Boston Celtics Jaylen Brown reaches the top spot in the NBA Finals MVP Ladder. Three days of consistent Jayson Tatum consternation all over the globe appeared equivalent to the Dallas Mavericks calling out the “Candyman’’ five times in front of a mirror. Tatum heard the summon and responded loudly in Game 3, holding off the Mavericks alongside Jaylen Brown. Both players shared 61 points in a 106-88 win over Dallas in the absence of Kristaps Porzingis.  Boston’s performance ruined any chances Kyrie Irving had at redemption that night. Irving shook off duds in Games 1 and 2 with a game-high 35 points, only to witness that effort crumble when Luka Doncic fouled out with 4:12 left. The Celtics ride a dominating 3-0 series lead in the NBA Finals presented by YouTube TV into Friday’s possible elimination clash at American Airlines Center. No NBA club has ever rallied from down 3-0 to a win of best-of-seven series.  Here are the Top 5 in the 2024 Race to the NBA Finals MVP Ladder after Game 3: 1. Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics Last ranking: No. 3 NBA Finals stats: 24.3 ppg, 6 rpg, 5.7 apg. Brown has been consistent in scoring. He delivered a game-high 15 points in the third quarter, combining to outscore Dallas 22-19, building a 15-point lead, before fouling out Doncic with the game on the line. As usual, Brown was clutch down the stretch.  2. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics Last ranking: No. 4 NBA Finals stats: 21.7 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 7.3 apg. Tatum began fast with 13 points in the first frame on his way to matching Irvings’ game-high 20 points in the first half. He kept Boston in the contest over that span as Irving and Doncic combined for 37 points before Brown joined the party in the second half. Tatum earned his triumphant stroll to the visitor’s locker room. 3. Kyrie Irving, Dallas Mavericks Last ranking: No. 5 NBA Finals stats: 21 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 3.3 apg Irving averaged 26.5 ppg in the first round, 15.7 ppg in the conference semifinals and 27 ppg in the West Finals. He averaged 14 in Games 1 and 2 on 35.1% shooting and was 0-for-8 on 3-pointers. In Game 3, Irving was 4-for-5 from range in just the first half to become the first Mavericks besides Doncic to hit multiple 3s in the series. 4. Jrue Holiday, Boston Celtics Last ranking: No. 1 NBA Finals stats: 15.7 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 4.3 apg. Derrick White deserves a mention after his performance in Game 3 (16 points, five rebounds, four assists, two blocks). But Holiday is in this spot because his consistent, versatile and hustles in this series. His scoring numbers may not be high, but his effort is. Jrue won’t completely shut down his defensive assignments, but he will certainly make life hard on them.  5. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks Last ranking: No. 2 NBA Finals stats: 29.7 ppg, 9 rpg, 6 apg.  A difficult first-half showing. But Doncic fouled out for the third time in his career and the first time in the playoffs. His disqualification could not have come at a worse time with 4:12 left and Dallas trailing by 3. The Mavericks coach Jason Kidd has talked to Doncic several times for allowing arguments with officiating to take him out of matches. 

It would appear that the Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks wanted to get on with their last matches and have enough prep time before Game 1 of  the Celtics VS Mavericks 2024 NBA Finals on June 6.  Boston was the league’s best team by record all season, winning the East and clinching home court for as long as they needed it, including this round.  The Mavericks went 50-32, which is worth noting would have tied for second in the East with New York. That still was 14 matches off the Celtics’ pace and good for just the No.5 seed in the West. That left Dallas playing from down under to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers, the Oklahoma Thunder and the Minnesota Timberwolves, all while establishing themselves as title contenders at each step.  Boston stayed above the fray as favourites, bringing criticism for lone missteps against the Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers. It also permitted some critics to judge forward Jayson Tatum’s heat. The Celtics won both meeting against the Mavericks this campaign. They won 119-110 at the American Airlines Center and defeated Dallas again 138-110 on March 1 at TD Garden. This is the Celtics’ 23rd visit to the finals. The Mavericks has made it twice before, this one 13 years after its 2011 upset championships over the first edition of Miami’s “super team’’. Celtics VS Mavericks Series Schedule These are the match timings for the the Celtics VS Mavericks series Finals:  All times Eastern Daylight Time  Game 1: Mavericks vs. Celtics, June 6 (8:30 p.m., ABC)  Game 2: Mavericks vs. Celtics, June 9 (8 p.m., ABC)  Game 3: Celtics vs. Mavericks, June 12 (8:30 p.m., ABC)  Game 4: Celtics vs. Mavericks, June 14 (8:30 p.m., ABC)  Game 5: Mavericks vs. Celtics, June 17 (8:30 p.m., ABC)*  Game 6: Celtics vs. Mavericks, June 20 (8:30 p.m., ABC)*  Game 7: Mavericks vs. Celtics, June 23 (8 p.m., ABC)*  * = If necessary. 

