Irving helps Cavs push past Celtics

Kyrie Irving outshone LeBron James as the Cleveland Cavaliers opened their NBA play-off series with a 113-100 win over the Boston Celtics.

Irving, who was making his post-season bow, scored 30 points and made five three-pointers as the Cavaliers made sure of an early advantage in their seven-game series.

He was backed up by 20 points, seven assists and six rebounds from James, while Kevin Love scored 19 points and added 12 rebounds.

“Having four days of preparation and being with my brothers in the war room going over film, going into the game, you feel prepared,” said Irving.

“I’m just glad I got game one out of the way.”

Kyle Korver finished with a game-high 21 points to lift the Atlanta Hawks to a 99-92 win over the Brooklyn Nets in game one of their Eastern Conference series.

Jeff Teague and DeMarre Carroll added 17 points each for the top-seeded Hawks and Dennis Schroder scored 13 off the bench.

Brook Lopez scored 17 points with a game-high 14 rebounds and Joe Johnson also tallied 17 points for the Nets, who clinched the Eastern Conference’s final play-off spot on the last day of the regular season.

In the Western Conference, the Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 100-86 to open their series and the Los Angeles Clippers surprised the defending league champion San Antonio Spurs 107-92.

Blake Griffin posted 26 points, 12 rebounds and six assists and Chris Paul had 32 points, seven boards and six assists for the Clippers, who entered the post-season having won 14 of their last 15 games. DeAndre Jordan grabbed 14 rebounds and had four blocks.

Kawhi Leonard finished with 18 points and Tim Duncan tallied 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Spurs, who are looking to repeat as champions for the first time in franchise history. They went 14-2 to finish the regular season.

Beno Udrih was the unlikely star for the Grizzlies, as he came off the bench to score 20 points and add seven rebounds and seven assists in only 24 minutes of game time.