Thunder eliminate Lakers; Celtics up 3-2 in East semis

Brandon Bass, the fifth and newest member of the Celtics' starting lineup, erupted for a career playoff-high 27 points, including 18 in the 3rd quarter, as Boston pulled away from the Philadelphia 76ers to win, 101-85 to take a 3-2 series lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Celtics could wrap up the series this Wednesday night when they return to Philadelphia for Game 6.




The Oklahoma City Thunder pulled away for a 106-90 victory in Game 5 to knock the Los Angeles Lakers out of the playoffs. The only other time the franchise made consecutive conference final appearances was from 1978-80, including their lone NBA title in 1979 when OKC was known as the Seattle SuperSonics. The Thunder's next opponent will be the top-seeded San Antonio Spurs, who are riding on an 18-game winning streak and is the only team other than the Lakers or Dallas Mavericks to win the West in the past 13 years. The Western Conference Finals begin this Sunday night in San Antonio.