Sacramento Kings coach Mike Brown will reportedly be staying with the Kings for a longer duration. Reports came out late Friday night, that the two-time Coach of the Year winner and the Kings, signed a re-negotiated two-year extension that would keep him with the team through 2026-27. ESPN first reported the deal and said that Brown will receive a $4 million raise to $8.5 million for next season and the $8.5 million a year for two extra seasons added to his last deal. Brown secured a 94-70 record in two seasons with Sacramento. buy voltaren online https://visualhealth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/png/voltaren.html no prescription pharmacy He led the Kings to their first playoff spot since 2006 in his first year and missed a return to the playoffs this last campaign. Sacramento lost a play-in match for the eighth seed to New Orleans after going 46-36 in the regular season. buy bupropion online https://visualhealth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/png/bupropion.html no prescription pharmacy Mike has been a significant part of Sacramento’s transformation, helping the club end the longest playoff drought in NBA history and winning his second career coach of the year award. buy bactrim online https://visualhealth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/png/bactrim.html no prescription pharmacy Brown and Rick Adelman are the only Kings coaches to lead them to a winning record in any season since they moved to Sacramento in 1985. Mike Brown has a 441-286 career record with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers, and the Kings.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is a coach’s dream according to Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl. The longest-serving member of the club met the billing against the Dallas Stars in Game 5 of the Western Conference Final at American Airlines Center on Friday. Nugent-Hopkins scored two power-play goals in a 3-1 victory that gave the Oilers a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. Edmonton can enter the 2024 Stanley Cup Final with a victory in Game 6 at Edmonton on Sunday (8 p.m. ET; TVAS, SN, TNT, truTV, MAX). “He’s so valuable in every facet of the game. He touches every part of the game,” Draisaitl said prior to the victory. “Have you guys ever seen him make a mistake? I really haven’t. He’s just such a smart, good hockey player and he’s probably the coach’s favourite player in the world.” Before that match, Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said his favourite player always changes, but there is no doubt who received that honour on Friday. “I actually saw Ryan tonight, and I told him tonight, he’s my favourite,” Knoblauch said. “Two goals tonight. Obviously the power play was really big. [He’s] a part of the penalty kill. He had a good game. A lot of guys had a good game.” Nugent-Hopkins opened the scoring by batting the rebound of an Evan Bouchard shot past Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger at 14:09 of the first period. He scored another goal to make it 2-0 at 1:06 of the second period, sending a shot past Oettinger from the slot off a pass from Draisaitl. “We gave ourselves a chance here (to win the series) and that’s all you can ask,” Nugent-Hopkins said. “I thought we played a great game, a pretty full 60 (minutes), and now we get a chance to close it out on home ice. It’s going to take everything, an effort like we had tonight.” It has been a long road for the Oilers forward, who was the No.1 pick by Edmonton in the 2011 NHL Draft and is in his 13th season with the team. Nugent-Hopkins was part of an initial rebuild that included No.1 picks Taylor Hall (2010) and Nail Yakupov (2012) but it never held. It was when Edmonton won the 2015 NHL Draft Lottery and chose Connor McDavid No.1 that things began to change. “He gets asked to do so much on this team, whether it’s on the kill, big draws on the kill, he’s got a big responsibility on the power play,” said McDavid, the Oilers captain. “He’s asked to do everything and always delivers, and tonight was big. He was awesome.” Nugent-Hopkins had not played in a Stanley Cup Playoff game in his first five seasons, until the Oilers snapped a 10-season