NBA Postseason games begin; Homecourt teams bag first win

BULAN, Sorsogon—The Cavaliers, Timberwolves, Knicks, and Nuggets bagged their first win of the postseason, protecting their homecourt on the 2024 NBA Playoffs Opening Weekend on Saturday, April 20.  

In the first game of the playoffs, Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic had their first encounter, as the Cavaliers seized a double-digit lead midway through the first quarter suffocating Orlando for the remainder of the game, securing a 97-83 victory. 

Cleveland’s defensive intensity limited Orlando to a mere 33 percent shooting from the floor, including a paltry 22 percent from long-range.

Donovan Mitchell led all scorers with an impressive 30 points, supported by strong performances from Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley in the wire-to-wire triumph.

In his postgame remarks, Mitchell reflected on Cleveland’s performance on both ends of the court for their first victory, “Getting back to what we do – I think that’s the biggest thing – getting back to our game plan, continue to push the pace, get our looks, getting into the paint finding guys. And the biggest thing too is when you’re not hitting shots, not getting discouraged and they were making some, but we were able to hold them under 90, which was great defensively.”

After leading Game 1, Cavaliers prepares to maintain their defensive intensity for Game 2 on Monday night, followed by Game 3 and 4 in Orlando.

For the West Playoffs, the third seeded Minnesota Timberwolves went up 1-0 in their series, after a resounding 120-95 victory over the sixth seeded Phoenix Suns.  

Anthony Edwards carried the game with 33 points, scoring 18 in the third quarter along with nine rebounds.

Meanwhile, Kevin Durant made a significant impact, tallying 31 points of his own on the 11-for-17 shooting to lead the Suns. 

“We just wanted to show we were the desperate team. It’s going to be hard to beat these guys. It’s just one game. They’re going to be ready to go the next time we play them” Edwards said in the postgame interview. Game 2 is in Minneapolis on Tuesday, April 23, and Phoenix for Game 3. 

In a thrilling showdown at Madison Square Garden, the New York Knicks electrified their home crowd with a standout performance from their bench unit, securing a commanding 111-104 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 1 of their first-round matchup.  

Deuce McBride finished with 21 points, an evident excellent performance in the second quarter, where he single-handedly outscored the entire 76ers team with 13 points, a crucial time where Joel Embiid was forced to briefly exit the game after reinjuring his surgically repaired left knee on a dunk. 

Josh Hart notched a double-double with 22 points and 13 rebounds, while Jalen Brunson with a triple-double, contributing 22 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists for the second-seeded Knicks that helped their team bagged their first win. 

“They protected home court,” 76ers guard Kyle Lowry said. “We have to go, watch the film, understand what we need to do, what we need to get better at and go from there.”

Game 2 is scheduled for Monday night in New York.

For the last game,  the defending champion, Denver Nuggets secured a 114-103 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, in their rematch in the first round, claiming a 1-0 series lead.

Nikola Jokic led the charge with a stellar 32-point performance, rallying the Nuggets from a halftime deficit to clinch the win.

The Nuggets, maintained their dominance over the Lakers from the regular season, capitalized on a crucial 13-0 run in the third quarter to seize control of the game. 

Despite Anthony Davis and LeBron James’ efforts for the Lakers, Denver’s resilience secured the win. 

“We’re not going anywhere,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. 

“This is the playoffs. No team in the playoffs, if you get down 12 early, you’re not going to just take your ball and go home. We still have plenty of fight left in us and we know that we were better than what we were playing earl,” he added.

With Game 1 behind them, both the Lakers and Nuggets are swiftly shifting their focus to Game 2, slated for Monday night in Denver.

The NBA playoff action continues with an exciting lineup of games scheduled for Sunday, Celtics vs. Heat, 1 P.M., Clippers vs. Mavericks, 3:30 P.M., Bucks vs. Pacers, 7 P.M., and Thunder vs. Pelicans, 9:30 P.M., TNT.