NBA playoffs: Top moments from Bucks-Nets and Nuggets-Suns
The "de facto NBA Finals" are looking like they could be a sweep, and the sun appears to be blazing in the desert.
Monday's NBA postseason offering featured a semifinal matchup from each conference. Up first, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and the Brooklyn Nets faced off against Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks, with hopes of taking a 2-0 series lead.
The Nets did that and then some, with a 125-86 Game 2 win that will leave the Bucks searching for answers.
Durant and Irving combined for 54 points, 32 of them from Durant, continuing his reign of dominance in this postseason.
Later Monday, fresh off dethroning the defending champion Lakers, Devin Booker and the Phoenix Suns squared off against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal.
The Suns looked just as dominant in Game 1 as they did in their first-round series, securing a 122-105 victory to open the conference semis.
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Here are the best moments from Monday's NBA action:
Phoenix Suns 122, Denver Nuggets 105 (Phoenix leads series 1-0)
The first quarter between the Suns and Nuggets provided highlight plays from both starting centers.
Jokic showed off his creativity with a lob to himself off the backboard.
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Then Deandre Ayton brought the house down with a monster dunk and foul over Michael Porter Jr.
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Ultimately, the first half was dominated by stars, with Booker coming alive to contribute 11 points.
Meanwhile, Jokic was up to his usual stat-sheet-stuffing shenanigans.
The third quarter was all Suns, as they turned a one-point halftime deficit into an 88-79 lead entering the fourth quarter, getting contributions from Mikal Bridges and Booker.
A quick 6-0 run led by Chris Paul to start the fourth pushed the Suns' lead to double digits, putting them in the driver's seat to take control of this game and cruise to a comfortable victory.
Brooklyn Nets 125, Milwaukee Bucks 86 (Brooklyn leads series 2-0)
The Nets jumped to a fast start against the Bucks, with their star duo of Durant and Irving providing a litany of highlights early.
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Durant scored 13 points in the opening frame, and Irving tallied nine to lead the Nets to a 36-19 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The onslaught from the Nets continued into the second quarter, with Blake Griffin playing above the rim to bring the Barclays Center crowd to its feet.
Durant also made history in the first half, with three made 3-pointers, moving him into seventh place all time for postseason 3s.
It was more of the same in the second half, with Durant scoring another 11 points in the third quarter to push his total to 32.
By midway through the fourth, the Nets had built a 49-point lead that they nursed to an easy victory.
The lopsided result led to some commentary on Twitter.
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