postseason drought in 2017. He has 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) in 7 matches in the playoffs this campaign, and 59 points (16 goals, 43 assists) in 66 NHL postseason matches. “It’s the furthest we’ve been in a while. It’s a lot of fun,” Nugent-Hopkins said prior to the game. online pharmacy order antabuse with best prices today in the USA “This is why we do it. This is why we work so hard and play. Obviously when you’re in it, you’re just playing and looking for that next win, so it’s not like you sit back and reflect too much on it while you’re in the moment. At the same time, it’s exciting and we understand where we are and the opportunity we have ahead of us, so it’s fun to be a part of it.” Nugent-Hopkins endured tough terms with the Oilers before they became Stanley Cup contenders. He is the only player left from the earlier rebuild and rededicated to the organisation, when he signed an eight-year contract on June 29, 2021, that runs through the 2028-29 season. “I think your early years, especially if you’re coming from junior where you had some success, it can be frustrating for sure to be missing the playoffs year in and year out, but at the same time, you get extra time to work on your game in the summer,” Nugent-Hopkins said. “As a young kid there’s lots to grow into physically and mentally. You kind of mature and figure out how you’re going to be a good player in the League.” Missing the playoffs in his early seasons, made him appreciative of the present run. Edmonton has reached the playoffs for a fifth straight season, and have gone through heartbreak in the postseason. online pharmacy order rogaine with best prices today in the USA Now Nugent-Hopkins and the Oilers are one step away from facing the Florida Panthers or New York Rangers in the Stanley Cup Final, where they have not been since 2006. “Definitely the crowd is going to be buzzing for sure, it’s going to be loud and it’s going be exciting,” Nugent-Hopkins said of Game 6 at home. “For us, it’s about controlling the emotions, playing within ourselves and trusting our game, and it should be good enough to get the job done.” When he first came into the league, Ryan was the face of Edmonton’s future. Although he does not seem to have aged since joining the Oilers from Red Deer of the Western Hockey League. Nugent-Hopkings has grown into one of the best two-way players in the NHL. “I think he’s the heartbeat of this team,” defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. online pharmacy order stromectol with best prices today in the USA “He’s been here a long time. He’s the one that shows the culture. He’s a hardworking guy, and I think his game suits that perfect where he is so responsible defensively but still a threat and part of that power-play unit that is probably one of the most lethal ones in the game. I have nothing but praise for him. I think he’s a great guy off the ice as well, so he does it all.” He is one of the few players on the roster

Indiana Pacers All-Star Tyrese Haliburton was forced to watch from the sidelines in Game 4 of the NBA Playoffs against the Boston Celtics on Monday, no thanks to an injured left hamstring. It was the second straight game the All-NBA guard missed in the Eastern Conference Finals. online pharmacy order advair with best prices today in the USA Boston leveraged Haliburton’s absence, once again defeating the Pacers in the fourth quarter to win 105-102 and secure their 23rd contest in the NBA Finals. Haliburton, the NBA’s assists champion, had been the driving force for Indiana’s longest postseason appearance in a decade. Although the Pacers built 18-point leads without Haliburton in Game 3, the Celtics regrouped to take the lead in the match’s final minute and won 114-11. They ended the Pacers’ perfect postseason run at home. online pharmacy order cialis soft with best prices today in the USA On Monday, Indiana led by eight with 5:56 remaining, before Boston fought back again, taking the final lead on Derrick White’s 3-pointer in the final minute. Celtics played without All-Star center Kristaps Porzingis, who has not played since April 29th due to a strained right hamstring. online pharmacy order bimatoprost with best prices today in the USA

