Anthony Davis had 33 points and 18 rebounds as the host New Orleans Pelicans defeated the Golden State Warriors 119-100 in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal playoff series Friday night at the Smoothie King Center.
The Pelicans took the lead for good midway through the first quarter as they cut the defending champion Warriors' series lead to 2-1. Game 4 will be played Sunday afternoon in New Orleans
Jrue Holiday added 21 points, Nikola Mirotic had 16 points and 13 rebounds, Ian Clark scored a career-playoff-high 18 points, E'Twaun Moore scored 13 and Rajon Rondo had 21 assists for New Orleans.
Klay Thompson scored 26, Kevin Durant had 22, Stephen Curry, playing in his second game and making his first start since returning from a knee injury, scored 19 and Draymond Green had 11 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists for the Warriors.
The Pelicans made 50 percent of their shots (48 of 96), including 45.2 percent of their 3-point attempts (14 of 31). The Warriors made 38 percent of their shots (35 of 92), including 29 percent of their 3-point attempts (9 of 31).
Davis had two quick baskets as New Orleans began the third quarter with a 10-2 run to build a 72-58 lead.
Green made a free throw, but Davis scored six more points as they Pelicans took an 83-63 lead.
They led by as many as 25 before Durant scored seven points during an 10-2 run that cut New Orleans' lead to 92-75 after three quarters.
Shaun Livingston scored the first basket of the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to 15, but Clark scored six points as the Pelicans took a 101-79 lead.
Holiday was hot and the Warriors were cold in the early going. He scored 11 points, and the Pelicans made 6 of 10 3-point tries in the first quarter. Golden State made just 9 of 25 shots (36 percent), and New Orleans had a 30-21 lead at the end of the period.
The lead grew to 15 twice before Thompson heated up. He scored 10 points as the Warriors got within 44-40.
Davis, who had just three points, got more involved, scoring eight points as the Pelicans rebuilt the lead to 55-42.
Thompson scored eight more and finished with 20 second-quarter points as Golden State cut the New Orleans lead to 62-56 at halftime.
Eric Gordon scored a playoff-high 25 points as the Houston Rockets turned an opening flourish into a 113-92 win over the Utah Jazz on Friday at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal series.
The Rockets took a 2-1 series lead on the strength of a 19-2 run in the opening period, with Game 4 set for Sunday in Salt Lake City. Gordon shot 5-for-22 in Games 1 and 2 but was instrumental in the first-half blitz that put the Rockets firmly in control at the break.
Gordon scored 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting prior to the intermission as the Rockets ravaged the Jazz defense. While Houston scored 17 points off 11 Utah turnovers in the first half, the Jazz shot just 36.6 percent and struggled to generate offense from the usual suspects, with Donovan Mitchell and Joe Ingles shooting a combined 2-for-15 in the first half. Jae Crowder, who nailed 8 of 13 3-pointers in Houston, was 1-for-4 overall by the break as Utah trailed 70-40 at halftime.
The 30-point halftime deficit was the largest in postseason history for the Jazz.
After Ingles opened the game's scoring with a deep 3-pointer from the top of the key, the Rockets responded with a hail of baskets, depositing transition threes in addition to an avalanche of paint points. Gordon scored on consecutive possessions to up the Houston lead to 23-8, and when Nene hit two free throws at the 3:23 mark of the first, the Rockets held their first 20-point lead at 32-12.
The Rockets posted a first-quarter, postseason-high 39 points and led by 17 entering the second. After Royce O'Neale engineered a 9-0 run that cut a 49-25 deficit to 15, the Rockets closed the half with a 21-6 blitz. Gordon hit two threes during that run, which was started by a nifty give-and-go between James Harden and Clint Capela that resulted in a rousing dunk.
Houston shot 58.7 percent in the first half and assisted on 17 of 27 field goals. The Rockets led by as many as 38 points in the second half, extending to an 88-50 lead on a Gordon 3-pointer in the third quarter.
Harden finished with 25 points and 12 assists while Capela added 11 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four blocks. Chris Paul chipped in 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists for the Rockets.
O'Neale led Utah with 17 points. Mitchell totaled 10 on 4-of-16 shooting.