Burks gets 30 to lead Knicks
N.Y. keeps hope of playoff home-court advantage alive
Alec Burks scored a season-high 30 points in his return from a threegame absence and the New York Knicks kept up their chase of home-court advantage in the playoffs by rallying to beat the San Antonio Spurs 102-98 on Thursday night.
Julius Randle had 25 points, nine rebounds and nine assists for the Knicks, who are a halfgame behind Atlanta as they battle the Hawks and Miami for the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
RJ Barrett scored 19 of his 24 points in the second half for the Knicks, who clinched their first postseason berth since 2013 on Wednesday when Boston lost in Cleveland. The Knicks acknowledged the achievement on the overhead video board during a timeout in the first quarter, drawing a cheer from the crowd.
Bucks 142, Pacers 133:
All-star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo had 40 points, 15 rebounds and six assists and Milwaukee wore down shorthanded Indiana. Indiana dressed just 10 players due to injuries and didn’t have a defensive answer for Antetokounmpo, the two-time NBA MVP who made 14 of 18 shots from the field — six on uncontested dunks — and hit 11 of 16 free throws. The Bucks moved within a game of the Brooklyn Nets for the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 playoff seed.
Clippers 113, Hornets 90:
Paul George had 20 points and 10 rebounds, Reggie Jackson made five 3-pointers and had 19 points and Los Angeles handed Charlotte its fourth loss in five games. Kawhi Leonard added 16 points and nine rebounds for the Clippers.
Hawks 116, Magic 93: Bogdan Bogdanovich scored 27 points, Trae Young added 18 and Atlanta beat Orlando for its third straight victory. Clint Capela added 14 points and 14 rebounds and Shenendehowa graduate Kevin Huerter had 14 points for the Hawks a day after they clinched their first playoff berth since 2016-17.
Heat 106, 76ers 94: Jimmy Butler scored 21 points, Bam Adebayo had 18 points and 12 rebounds and Miami held onto the No. 5 spot in the Eastern Conference. Tyler Herro scored 18 points, Goran Dragic had 15 and Kendrick Nunn added 13.
Nuggets 114, Timberwolves 103: Nikola Jokic scored 16 of his 31 points in the first quarter as Denver took control and the playoff-bound Nuggets held off a second-half rally.
Bulls 114, Raptors 102: Zach Lavine scored 24 points, Lauri Markkanen added 20 and Chicago beat short-handed Toronto.
Grizzlies 116, Kings 110:
Dillon Brooks scored 30 points and Memphis used a late rally to defeat Sacramento in the first of a back-to-back between the teams.
Notes: The NBA announced Thursday the creation of a new award — the Kareem Abduljabbar Social Justice Champion Award — to recognize players who are making strides in the fight for social justice. Each NBA team will nominate one player for consideration; from there, five finalists will be selected and ultimately one winner . ... Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor has reached agreement on his $1.5 billion sale of the club to e-commerce mogul Marc Lore and former baseball star Alex Rodriguez.