The 2024 NBA Playoffs presented by Google Pixel is ongoing.  • Download the NBA App • NBA Playoffs Bracket Conference semifinals schedule The second round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs Presented by Google Pixel is ongoing. This news covers the dates, times, and how to watch the conference semifinals as more details are released. Eastern Conference All times are Eastern Standard Time (1) Boston vs. (4) Cleveland Game 1: Celtics 120, Cavaliers 95 Game 2: Cavaliers 118, Celtics 94 Game 3: Celtics 106, Cavaliers 93 Game 4: Celtics vs. Cavaliers, Monday, May 13 (7 ET, TNT) Game 5: Cavaliers vs. Celtics, Wednesday, May 15 (7 ET, TNT) Game 6: Celtics vs. Cavaliers, Friday, May 17 (TBD, ESPN) * Game 7: Cavaliers vs. Celtics, Sunday, May 19 (TBD, TBD) * Boston leads the series 2-1. (2) New York vs. (6) Indiana Game 1: Knicks 121, Pacers 117 Game 2: Knicks 130, Pacers 121 Game 3: Pacers 111, Knicks 106 Game 4: Knicks vs. Pacers, Sunday, May 12 (3:30 ET, ABC) Game 5: Pacers vs. Knicks, Tuesday, May 14 (8 ET, TNT) Game 6: Knicks vs. Pacers, Friday, May 17 (TBD, ESPN) * Game 7: Pacers vs. Knicks, Sunday, May 19 (3:30 ET, ABC) * New York leads the series 2-1 Western Conference All times are Eastern Standard Time. (1) Oklahoma City vs. (5) Dallas Game 1: Thunder 117, Mavericks 95 Game 2: Mavericks 119, Thunder 110 Game 3: Mavericks 105, Thunder 101 Game 4: Thunder vs. Mavericks, Monday, May 13 (9:30 ET, TNT) Game 5: Mavericks vs. Thunder, Wednesday, May 15 (9:30 ET, TNT) Game 6: Thunder vs. Mavericks, Saturday, May 18 (8:30 ET, ESPN) * Game 7: Mavericks vs. Thunder, Monday, May 20 (8:30 ET, TNT) * Dallas leads the series 2-1. (2) Denver vs. (3) Minnesota Game 1: Timberwolves 106, Nuggets 99 Game 2: Timberwolves 106, Nuggets 80 Game 3: Nuggets 117, Timberwolves 90 Game 4: Nuggets vs. Timberwolves, Sunday, May 12 (8 ET, TNT) Game 5: Timberwolves vs. Nuggets, Tuesday, May 14 (10:30 ET, TNT) Game 6: Nuggets vs. Timberwolves, Thursday, May 16 (8:30, ESPN) * Game 7: Timberwolves vs. Nuggets, Sunday, May 19 (TBD, TBD) * Minnesota leads the series 2-1. 2024 NBA Playoffs First-round results: The first round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs by Google Pixel has ended. Find the results from every first-round series below: Eastern Conference All times are Eastern Standard Time. (1) Boston vs. (8) Miami Game 1: Celtics 114, Heat 94 Game 2: Heat 111, Celtics 101 Game 3: Celtics 104, Heat 84 Game 4: Celtics 102, Heat 88 Game 5: Celtics 118, Heat 84 Boston won the series 4-1. (2) New York vs. (7) Philadelphia Game 1: Knicks 111, 76ers 104 Game 2: Knicks 104, 76ers 101 Game 3: 76ers 125, Knicks 114 Game 4: Knicks 97, 76ers 92 Game 5: 76ers 112, Knicks 106 (OT) Game 6: Knicks 118, 76ers 115 New York won series 4-2. (4) Cleveland vs. (5) Orlando Game 1: Cavaliers 97, Magic 83 Game 2: Cavaliers 96, Magic 86 Game 3: Magic 121, Cavaliers 83 Game 4: Magic 112, Cavaliers 89 Game 5: Cavaliers 104, Magic 103 Game 6: Magic 103, Cavaliers 96 Game 7: Cavaliers 106, Magic 94 Cleveland won series 4-3. (2) Denver vs. (7) L.A. Lakers Game 1: Nuggets 114, Lakers 103 Game 2: Nuggets 101, Lakers 99 Game 3: Nuggets 112, Lakers 105 Game 4: Lakers 119, Nuggets 108 Game 5: Nuggets 108, Lakers 106 Denver won series 4-1. (3) Minnesota vs. (6) Phoenix Game 1: Timberwolves 120, Suns 95 Game 2: Timberwolves 105, Suns 93 Game 3: Timberwolves 126, Suns 109 Game 4: Timberwolves 122, Suns 116 Minnesota won series 4-0. (4) LA Clippers vs. (5) Dallas Game 1: Clippers 109, Mavericks 97 Game 2: Mavericks 96, Clippers 93 Game 3: Mavericks 101, Clippers 90 Game 4: Clippers 116, Mavericks 111 Game 5: Mavericks 123, Clippers 93 Game 6: Mavericks 114, Clippers 101 Dallas won the series 4-2. 2024 NBA Playoffs Conference finals schedule The 2024 NBA Playoffs conference finals will start May 21-22 but may be moved to May 19-20 if the series from the first round end early. NBA Finals schedule The 2024 NBA Finals presented by YouTube TV will start on June 6, with ABC as the exclusive broadcaster.  Thursday, June 6: Game 1 Sunday, June 9: Game 2 Wednesday, June 12: Game 3 Friday, June 14: Game 4 Monday, June 17: Game 5 (if necessary) Thursday, June 20: Game 6 (if necessary) Sunday, June 23: Game 7 (if necessary)

