JAMES Harden drained a 3-pointer with 19 seconds remaining in overtime to fuel the host Philadelphia 76ers to a back-and-forth 116-115 victory over the Boston Celtics on Sunday (Monday in Manila), leveling their Eastern Conference semifinal series at two wins apiece.
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Harden collected 42 points, nine assists and eight rebounds while Joel Embiid recorded 34 points and 13 boards for the third-seeded Sixers, who snapped a two-game skid. Game 5 is Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) in Boston.
Harden made 16 of 23 shots from the floor– including 6 of 9 from 3-point range– to bounce back from a pair of disastrous shooting performances in Games 2 and 3. He sank just 5 of 28 shots from the floor and 2 of 13 from beyond the arc in the previous two games.
Boston’s Jayson Tatum overcame missing his first eight shots from the floor to finish with 24 points, 18 rebounds and six assists. Jaylen Brown had 23 points, Marcus Smart added 21 points and seven assists and Malcolm Brogdon contributed 19 with eight rebounds off the bench for the second-seeded Celtics.
In the other game, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant scored 36 points apiece and Landry Shamet buried four 3-pointers in the fourth quarter as the Phoenix Suns recorded a 129-124 victory over the visiting Denver Nuggets to even their Western Conference semifinals at two games apiece.
Booker shot 14-for-18 and registered 12 assists while Durant added 11 rebounds and six assists as fourth-seeded Phoenix won its second straight game. Shamet became a surprise hero off the bench by scoring 14 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter.
Nikola Jokic scored 53 points, his career best in the postseason or the regular season and had 11 assists for top-seeded Denver. He hit 20 of 30 field-goal attempts. Jamal Murray contributed 28 points and seven assists and Michael Porter Jr. added 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Nuggets.
Game 5 of the best-of-seven series is scheduled for Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) in Denver. The home team has won every game so far.
The Suns were without veteran point guard Chris Paul (groin) for the second straight game. — Field Level Media
