Fox, Monk lead Kings over Warriors in Game 1, securing 1st playoff win in 17 years

De'Aaron Fox scored 38 points in his long-awaited playoff debut and the Sacramento Kings celebrated their return to the postseason after a record 17-year drought by beating the defending-champion Golden State Warriors 126-123 on Saturday night.

The inexperienced Kings closed the game strong against a Warriors team that won four titles in the previous eight seasons.

After Stephen Curry hit a corner 3-pointer to give Golden State a 114-112 lead with about four minutes left, the Kings responded with seven in a row starting with a 3-pointer from Fox, who led the league in clutch points in the regular season.

The Warriors didn't go away and cut the deficit to one on a layup by Curry in the final minute. But Andrew Wiggins missed a corner 3 for the lead in the closing seconds of his first game in more than two months.

Monk finished with 32 points off the bench and Domantas Sabonis had 12 points and 16 rebounds.

Curry led the Warriors with 30 points, Klay Thompson added 21 and Wiggins and Poole scored 18 apiece.

Wiggins came off the bench after starting his first 657 games in the NBA and made an immediate impact. He had his first shot attempt blocked but hustled back for a block of his own on the defensive end.

The only thing missing from his game was the outside shot as he was 1 for 8 from 3.

Harden, Embiid lift 76ers over Nets

James Harden hit seven three-pointers and had 23 points and 13 assists, NBA MVP finalist Joel Embiid scored 26 points and the Philadelphia 76ers pushed back Mikal Bridges and the visiting Brooklyn Nets in a 121-101 Game 1 victory on Saturday.

Tobias Harris added 21 points and the 76ers hit a post-season team-record 21 threes in the opener of this Eastern Conference playoff series. The Sixers are trying to win their first NBA championship since 1983 and advance past the second round for the first time since 2001.

The No. 3-seeded 76ers host Game 2 on Monday.

But Brooklyn's starless roster was no match for Embiid, Harden and a playoff-tested roster expected to make a deep run in the post-season. The Sixers had a sellout crowd of 20,913 in a frenzy from the opening tip, then blew the game open in the fourth.

Philly got it done even without a vintage effort from Embiid.

Embiid made only 7 of 15 shots (and all 11 free throws) and was flustered at times around the rim. Embiid was smacked in the face on a missed dunk that sent him crashing to the court in an attempt to draw a flagrant foul. Embiid got heated when he had his arm locked up by Royce O'Neale and the two briefly tussled.

No worries. Harden, who topped the league in assists this season, picked up the slack.

Harden's ineffectiveness around the rim in the first half — he was one of eight on twos — was offset by his five-of-seven shooting on threes. He buried two threes late in the second quarter that stretched the lead to double digits.

Embiid, the NBA scoring champion, could not impose his will against Brooklyn as he had this season to become an MVP finalist. He only took seven shots in the first half.

Unlike the regular season, when the Sixers were crushed by the non-Embiid minutes, the reserves came through. De'Anthony Melton, Jalen McDaniels and Georges Niang all hit threes — the 76ers made 13 of 21 in the half — to keep them in control of Game 1.

Bridges made 10 of 16 shots for 23 points in the first half and kept the Nets, who opened the season with Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant and championship aspirations, within nine at halftime.

Knicks hold off Cavaliers to take Game 1

Jalen Brunson shook off foul trouble and scored 21 of his 27 in the second half, Julius Randle returned from an ankle injury to add 19 and the New York Knicks welcomed Cleveland back to the NBA playoffs by holding off the Cavaliers 101-97 on Saturday night in Game 1.

Brunson was limited to nine minutes in the first half, but hit several big shots down the stretch as the Knicks turned back Cleveland's late rally led by Donovan Mitchell.

With Mitchell making plays all over the floor, the Cavs were within 99-97 in the final seconds when Brunson missed a pull-up, but Randle grabbed his 10th rebound and passed to Quentin Grimes, who was fouled with four seconds left.

Grimes made both free throws as the Knicks finished off the Cavs and disappointed a raucous, towel-waving Cleveland crowd that came alive in the fourth quarter when Mitchell scored 14 to bring the Cavs back.

Mitchell finished with 38 for the Cavs, who returned to the playoff stage for the first time since the 2018 NBA Finals. It's been a long road back for Cleveland, which wasn't as hurt by its inexperience as lack of bench production from the bench.

Josh Hart added 17 points — and hit a big 3-pointer down the stretch — for New York, whose reserves outscored the Cavs 37-14.

Jarrett Allen had 14 points and 14 rebounds for Cleveland.

Game 2 is Tuesday at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.

Randle missed New York's final five games after rolling his ankle on March 29, and the injury threatened to derail New York's playoff hopes. However, he improved this week despite not taking much contact in practice and looked like himself from the outset.

The Cavs didn't take advantage with Brunson out as New York reeled off 10 straight points and led 30-24 after one.

Brunson was back on the bench with his third foul midway through the second. Again, Cleveland failed to capitalize and the Knicks led 50-45 at half.

No. 2-seeded Celtics take down Hawks

Jaylen Brown had 29 points and 12 rebounds, and the Boston Celtics capitalized on a woeful shooting performance by the Atlanta Hawks to hold on for 112-99 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference first-round matchup on Saturday in Boston.

Jayson Tatum scored 25 points, 21 in the first half. Derrick White finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds for Boston, which hosts Game 2 on Tuesday.

Atlanta used a 32-12 run to cut the deficit to 96-84 on a three-point play by Bogdan Bogdanovic early in the fourth.

The Celtics got the lead back up to 107-87. It was 110-97 with less than two minutes to play when Atlanta's De'Andre Hunter got free on fast break. But his layup attempt was blocked from behind by Marcus Smart.

Dejounte Murray led the Hawks with 24 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Trae Young added 16 points.

Despite Atlanta's late push, the Celtics sizzled from all points on the floor, connecting on 13 three-pointers.

After dropping in his third three-pointer in the closing seconds of the first half, Tatum spread his arms out wide as he backed down the court to a huge ovation from the TD Garden crowd.

A big part of Boston's game plan coming in was neutralizing Young and Murray, Atlanta's top two scorers. The Celtics did that and a lot more in the first three quarters.

In a move to match Atlanta's speed, Boston went small at the outset, White instead of big man Robert Williams in a lineup alongside Al Horford, Tatum, Brown and Smart.

It seemed to neutralize the Hawks' attack.