Kevin Durant scored 35 points taking the Golden State Warriors over the Houston Rockets 104-100 on Sunday in the opening best-of-seven Western Conference semifinal.
Houston’s Chris Paul was ejected with 4.4 seconds left for a second technical. He had rebounded a missed 3-pointer by Harden that could have tied the game with 9 seconds left. Draymond Green added 14 points, nine assists and nine rebounds for the two-time defending champion Warriors, who are meeting the Rockets in the postseason for the fourth time in five years.
Meanwhile in Milwaukee, Kyrie Irving had 26 points and 11 assists and Al Horford added 20 points and 11 rebounds taking Boston past Milwaukee in a 112-90 win over the Bucks in the opener of their second-round playoff series. Game 2 is Tuesday in Milwaukee.
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