Wall leads Wiz to division title
John Wall scored 34 points and visiting Washington rallied in the fourth quarter to beat the Los Angeles Lakers 119-108 last night, clinching the Southeast Division title for its first division crown in 38 years.
Wall shot 14-of-25 and Bradley Beal was held to 16 points on 7-of-16 shooting, but the Wizards ended the longest division-title drought in NBA history with their fourth straight victory.
When the franchise last claimed a division title in 1978-79, it was known as the Bullets of the Atlantic Division and played in suburban Landover, Md., and lost the 1979 Finals to the Seattle SuperSonics.
Heat 97, Pistons 96 — Hassan Whiteside tipped in a shot at the buzzer to lift Miami over Detroit in Auburn Hills, Mich., and move a game up on Chicago for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and 21⁄ games ahead of Detroit.
Dragic scored 28 points and Whiteside finished with 17 points and nine rebounds for the Heat. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 25 points for the Pistons, who lost their fifth straight.
Bucks 118, Hornets 108 — Tony Snell scored a season-high 26 points, Giannis Antetokounmpo had 20 points and eight rebounds and Milwaukee dealt host Charlotte’s playoff hopes a blow with a devastating loss.
Malcolm Brogdon had 14 points and 10 assists, and the Bucks won for the 12th time in 15 games. Snell finished 10 of 14 from the field and had four 3-pointers.
Timberwolves 115, Pacers 114 — In Indianapolis, Ricky Rubio made three free throws with 3.4 seconds left to lift Minnesota over Indiana.
The Timberwolves snapped a season-high six-game losing streak, as Rubio had 21 points and 10 assists, and Karl-Anthony Towns had 37 points and 12 rebounds. Paul George scored 37 points to lead the Pacers, whose playoff chances took another hit.
Warriors 113, Rockets 106 — Stephen Curry scored 32 points, Klay Thompson had 25 and Golden State built a big lead early and held on to beat host Houston for its eighth straight win and 60th this season.
Hawks 95, Suns 91 — Dennis Schroder hit consecutive 3-pointers to spark a 17-1 run that carried host Atlanta past Phoenix, snapping a seven-game losing streak and boosting its playoff hopes.
76ers 106, Nets 101 — Dario Saric scored 23 points, Robert Covington had 21 points and 13 rebounds and Philadelphia beat host Brooklyn.
Rookie guard Timothe LuwawuCabarrot had 17 points and nine boards for the 76ers, who dressed only nine players. Brook Lopez led the Nets with 26 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
Trail Blazers 122, Nuggets 113 — Jusuf Nurkic had a career-high 32 points with 16 rebounds against his former team, CJ McCollum had 39 points and host Portland beat Denver to take hold of the eighth seed in the Western Conference.