NBA Summer League rewind: semifinals set
Saturday‘s quarterfinal games
Spurs 95, Celtics 93 — Shannon Scott‘s 17-foot runner at the buzzer broke a 93-93 tie and allowed seventh-seeded San Antonio (4-1) to advance to the semifinals. The Celtics tied the score with 2.5 seconds remaining on Terry Rozier‘s 3-pointer from the left corner, setting the stage for Scott, who found a seam in the defense and hit the shot. Kyle Anderson led the Spurs with 21 points, and reserve Jonathan Simmons scored 19. R.J. Hunter led second-seeded Boston (4-1) with 22 points.
Hawks 91, Mavericks 83 – Atlanta (4-2) took control in the second quarter and survived a brief fourth-quarter surge from Dallas to advance against San Antonio in the semifinals. The Mavericks (2-4), the lowest remaining seed in the quarterfinals at No. 22, got within 57-55 in the third quarter. Glenn Robinson III led 14th-seeded Atlanta with 20 points, and Terran Petteway scored 19. Justin Anderson led Dallas with 23 points.
Suns 91, Bulls 84 – Phoenix rallied from a 15-point second-quarter deficit to lead 81-71 with 2:37 remaining and held off a late rally to reach the semifinals. T.J. Warren had 31 points for the eighth-seeded Suns (4-1), and Archie Goodwin scored 20. With Phoenix ahead 87-84, Warren was fouled with 25.1 seconds remaining and made one of two free throws. The No. 17 Bulls (3-3), who played without leading scorer Doug McDermott (sore Achilles tendon) and Cameron Bairstow (sprained ankle), were led by Bobby Portis with 25 points and 15 rebounds.
Pelicans 100, Warriors 91 – Seth Curry shook off a cold first half that saw him score just three points and finished with 24 to boost fourth-seeded New Orleans over Golden State. The Pelicans (5-0) are the only undefeated team left. Golden State (3-3) played without two of its top players – James Michael McAdoo (hip) and Ognjen Kuzmic (not with team), but still had a 14-point second-quarter lead before New Orleans rallied behind Curry, the league‘s leading scorer at 25.3 points a game. Dominique Sutton led the Warriors with 23 points.
Saturday‘s attendance
8,069. Total for nine sessions – 86,223 (9,580 avg.)
Three stars
1. T.J. Warren, Phoenix. Scored 31 points and led the Suns‘ comeback over Chicago. He was 13 of 23 from the field.
2. Glenn Robinson III, Atlanta. Had 20 points in 21 minutes to help the Hawks advance to the semifinals. He was 8 of 11 from the field and had two vicious slam dunks.
3. Jonathan Simmons, San Antonio. Scored 19 points in 23 minutes off the bench to help the Spurs defeat Boston. He was 7 of 11 from the field and 5 of 6 from the foul line.
Hustle stat of the day
Dallas‘ Dwight Powell had five deflections and three 3-point field goals contested against Atlanta.
Quotable
"I was really looking forward to being part of it. But I need to take care of this, get therapy and be ready for the season." – Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart, who dislocated two fingers on his right hand last week and will not play in the NBA charity game Aug. 1 in Africa after being selected for the World Team.
Local spotlight
Former UNLV forward Khem Birch had eight points, 12 rebounds and six blocked shots in New Orleans‘ victory over Golden State.
Atlanta forward Brandon Ashley, who played at Findlay Prep, scored 19 points off the bench to help the Hawks past the Mavericks. Ashley, an undrafted free agent from Arizona, is averaging 11.2 points in six games.
Charity hoops
The league‘s fundraiser for St. Jude Children‘s Research Hospital raised $50,000. Among the hottest items available through the silent auction was a Kobe Bryant autographed basketball that went for $6,000.
On the scene
The NBA‘s top two draft picks – Minnesota‘s Karl-Anthony Towns and the Los Angeles Lakers‘ D‘Angelo Russell – sat together and watched the semifinal game between Chicago and Phoenix. Their teams finished playing Friday.
Today‘s games
Semifinals
At Thomas & Mack Center
No. 7 San Antonio vs. No. 14 Atlanta, 3 p.m.
No. 8 Phoenix vs. No. 4 New Orleans, 5 p.m.
