Suns eliminate champion Lakers 113-100, advance to 2nd round

<p>LOS ANGELES &mdash; Devin Booker scored 22 of his 47 points in a phenomenal first quarter, and the Phoenix Suns won their first playoff series since 2010, eliminating the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers with a 113-100 victory in Game 6 on Thursday night.</p>
<p>Jae Crowder scored 18 points for the second-seeded Suns, who won three consecutive games to send LeBron James to a first-round series loss for the first time in his 18-year NBA career.</p>
<p>Phoenix will meet Denver in the second round. Game 1 is Monday in Phoenix.</p>
<p>Chris Paul had eight points and 12 assists for the Suns, who jumped to a huge early advantage in the opening minutes of Game 6 while Anthony Davis struggled and eventually left due to his groin injury.</p>
<p>Although the Suns lost much of their early 29-point lead, they patiently held off the Lakers and James, who had 29 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.</p>
<p>Dennis Schröder scored 20 points and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 19 for the Lakers.</p>
<p>NUGGETS 126, TRAIL BLAZERS 115</p>
<p>PORTLAND, Ore. &mdash; Nikola Jokic had 36 points and Denver eliminated Portland in six games to reach the Western Conference semifinals for the third straight season. </p>
<p>Michael Porter Jr. added 26 points, including 22 in the opening quarter, for the third-seeded Nuggets. Denver will take on Phoenix, which eliminated the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 6, 113-100. Game 1 in the series is Monday in Phoenix.</p>
<p>Damian Lillard finished with 28 points and 13 assists for the sixth-seeded Blazers. They led by 14 points in the third quarter but couldn’t stave off elimination. </p>
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