Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Los Angeles Lakers 106-90

OKLAHOMA CITY - Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Los Angeles Lakers with a 106-90 rout that sent them to their second consecutive NBA Western Conference finals.

Westbrook scored 28 points, Durant added 25 points and 10 rebounds. While Kobe Bryant scored 42 points for the Lakers.

After getting eliminated by Los Angeles in 2010 and Dallas in 2011 before both of those teams went on to win it all, the Thunder knocked both out on their way to the West finals for the second straight year.

They'll face the top-seeded Spurs in the West finals on Sunday night in San Antonio.

After Westbrook's pair of three-point plays fueled a 14-3 burst that put Oklahoma City ahead to stay late in the third quarter, Durant hit two 3-pointers as the Thunder scored the first 10 points of the fourth to push their lead to 93-77.

James Harden added 17 points as Oklahoma City's bench outscored the Lakers' 35-5. The Thunder also had a 30-6 edge in fast-break scoring. The Lakers were outrebounded 51-35 and had only three offensive rebounds, two from Gasol and none from Bynum.

Finally the Lakers comes alive

Bryant made 18 free throws without a miss, scored 14 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter, and the Lakers rallied late for a 99-96 victory, cutting the Thunder's second-round series lead to 2-1. Tempers flared in the second quarter when Westbrook furiously attempted to prevent World Peace from tying him up for a jump ball. World Peace's knee came down on Westbrook's leg during a brief skirmish including Jordan Hill, and both Westbrook and World Peace received technical fouls.

Garnett leads Celtics past 76ers, 92-91

Kevin Garnett scored 29 points - his most in the regular- or postseason this year - and added 11 rebounds to help Boston maintain home-court advantage in the best-of-seven, second-round series. Game 2 is Monday night in Boston before the series shifts to Philadelphia for Games 3 and 4.

Lakers Beat Nuggets 96-87 in thrilling Game 7

LOS ANGELES (AP) Pau Gasol had 23 points, 17 rebounds and six assists, Metta World Peace scored 15 points in his return from a seven-game suspension, and the Los Angeles Lakers outlasted the Denver Nuggets for a thrilling 96-87 victory in Game 7 on Saturday night to win their first-round series. Steve Blake scored a playoff career-high 19 points and Kobe Bryant had 17 points and eight assists for the Lakers, who blew a 16-point lead in the second half before surviving a finale with wild momentum swings and furious physical play. With Gasol leading an emotional effort, the Lakers narrowly avoided becoming the ninth team in NBA history to blow a 3-1 series lead. Andrew Bynum had 16 points and a career playoff-high 18 rebounds for Los Angeles, which will open the second round Monday night in Oklahoma City against the second-seeded Thunder. Ty Lawson and Al Harrington scored 24 points apiece for the sixth-seeded Nuggets, who committed 19 turnovers and managed just 7-of-27 shooting in the fourth quarter. Arron Afflalo scored 15 points in just the third Game 7 in franchise history for the Nuggets, who have lost in the first round in eight of the last nine postseasons - but never with this much excitement.

All-Star point guard Rajon Rondo has been suspended for Game 2 of the Boston Celtics' first-round playoff series with the Atlanta Hawks after bumping an official in Sunday's loss. Rondo was protesting a call with 41 seconds left in Game 1 loss when he bumped referee Marc Davis with his chest. The Celtics had made a frantic comeback to cut a 19-point Hawks lead to four when Rondo lost his composure after Davis called a foul on Boston forward Brandon Bass. Rondo's absence further complicates the Celtics' predicament. They're also likely to be without shooting guard Ray Allen, who still hasn't recovered from an ankle injury. Boston will play Game 2 in Atlanta on Tuesday before returning to Boston for Friday's Game 3. Rondo insisted he didn't intentionally bump Davis, but NBA rules allow little leeway when a player makes contact with an official.

Rondo says he tripped

"Obviously I was upset about the call," Rondo said. "I said some words to Marc. I deserved the first tech. As I was walking, I thought he stopped. My momentum carried me into him. I even think I tripped on his foot. I didn’t intentionally chest-bump him. But that’s what it appears to be."

Rondo ejected as Celtics lost Game 1

Upset with a loose ball foul on Brandon Bass, Rajon Rondo screamed in the face of referee Marc Davis. Immediately upon receiving a technical foul, Rondo intentionally bumped his chest into Davis' back.