Bulls, Durant near season milestones
Top seed for Chicago, scoring title for Thunder ace
EASTERN Conference top seeds Chicago inched closer to securing homecourt advantage throughout the NBA playoffs with a 92-87 win over Indiana on Wednesday.
Awin over Cleveland in their regular-season finale on Thursday, or one more loss from San Antonio, would give the Bulls top spot overall.
Kyle Korver scored a team-high 20 points off the bench and Derrick Rose had 10 and seven assists in just 27 minutes.
The reigning league MVP has missed 26 games this season but coach Tom Thibodeau said his All-star guard is improving.
“He said this morning he’s feeling a lot better, and that’s after two days of practice too,” Thibodeau said. “That’s a good sign.”
Lance Stephenson scored 22 points in his first career start for Indiana, which rested Danny Granger and Leandro Barbosa with the No. 3 playoff spot in the Eastern Conference locked up.
Orlando beat Charlotte, 102-95, to clinch the sixth seed in the East but their playoff chances look bleak with Dwight Howard out injured.
Newyork, fighting with Philadelphia for seventh spot, beat the Los Angeles Clippers, 99-93, while the 76ers beat Milwaukee 90-85. The Knicks currently hold seventh spot and have the tiebreaker over the 76ers.
In the Western Conference, Denver beat Oklahoma City, 106-101, and are one win away from securing the sixth seed.
Oklahoma’s Kevin Durant scored 32 points and has a narrow lead in the NBA scoring race over Kobe Bryant, who now needs 38 points in his last game to take the title.
In Phoenix, the San Antonio Spurs stayed in contention for the NBA’S best record with one game to play by nipping the Suns, 110-106.
Patty Mills scored 27 points for the Spurs who won despite resting Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, taking their ninth straight victory.
The result of the game was overshadowed by the fact it could have been Steve Nash’s last in a Suns uniform. The 38-year-old point guard received rousing cheers. He is a free agent after this season.
OTHER RESULTS: 76ers 90, Bucks 85; Wizards 96, Cavaliers
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