up 2-0

[April 18, 2018]  Jrue Holiday scored 33 points and dished out nine assists as the New Orleans Pelicans downed the host Portland Trail Blazers 111-102 Tuesday night to seize a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference first-round playoff series.

Anthony Davis had 22 points and 13 rebounds and Rajon Rondo collected 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists for the Pelicans, who return home for Games 3 and 4 of the best-of-seven series.

CJ McCollum scored 22 points, Damian Lillard added 17 points and Al-Farouq Aminu totaled 14 points and 15 rebounds for the Trail Blazers.

The Pelicans jumped in front for good when Nikola Mirotic (17 points) hit a 3-pointer for a 102-100 lead with 2:44 remaining. Holiday sank a trey to make it 105-100 with 1:36 to play. When Rondo buried a corner 3-pointer, the Pelicans were in front 108-100 with 38.9 seconds left.

Lillard's layup trimmed the difference to 108-102 with 38 seconds on the clock. Holiday made 1 of 2 free throws to up the lead to 109-102 with 25.4 ticks left, and the verdict was decided.

Raptors 130, Wizards 119

DeMar DeRozan scored 37 points on 14-of-23 shooting, and Toronto took a 2-0 Eastern Conference first-round series lead by notching a victory over visiting Washington.

Jonas Valanciunas contributed 19 points and 14 rebounds, and CJ Miles added 18 points for the top-seeded Raptors. Kyle Lowry had 13 points and 12 assists for Toronto, which set a franchise record for points in a playoff game.

John Wall recorded 29 points and nine assists to pace the eighth-seeded Wizards. Mike Scott scored 20 points for Washington.

Celtics 120, Bucks 106

Jaylen Brown had a career-playoff-high 30 points as host Boston took a 2-0 lead in its best-of-seven Eastern Conference quarterfinal series with Milwaukee.

Brown eclipsed his previous playoff high of 20 in the Celtics' 113-107 overtime victory in Game 1 on Sunday. Terry Rozier finished with 23 points, Marcus Morris had 18 and Al Horford added 16 for Boston.

Giannis Antetokounmpo paced Milwaukee with 30 points, nine rebounds and eight assists after leading all scorers with 35 in Game 1. Khris Middleton added 25 points for the Bucks, who hope to avoid their fourth first-round playoff exit in six years.

--Field Level Media

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