Friday night featured two pivotal second-round Game 3s. In the first, the Pelicans got back into their series with the Warriors. After losing both games in Oakland, the Pelicans came back with a dominant performance. Anthony Davis led the way with a monstrous 33-point, 18-rebound double-double, while Nikola Mirotic added 16 points and 13 rebounds and Jrue Holiday finished with 21 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Furthermore, Rajon Rondo dished out a whopping 21 assists. When the final buzzer sounded, the Pelicans had a 119-100 win, and narrowed the deficit to 2-1. 

In the nightcap, the Rockets made sure no one had to stay up late. Up 19-5 after just a few minutes, James Harden and Co. put the Jazz away early. Houston led by 17 after the first quarter, by 30 at the half, and won by 21. Harden only needed to play 30 minutes, putting up a cool 25 points and 12 assists, while Eric Gordon matched up with 25 points of his own off the bench. As a team, the Rockets drilled 11 3s and forced 18 Jazz turnovers on the way to a 113-88 win to take a 2-1 series lead. 

Here's a recap of Friday's scores, news and highlights.

NBA Playoff scores for Friday, May 4

  • New Orleans Pelicans 119, Golden State Warriors 100 (Box Score)
  • Rockets 113, Jazz 92 (Box Score)

Game 3: Pelicans 119, Warriors 100

The first five minutes or so of Game 3 looked like everyone on both teams spent pre-game touring Bourbon Street in New Orleans rather than going through warm-ups, but eventually everyone figured things out. Well, more specifically, the Pelicans figured things out. They jumped out to a big lead early, going up by as many as 13 points in the first quarter. 

Unfortunately for the Pelicans, the Warriors eventually figured out there was a game, and closed the gap to just six points at the half. Klay Thompson led their comeback effort, pouring in 20 points in the second quarter alone. 

The Warriors weren't able to keep up their comeback, however, as the Pelicans took control right from the beginning of the third quarter. At one point in the frame they led by 25, and simply coasted the rest of the way. 

Anthony Davis finished with 33 points and 18 rebounds, while Rajon Rondo dropped an incredible 21 assists as the Pels narrowed the series deficit to 2-1. 

Game 3: Rockets 113, Jazz 92

The Jazz stole Game 2 in Houston, which was pretty cool for them. Unfortunately, it seemed to have upset the Rockets, because the team from Houston came up to Salt Lake City and embarrassed the Jazz. They were up by 17 at the end of the first quarter, led by 30 at halftime, and won 113-92 -- a final score that is much too kind to the Jazz. 

This was an absolute beatdown. Joe Ingles hit a 3-pointer to open the game, but after that point, there was really never any hope for his squad. 

When shots like that from Harden are going in, it's clear that it just isn't the Jazz's night. Harden finished with 25 points and 12 assists in just 30 minutes, Eric Gordon scored 25 of his own off the bench and Chris Paul finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists. 

Recap of live updates

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