- Rapidus 'last opportunity' to put Japan back on global chip map
- Despite Western pressure, China in no hurry to reduce Russia support
- For sale: unique piece of land in strategic Arctic archipelago
- La Rochelle in the spotlight as tight Top 14 run-in commences
- Three key issues to watch for in La Liga this weekend
- Departing Hayes urges Chelsea to seize 'second chance' in WSL race
- Leverkusen eye 'immortality' as Union fight for final day survival
- Klopp leaves lasting legacy after restoring Liverpool to elite
- Putin in trade push on final day of China trip
- Timberwolves crush Nuggets to stay alive in NBA playoffs
- Taiwan president takes office under close scrutiny
- Israel to hit back at 'genocide' claims at UN top court
- Chinese officials meet to mull support for developers: Bloomberg
- 'Hindu nation': Religion trumps caste in India vote
- Asian stocks mixed after Wall St, Europe retreat from records
- Taiwan's Lai to bolster 'porcupine' defence against China threat
- Dominican Republic to vote in poll dominated by Haiti crisis
- The Dominican Republic: from Columbus to cruise ships
- Forced to give birth after rape, Honduran woman seeks UN remedy
- Reddit gives OpenAI access to its wealth of posts
- Turkey court jails Kurdish leader for 42 years over 2014 unrest
- US plans to end leasing in its largest coal-producing region
- Kim's sister denies N. Korea exporting weapons to Russia
- Schauffele equals record-low major round with 62 to lead PGA
- Alternate Lee seizes opportunity to grab LPGA Americas Open lead
- Swiatek to face Sabalenka for Rome title and Serena record
- Mystik Dan goes for Triple Crown 2nd leg in Preakness
- 'Grand Theft Auto VI' release set for late 2025
- Global coral bleaching event expanding to new countries: scientists
- US Republicans confront Biden over pausing arms to Israel
- Lopez double earns Barca win at relegated Almeria
- Weather eases Canadian oil sands city wildfire menace
- Messi's record $20.4 million salary dwarfs entire MLS teams
- Jarry stuns Tsitsipas to reach Rome Open semi-finals
- US ends leasing in its largest coal-producing region
- Chad junta chief officially wins election
- Florida slammed for bill striking climate change from state law
- Exhibition traces Jewish origins of Hollywood
- 'I'm ready': Fury to pray for Usyk before heavyweight clash
- Murray's French Open build-up suffers Bordeaux glitch
- Ethiopian legend Bekele returns to Olympics after 12 years
- McIlroy passes emotional test to stay in hunt for PGA win
- Coppola's long-awaited epic 'Megalopolis' divides Cannes
- Ukraine battles to hold back Russia advance
- Kante returns from wilderness as Deschamps announces France Euro squad
- Superb Schauffele plays his best with hunger to end win drought
- Paraguay leader to attend Taiwan inauguration
- Military rank affects medical care, offering societal insights: study
- US proposes reclassifying marijuana as low-risk drug
- Cannes film shocks with fairy-tale horror on abortion
Celtics incinerate Heat to advance, Mavs trounce Clippers
The Boston Celtics crushed the Miami Heat 118-84 to complete an emphatic 4-1 series victory Wednesday and book their place in the second round of the NBA playoffs.
The postseason top seeds, who were upset by Miami in last year's Eastern Conference finals, avenged that loss in spectacular fashion with a one-sided wire-to-wire rout at the TD Garden.
Jaylen Brown and Derrick White scored 25 points apiece to lead Boston, who barely noticed the absence of the injured Kristaps Porzingis.
The Celtics threw down the gauntlet in the first quarter, racking up a whopping 41 points to open up a commanding 18-point advantage.
They extended that lead to 22 points by half-time, and kept up the pressure in the third quarter to lead 98-66 heading into the final frame.
Boston head coach Joe Mazzulla could afford to rest his frontline players for the fourth with the game effectively won against an injury-hit Miami team missing Jimmy Butler and Jaime Jaquez Jr.
Mazzulla said the Celtics had not been thinking about last year's series loss to Miami.
"I don't really worry about what happened last year," Mazzulla said. "At the end of the day I liked how we approached the series, regardless of who they were playing.
"It had an intentionality to it, had attention to detail, and had a consistent physicality," he added.
"And that's the most important thing, regardless of who we're playing. We wake up tomorrow and we've got to do it all over again versus another team."
Boston will now face either the fourth-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers or fifth seeds Orlando in the Eastern Conference semi-finals. Cleveland lead that series 3-2.
The Celtics advance brimming with confidence after ruthlessly taking care of eighth-seeded Miami in five games.
White's 25-point haul included five three-pointers while Jayson Tatum added 16 points including 12 rebounds with three assists.
Sam Hauser added 17 points off the bench while Jrue Holiday also cracked double figures with 10 points.
- Clippers thrashed -
In Wednesday's other playoff game, Luka Doncic delivered a 35-point performance as the Dallas Mavericks thrashed the Los Angeles Clippers 123-93 on the road to take a 3-2 series lead.
The 30-point margin of defeat was the Clippers' heaviest ever NBA playoff loss.
Dallas, who can clinch the series with victory in game six back in Texas on Friday, pulled away towards the end of the first half to open up a 56-46 lead at the break.
They extended that advantage to 20 points after outscoring Los Angeles 33-23 in the third quarter and piled on in the fourth to open up a 32-point advantage at one stage.
Doncic finished with 35 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds, while Maxi Kleber added 15 from the bench. Kyrie Irving had a relatively quiet night with 14 points.
"In the playoffs it doesn't matter if you win by one point or you win by 50 point -- but it's still a good win," Doncic said afterwards.
"But the job is not done. We've got one more we need to win. We're gonna get ready for next game."
The Clippers were left licking their wounds after a humiliating loss that saw their offense make just nine of 35 attempted three-pointers, and 33 of 87 from the field.
Paul George and Ivica Zubac led the scoring with a meagre 15 points each, while James Harden added just seven points and Russell Westbrook six from the bench.
"We didn't play our best game, we understand that collectively. We'll be better for game six," Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said.
"Overall we weren't good on both sides of the basketball and just had a bad day."
Asked what he attributed Harden's poor performance to, Lue replied: "Being human. He's allowed to have a bad game."
C.Kovalenko--BTB