News from May 17. Hou 113, LAC 100 at Hou Trevor Ariza (Hou) had 22 points including 6-12 3-pointers and 7 rebounds. Josh Smith (Hou) had 15 points. Dwight Howard (Hou) had 16 points including 6-8 FG and 15 rebounds. James Harden (Hou) had 31 points on 7-20 FG and 15-18 FT, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, and 7 turnovers. Blake Griffin (LAC) had 27 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, and 5 turnovers. DeAndre Jordan (LAC) had 16 points including 7-10 FG, 17 rebounds including 5 offensive, 4 steals, and 3 blocks. Chris Paul (LAC) had 26 points, 5 rebounds, 10 assists, and 4 steals. Hou shot 31-41 FT and LAC shot 11-17 FT. Houston takes the series 4-3 and advances to the Western Conference Finals where they will face Golden State. Playoff Standings 1st Round 2nd Round 3rd Round Finals (Best of 7) (Best of 7) (Best of 7) (Best of 7) 1 Golden State (4) _ 8 New Orleans (0) |_ 1 Golden State (4) __ _ 5 Memphis (2) | 4 Portland (1) _____| |_ 1 Golden State (0) _ 5 Memphis (4) _ 2 Houston (0) | | | 2 Houston (4) ______ | | 7 Dallas (1) |_ 2 Houston (4) ___| | _ 3 LA Clippers (3) | 3 LA Clippers (4) __| | 6 San Antonio (3) |_ _ | 1 Atlanta (4) _____ | 8 Brooklyn (2) |_ 1 Atlanta (4) ____ | _ 5 Washington (2) | | 4 Toronto (0) ___| | | 5 Washington (4) |_ 1 Atlanta (0) ____| _ 2 Cleveland (0) 2 Cleveland (4) ____ | 7 Boston (0) |_ 2 Cleveland (4) _____| _ 3 Chicago (2) 3 Chicago (4) ____| 6 Milwaukee (2) Conference Finals (Central times) *if necessary Tuesday, May 19 Game 1 Houston at Golden State 8:00 pm ESPN Wednesday, May 20 Game 1 Cleveland at Atlanta 7:30 pm TNT Thursday, May 21 Game 2 Houston at Golden State 8:00 pm ESPN Friday, May 22 Game 2 Cleveland at Atlanta 7:30 pm TNT Saturday, May 23 Game 3 Golden State at Houston 8:00 pm ESPN Sunday, May 24 Game 3 Atlanta at Cleveland 7:30 pm TNT Monday, May 25 Game 4 Golden State at Houston 8:00 pm ESPN Tuesday, May 26 Game 4 Atlanta at Cleveland 7:30 pm TNT Wednesday, May 27 *Game 5 Houston at Golden State 8:00 pm ESPN Thursday, May 28 *Game 5 Cleveland at Atlanta 7:30 pm TNT Friday, May 29 *Game 6 Golden State at Houston 8:00 pm ESPN Saturday, May 30 *Game 6 Atlanta at Cleveland 7:30 pm TNT Sunday, May 31 *Game 7 Houston at Golden State 8:00 pm ESPN Monday, June 1 *Game 7 Cleveland at Atlanta 7:30 pm TNT ---- Patricia Bender pbender@eskimo.com For Trianglons puzzles: http://www.trianglons.com For NBA stuff: http://www.eskimo.com/~pbender/index.html For Mavs stuff: http://www.eskimo.com/~pbender/mavs.html