Celtics sweep Knicks

Kevin Garnett had 26 points and 10 rebounds, Rajon Rondo added 21 points and 12 assists, and the Boston Celtics swept their way into the Eastern Conference semi-finals, holding on for a 101-89 victory over the New York Knicks yesterday.

Ray Allen and reserve Glen Davis each added 14 points for the Celtics, the first team into the second round after sweeping a series for the first time since a 3-0 victory over Indiana in 1992, the last series victory for their old Big Three before Larry Bird retired.

Portland 84, Mavericks 82

Brandon Roy's go-ahead bank shot with 39.2 seconds left capped Portland's 23-point second half comeback and the Blazers beat the Dallas Mavericks 84-82 on Saturday evening, the first-round playoff series at two games apiece.

Roy, who has struggled to find his place on the team since undergoing arthroscopic surgery on both knees in January, had 18 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter alone.

Both teams have held home court in their best-of-seven playoff series, which heads to Dallas today. Dirk Nowitzki had 20 points to lead the Mavericks. Dallas led 64-41 in the third quarter before the Blazers started to rally behind Roy.

Grizzlies 91, Spurs 88

Zach Randolph scored 25 points, including a rare three-pointer, with 41.9 seconds left and the Grizzlies beat the Spurs for the franchise's first play-off victory on their home court.

These Grizzlies have been busy this post-season making lots of history at the Spurs' expense. They opened this series with their first play-off win and now the No. 8 seed have a 2-1 lead.

Memphis are trying to become just the fourth team to knock off the top-seeded team. Game Four is tonight in Memphis.

Marc Gasol scored 17 points, Mike Conley had 14 and O.J. Mayo had 10 off the bench for Memphis.

Manu Ginobili led the Spurs with 23 points. Tony Parker had 16, Tim Duncan 13 and George Hill 11.

Thunder 97, Nuggets 94

Serge Ibaka tied his career high with 22 points and sparked the Thunder's win over the Nuggets, that gave them a 3-0 lead in their best-of-seven play-off series.

Ibaka, a second-year pro from the Congo who led the league with 198 blocks during the regular season, gave the Thunder a third dimension on offense to go with All-Stars Kevin Durant (26 points) and Russell Westbrook (23).

Not even the return of Arron Afflalo (13 points) from a troublesome hamstring injury or bounce-back performances from J.R. Smith (15 points) and Chris "Birdman" Andersen (13) could keep the Nuggets from falling to 0-5 against Oklahoma City this month and inching closer to elimination.

Pacers 89, Bulls 84

Danny Granger scored 24 points and the Pacers avoided elimination by holding off a furious rally to beat the Bulls.

Carlos Boozer missed a three-point attempt that could have tied the game with a second remaining.

Indiana never trailed and finally broke through after losing the first three games by a combined 15 points.

Chicago's fans travelled to Indiana by the thousands, planning to celebrate a first-round play-off victory at Conseco Fieldhouse. The Pacers sent them home disappointed. The Bulls still lead the series 3-1 and will have a chance to close it out at home tomorrow.

Bulls guard Derrick Rose, who averaged 32.7 points in the first three games, finished with 15 points and 10 assists. He sprained his left ankle late in the first quarter and scored eight points on three-for-16 shooting the rest of the way.