Harden sparks Rocket
Has 31 points to help Houston rout OKC, take 3-2 series lead
Lake Buena Vista, Fla. James Harden scored 31 points and Russell Westbrook returned to face his former team in the playoffs for the first time, helping the Houston Rockets beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 114-80 on Saturday night for a 3-2 lead in the first-round playoff series.
Robert Covington added 22 points and Eric Gordon had 20. The Rockets can advance to the conference semifinals with a victory Monday.
Westbrook, who had played just one game since Aug. 4 because of a quadriceps injury — missing the Rockets’ first four playoff games — had seven points, six rebounds and seven assists in 23 minutes.
Bucks 119, Magic 104: Giannis Antetokounmpo had 28 points and 17 rebounds and Milwaukee closed out the series in five games. The Bucks advanced to face Miami in the second round, beginning Monday. Chris Middleton added 21 points and 10 rebounds for Milwaukee. The Bucks had a 21-point lead trimmed to three in the fourth quarter before regaining control with the help of timely outside shooting by Marvin Williams. Williams scored all 12 of his points on 3-pointers, and Brook Lopez added 16 points for Milwaukee, which won four straight after dropping the opener.
Lakers 131, Trail Blazers 122: Anthony Davis scored 43 points and Lebron James had 36 points as Los Angeles eliminated Portland in five games in their playoff series.
obituary: Cliff Robinson, an early star in Uconn’s rise to power and longtime top sixth man in the NBA, died Saturday. He was 53. No cause of death was given, though former Huskies coach Jim Calhoun said Robinson had a stroke 21⁄2 years ago. Nicknamed Uncle Cliffy, Robinson played 18 seasons in the NBA and helped the Portland Trail Blazers reach two NBA Finals. Clifford Robinson was born on Dec. 16, 1966, in Buffalo. He was the centerpiece of Calhoun’s early teams at Uconn. He played in Storrs from 1985 through 1989.