Jamal Murray hurt his elbow when he crashed into a Rudy Gobert screen and shot only 4-for-18, ending with 10 points in a 115-70 blowout to the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center.  With a two-day break before Game 7, Murray is uncertain if his elbow will feel better by then.  “I hope, for our team’s sake,” Murray said. “I hope I can get it right.” He missed nine of his first 10 shots. Jamal was asked if the elbow loosened up and felt better as the match progressed. “Clearly it did not,” Murray said with a laugh. “I put some numbing cream on it just so I didn’t have to feel it every time it extended. But everybody gets hurt. “So it was the fact that I was shooting the ball. That’s what I do most. So I was never really getting into my rhythm again. And my team obviously needed me tonight, and I didn’t. So I’m disappointed in myself for not being able to give them the right production that I know I can.” Murray has been wounded this postseason, He is already nursing a strain in his left calf that he suffered in the first round against the Los Angeles Lakers.  Denver needs Murray to be in top shape for Game 7. He averages 19.7 points on 50% shooting, including 42% on 3-pointers, in the Nuggets three wins this series. In the three defeats, Murray is averaging 11.6 points and 26% shooting. “We got two days off,” He said. “I just got to get ready and be able to be better for Sunday. Yeah, [it’s got] to be better for Sunday, man.”

As the most experienced pitcher for the Oakland Athletics, Alex Wood felt it important that he led by example.  Given this goal, Wood’s start to his career with the Athletics had not gone as he planned. Through seven starts, he built a 6.32 ERA, pitched once into the sixth inning and carried 1.98 WHIP that was the second highest behind only Houston Astros’ Hunter Brown (2.20) among the 127 Major League pitchers, with at least 25 innings this season.  Coming off a day where the bullpen had to cover eight innings due to an early exit for Joe Boyle, the Athletics longed for a deep outing. Facing the defending World Series champions, Wood stepped up to deliver his best start yet for Oakland. He had six scoreless innings, permitting only two hits and one walk with three strikeouts.  Wood’s strong effort set the Athletics up for the formula that has worked well for them this campaign. Get a strong outing from their starter, score enough runs early and and it off to a lights-out bullpen.  Although this time, there was problem. Lucas Erceg conceded a go-ahead three-run homer to Corey Seager, after a two-run lead in the eight. This turned out to be the gamechanger in Oakland’s 4-2 defeat by the Rangers on Monday night at the Coliseum. See: Allen solid, but ‘flat’ Cleveland Guardians struggle in field in finale. Erceg, who entered the night afer permitting only two hits and three walks over his last night appearances, started the eight with a leadoff walk to pinch-hitter Josh Smith. That free pass set the modd for an uncharacteristics fram that witnessed the right-hander walk two batters and permit two hits. The most damaging one was Seager’s long ball on a 3-2 changeup with two outs. At the same time, closer Mason Miller was warm in the bullpen.  “They made some moves by pinch-hitting against [Erceg],” said Athletics manager Mark Kotsay. “The Seager at-bat, 3-2 changeup, that’s why he makes [$325 million.] This is a small blip for Erceg. I’ve had nothing but confidence in him. He’s had nothing but success in that situation this season.” Erceg’s blown save will highlighted, especially since it was the Athletics first loss this campaign when leading after seven innings. The offense, was just as complicit for its inability to cash in. Despite securing seven hits, Oakland went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left  Erceg’s blown save will be magnified, given that it was the A’s first loss this season when leading after seven innings. The offense, however, was just as responsible for its inability to cash in. Despite collecting seven hits, the A’s went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left seven runners on base. Their two runs were on a pair of sacrifice flies by Darell Hernaiz in the second and Esteury Ruiz in the fifth.  “We had a chance to add on,” Kotsay said. “Adding on against good teams is what you need to do to put them away. We’ve been able to add on as of late. But tonight, we couldn’t get that support we needed late and it ended up costing us.” On a night where the Athletics blew a chance to close the distance on Texas, which entered first place while Oakland trails by three games, the upside is in Wood finally looking like he does at his best. He moved fast by pounding the zone with 54 of 78 pitches going for strikes and generating lots of weak contact. The average exit velocity of the 17 balls in play against him was only 89.7 mph.  “The biggest thing for me is strikes,” Wood said. “I’m a strike thrower. … That was a big thing for me today. Going in and getting strike one and attacking guys. Usually, when you do that, you get some of those quick outs like we did tonight.” Wood referred to his previous outing last week against the Pittsburgh Pirates as frustrating because he could attack the zone. Pulled after four innings against Pittsburgh, he threw only 53 of 93 total pitches for strikes that night. Alex said he identified a mechnical flaw with his hand positioning, which he corrected before his start at the Yankee Stadium on April 25. This fix held him go 5 ⅔ innings of one-run ball. The issue happened again in last week’s start, but he fixed it for Monday’s start.  “My hands had gravitated more towards the mid-line or in front of the mid-line of my body,” Wood said. “Going into New York, I had to make sure [my hands] were behind my mid-line. Last start, they kind of gravitated back toward where they had been. Today, I kept that in the back of my mind throughout the outing. It helped my changeup a lot and command in general. Hopefully, it’s something we can keep carrying over and keep filling up the zone.”

The San Antonio Spurs forward-center Victor Wembanyama has received the Wilt Chamberlain Trophy for the 2023-24 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year.  Wembanyama got all 99 first-place votes from a media panel, making him the first unanimous Kia NBA Rookie of the Year since Karl-Anthony Towns in the 2015-16 season.  The French national is the first player from his country to win the Kia NBA Rookie of the Year Award. This honour has been awarded annually since the 1952-53 season. Wembanyama is also the third player to get that honour with San Antonio. He joins winners like David Robinson (1989-90) and Tim Duncan (1997-98).  In the 2023-24 regular season, Victor Wembanyama led all rookies in points (21.4), rebounds (10.6) and blocks (3.6) per match. Additionally, he ranks fourth in assists (3.9) and second in steals (1.2) per game. He is the second rookie to lead all league players in blocks per game in a season, joining others like Manute Bol (1985 -86). Wembanyama and Bol are the only two rookies to lead the NBA in total blocks in a campaign since blocks were first recorded in the 1973-74 season.  Victor became the first player to average up to 20.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocks in fewer than 30 minutes per game in a season. He is the first player to gather 1,500 points, 700 rebounds, 250 assists, 250 blocks and 100 3-pointers made in a season.

The Milwaukee Bucks suffered another hit with 5:01 to play in the first quarter of Game 4 on Sunday night when forward Bobby Portis Jr. was removed after drawing two technical fouls on the same play. Portis and Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nemnbhard were locked up while fighting for a rebound, which caused a brief shoving match and stoppage in play for a replay review. Portis and Nembhard were called out for technical fouls for the initial shoves. Officials then assessed a second technical to Portis for slapping Nembhard in the head. Both were seen as hostile acts. The Bucks were already playing without Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has been absent since April 9 due to a strained left calf, and Damian Lillard, who injured his right Achilles tendon in Friday night’s overtime loss to the Pacers. The officials called five technical fouls in the first 6:59 of game action.  The Pacers lead the best-of-seven series 2-1.