76ers Playoff Watch: Two Teams One Step Closer to Advancing

After defeating the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday afternoon, the Philadelphia 76ers completed a series sweep by winning four postseason games in a row. With that fourth win, Philadelphia became the first team to advance to the second round of the NBA Playoffs.

On Sunday, two more teams in the Eastern Conference became one step closer to joining the Sixers. The New York Knicks hosted the Cleveland Cavaliers for a matchup on Sunday afternoon.

No Embiid? No Problem: Sixers Sweep Nets

After managing to steal a game on the road in Cleveland, the fifth-seeded Knicks got a 2-1 lead over the fourth-seeded Cavaliers in a Friday night matchup at Madison Square Garden. When both teams returned to the Big Apple on Sunday, the Knicks found similar results.

Once again, the standout veteran Jalen Brunson proved his value on the floor by putting up 29 points in 42 minutes of action. RJ Barrett had himself another stellar outing, draining half of his field goal attempts and scoring 26 points in 37 minutes.

While Sunday’s game was much tighter than the Friday night blowout that took place in New York, the Knicks still managed to defeat the Cavaliers 102-93. With a 3-1 lead in the series, the Knicks are teed up for a potential first-round upset.

The Knicks and the Cavaliers will head back to Cleveland for Game 5 on Wednesday.

Boston Finds Edge Over Atlanta

The Atlanta Hawks managed to sneak a win on Friday night against the visiting Celtics. Entering Game 3, the Celtics had a 2-0 lead, with both wins coming in blowout fashion.

Similar to the Sixers’ series against the Nets, many believed that the Celtics were going to close out their first-round series without a loss. However, the Hawks prevented a sweep.

It looks like a gentleman’s sweep could be in the plans, however. On Sunday, the Hawks and the Celtics returned to the court for a high-scoring battle. Atlanta’s Trae Young produced 35 points in 40 minutes, with his co-star Dejounte Murray producing 23 points.

The starting forward De’Andre Hunter, also had himself a decent outing as he knocked down 11 of his 17 shots from the field, scoring 27 points in 40 minutes.

The Hawks scored 121 points on 44 percent shooting from the field and took nine more shots, but the Celtics were simply more efficient. As a team, Boston drained 52 percent of their field goals. The star duo of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum produced 62 points, with each player contributing 31 points apiece.

The Celtics defeated the Hawks 129-121 on Sunday. With that win, Boston increases its series lead to 3-1. Game 5 of the series will take place on Tuesday night. The series will return to Boston, where the Celtics won both of their previous playoff games.