Wolverines in the NBA: Jordan Poole hits dagger triple, helps Golden State Warriors gain 3-0 lead in WCF
Michigan Wolverines basketball is the only program to have five total players and one on each remaining team in the NBA Playoffs. While several haven’t seen much action during the postseason — including Tim Hardaway Jr., who’s still out for the Dallas Mavericks with a foot injury — Golden State Warriors’ third-year guard Jordan Poole is not among them.
Poole leads the NBA Playoffs in points per game off the bench, and has continually been a force for the Warriors, who are now up 3-0 on the Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals. His 18.9 points per postseason outing also rank third on the team, behind stars Steph Curry (27.1) and Klay Thompson (19.5). His 52.3 field goal shooting percentage is first among Warriors who attempt four or more shots per game, and while not taking the volume of three-pointers that Curry and Thompson do, Poole has topped them in that department, too, connecting on 39.5 percent of his triple tries.
The former Michigan guard is averaging 17.3 points, three assists and 2.7 rebounds per contest this series, posting 19, 23 and 10 points in the three games, respectively.
His best performance came in Game 2 May 20, recording 23 points (7-10 FG, 2-4 3PT, 7-7 FT), five assists, two steals and one rebound in 29 minutes of the 126-117 victory. He followed that up with 10 points (2-4 3PT, 4-4 FT), five rebounds, two steals and one assist in a 109-100 Game 3 win.
While posting 10 points marked his most quiet scoring night of the series, he hit the dagger a dagger three-pointer to all but seal the victory in Dallas (the Warriors have now won at least one road game in 26 consecutive playoff series).
Up five points, 104-99, with just under a minute to play, Thompson found Poole on the left wing. The former Michigan standout triggered from long range, and splashed home the three to go up eight points.
Former Michigan guard Trey Burke appeared in Game 1, a 112-87 blowout loss for his Mavericks. He registered seven points on 3-of-4 shooting from the field, and two assists in five minutes.
Game 4 will be held in Dallas Tuesday night at 9 p.m. ET, televised on TNT.
Michigan Wolverines in the Eastern Conference Finals
No team has ever come back from a 3-0 series deficit, so it’s safe to assume the Warriors will be moving on to their sixth NBA Finals in the last eight years.
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There’s a bit more drama in the East, however. Former Michigan sharpshooter Duncan Robinson and Miami hold a 2-1 lead over former U-M guard Nik Stauskas and the Boston Celtics.
The Celtics outscored the Heat in three of the four quarters in Game 1 May 17, but Miami won the third quarter by a whopping score of 39-14 and took the home game, 118-107. The Celtics got on track with a 127-102 win in Game 2, before the Heat returned the favor in Boston Saturday, leading almost the entire way and fending off a late push from the Celtics to win 109-103.
Robinson has made two appearances in the series. Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra inserted the former Michigan standout in the lineup while his team was getting routed in Game 2, and he delivered six points, five rebounds, three assists, one block and one steal. He missed all four of his three-point attempts in the loss.
He saw four minutes of action in the Game 3 victory, with one two-point field goal and one rebound.
Stauskas saw garbage-time minutes in Games 2 and 3, and he nailed a triple in both contests. Michigan’s former Big Ten Player of the Year totaled four minutes between both games, shot 2-of-4 from the field and added two assists and one rebound.
The Celtics and Heat will battle in Boston Monday night at 8:30 p.m. ET, with the game broadcast on ABC.
