(Reuters) - LeBron James and Anthony Davis shone as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Memphis Grizzlies 111-101 in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs on Saturday
James scored 25 points and followed nine rebounds, and his colleague Giant Davis added 31 points and grabbed 17 rebounds, to advance the Lakers 2-1 in the series, which is decided on the basis of the best in seven games.
D'Angelo Russell also contributed to the Lakers' victory, scoring 17 points, while his teammate Roy Hachimura scored 16 points.
Ja Morant, the giant Grizzlies, appeared amazingly, despite his return from a hand injury, scoring 45 points, passing 13 decisive balls and grabbing nine rebounds, but that was not enough to avoid the loss.
Grizzlies player Dillon Brooks was sent off for a foul on James 17 seconds into the second period. James fell to the ground in pain, and the refereeing staff reviewed the replay and decided to disqualify the player who scored only seven points.
Game four will be played in Los Angeles on Monday.
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Jimmy Butler also scored 30 points to lead the Miami Heat to a 121-99 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks in the first stage of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
The Heat advanced 2-1 in the series, which is decided on the basis of the best in seven games, after imposing its supremacy thanks to the brilliance of Butler, who was rested during the last quarter after securing victory.
Substitute Duncan Robinson scored five three-pointers for Miami and ended the game with 20 points on his 29th birthday, and the team has not trailed since imposing its dominance near the end of the first quarter.
Kyle Lowry also contributed to the Heat's victory by scoring 15 points after participating as a substitute, while his teammate Bam Adebayo scored 12 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and passed five decisive balls.
Chris Middleton topped the list of points scorers in Milwaukee with 23 points, while Gro Holiday added 19 points.
And the Pax missed its prominent player, Yannis Antetokumbo, for the second consecutive game due to a lower back injury during the Pax's 130-117 loss in the first game of the series last week.
Game four will be played in Miami on Monday.