5 THINGS TO KNOW

1. Two wins in row for Hawks: Dwight Howard had 22 points and 20 rebounds to lead Atlanta to a 99-92 win over the 76ers on Wednesday. Tim Hardaway Jr. and Kent Bazemore each scored 19 points for the Hawks. Richaun Holmes led the Sixers with 25 points and Dario Saric had 15.

2. Tech women also in NIT final: The Yellow Jackets’ 20-7 rally in the fourth quarter Wednesday ousts Washington State 69-61. They now travel to Michigan for Saturday’s title game. Michigan beat Villanova in the other semifinal. 3. Worth noting a week before the Masters: Three-time Masters champ Phil Mickelson has just completed his first back-to-back top 10s since he won the Scottish and British Opens in 2013.

4. Taking the game too seriously: Referee John Higgins of Omaha reported he received death threats after Kentucky’s loss to North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament, a Nebraska law enforcement official said Wednesday. Higgins’ roofing company received about 3,000 harassing emails and an unknown number of phone calls, some including death threats, said Capt. Kevin Griger, investigations commander for the Sarpy County Sheriff ’s Department.

5. Goodell will be in the house: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Tuesday at the NFL owners meetings he expects to be at the season kickoff in Foxborough when the Patriots host an undetermined opponent. After the “Deflategate” saga, Goodell did not attend New England’s playoff games, instead going to Atlanta for the divisional round and then the NFC title game. Of course, he did hand the MVP trophy to Patriots QB Tom Brady (right) in February after the Super Bowl.