Cavs beat Pacers to lock up playoff berth

Donovan Mitchell scored a team-high 33 points, helping lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 129-120 win over the visiting Indiana Pacers Friday.

Jarrett Allen added 29 points and 13 rebounds for Cleveland (48-33), which clinched a playoff spot with Friday’s win. Darius Garland and Caris LeVert chipped in 16 apiece, while Evan Mobley scored 12.

Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam led eight players in double figures Indiana (46-35) with 19 points apiece. Myles Turner put up 17 and T.J. McConnell scored 16 for the Pacers, who had their three-game winning streak snapped.

Pistons 107, Mavericks 89

Marcus Sasser led a balanced attack with 24 points, James Wiseman put up a double-double in a rare start and visiting Detroit formally crushed Dallas’ hopes of finishing fourth in the Western Conference.

Evan Fournier led a productive fourman bench crew with 13 points as the Pistons (14-67) snapped a six-game losing streak by having better depth than a Mavericks club resting star guards Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.

Knicks 111, Nets 107

Jalen Brunson scored 30 points as host New York overcame a 17-point, firsthalf deficit and hung on for a victory over Brooklyn.

The result assures the Knicks of at least home-court advantage in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

The Knicks (49-32) won their fourth straight game and overcame a 41-point showing by Brooklyn’s Cam Thomas. Third-place New York remained a game ahead of the fourth-place Cleveland Cavaliers.

Spurs 121, Nuggets 120

Little-used reserve Devonte’ Graham hit the deciding jumper with 0.9 seconds left to cap a torrid comeback as host San Antonio stunned Denver.

The loss, which came in the next-tolast game of the regular season for both teams, dropped the Nuggets (56-25) into a three-way tie for first place in the Western Conference.

Denver took charge in a dominating second quarter, weathered a jaw-dropping offensive explosion by the Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama midway through the third quarter, and led by 13 points heading into the fourth quarter.

Thunder 125, Bucks 107

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 23 points and Chet Holmgren added 22 to lead Oklahoma City over visiting Milwaukee.

The Thunder (56-25) have won four consecutive games to move into a threeway tie for the top spot with Denver and Minnesota in the Western Conference after the Nuggets’ loss Friday.

The Bucks (49-32) have dropped seven of their last 10 and fell into a tie with New York for the No. 2 spot in the Eastern Conference.

Timberwolves 109, Hawks 106

Rudy Gobert scored 25 points and grabbed 19 rebounds as Minnesota held on for a win over Atlanta in Minneapolis.

Naz Reid added 19 points off the bench for Minnesota (56-25), which pulled into a three-way tie with the Denver Nuggets and the Oklahoma City Thunder for the best record in the Western Conference with one game to play in the regular season.

Lakers 123, Grizzlies 120

LeBron James poured in 37 points and Anthony Davis added 36 as visiting Los Angeles held off pesky Memphis.

With the victory, Los Angeles (46-35) jumped into the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference for the time being.

Pelicans 114, Warriors 109

CJ McCollum capped a New Orleans barrage of 3-pointers by sinking his eighth of the game with 1:02 remaining in San Francisco, stalling a Golden State rally and propelling the Pelicans into a triumph in a matchup filled with playoffposition ramifications.

A second win in two nights in Northern California improved the chances of the Pelicans (49-32) finishing in the coveted sixth spot in the Western Conference and clinching a playoff spot.

Meanwhile, the Warriors (45-36) took a giant step backward toward the 10th and final play-in spot, a position that requires two road wins in order to make the playoff field.

Suns 108, Kings 107

Jusuf Nurkic split two free throws with 8.7 seconds left and Phoenix pressured Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox into a late turnover as the Suns produced a vital victory over the host Kings.

Kevin Durant scored 28 points, Devin Booker tallied 21 and Bradley Beal had 20 points and nine rebounds as Phoenix (48-33) won for the fifth time in its last seven games.

The Suns remain one game behind New Orleans for the sixth and final automatic playoff berth in the Western Conference with one game remaining. Phoenix holds the head-to-head tiebreaker by going 2-1 against the Pelicans in the season series.

Bulls 129, Wizards 127

Javonte Green scored 24 points and Dalen Terry led a late surge as visiting Chicago used a makeshift lineup to defeat Washington.

Adama Sanogo contributed 22 points and 20 rebounds off the bench while Coby White and Jevon Carter added 20 points each as the Bulls (39-42) pulled off the victory with a lineup full of reserves.

76ers 125, Magic 113

Joel Embiid racked up 32 points and 13 rebounds to lead host Philadelphia over Orlando.

Embiid also had seven assists for Philadelphia (46-35), which ran its winning streak to seven games. Tyrese Maxey added 28 points and Kelly Oubre Jr. supplied 21 to go along with nine boards.

With the victory, the 76ers jumped into the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference while simultaneously dropping Orlando (46-35) to the No. 7 spot. The Magic

are now in line to participate in the play-in with just one game left in the regular season.

Celtics 131, Hornets 98

Payton Pritchard scored a career-high 31 points and had 11 assists to help Boston end a two-game losing streak with a rout of visiting Charlotte.

Neither team was near full strength. Boston (63-18) was without the top six players in its rotation, as Jaylen Brown (hand), Jayson Tatum (knee), Jrue Holiday (knee), Al Horford (toe), Kristaps Porzingis (hamstring) and Derrick White (ankle) were downgraded from questionable to out.

Nick Richards (foot) and Grant Williams (ankle) didn’t play for the Hornets, who received 19 points and eight assists from Tre Mann plus 15 points from Nick Smith Jr.

Heat 125, Raptors 103

Nikola Jovic scored 22 points and Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 20 points and nine assists off the bench to help Miami notch a victory over visiting Toronto.

The Heat reside in eighth place in the Eastern Conference with one game remaining but still have a chance at a topsix playoff berth.

Rockets 116, Trail Blazers 107

Jalen Green totaled 26 points and nine rebounds for visiting Houston, which took control in the second quarter and recorded a victory over Portland.

Green made 10 of 20 shots after being limited to 19 minutes and three points in Houston’s three-point loss at Utah on Thursday.

He helped the Rockets prevail for just the second time in eight games.

Jazz 110, Clippers 109

Kenneth Lofton Jr. totaled a seasonhigh 27 points, nine rebounds and eight assists off the bench to lead Utah to a road win over Los Angeles.

Keyonte George added 14 points to help lift the Jazz (31-50) to their second consecutive win in as many nights after enduring a 13-game losing streak.