Kobe-less Lakers top T-Wolves

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Pau Gasol had 29 points and 15 rebounds, and the Kobe-less Los Angeles Lakers locked up home court throughout the Western Conference playoffs with a 97-88 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night.

Lamar Odom had 13 points and 12 rebounds for the defending champions, who have the No. 1 seed in the West for the third straight season.

Jonny Flynn scored 19 points and Kevin Love had 12 points and 18 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who were missing their leading scorer as well. Al Jefferson missed his second straight game and has not been with the team for the last four days while attending to a relative who has been in the hospital.

Pistons 106, Heat 99

MIAMI (AP) - Ben Gordon scored 26 of his 39 points in the second half, Tayshaun Prince added 28 points, seven assists and six rebounds, and Detroit snapped Miami's nine-game winning streak that had been the NBA's longest.

Charlie Villanueva scored 11 and Will Bynum had 10 for the Pistons, who won their third straight despite playing without guards Rodney Stuckey (ribs) and Richard Hamilton (ankle).

Dwyane Wade finished with 19 points and nine assists for Miami, which saw its hopes of finishing fifth in the Eastern Conference playoff chase take a huge hit. Udonis Haslem finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Heat.

Nets 127, Bulls 116, 2OT

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) - Devin Harris hit a go-ahead jumper early in the second overtime as New Jersey prevented Chicago from taking over the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Terrence Williams had a career-high 27 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists for the first triple-double by a Nets rookie since 2001. Brook Lopez added 26 points and 14 rebounds, and Harris scored 19 as the Nets became the best friends of the Toronto Raptors for at least one night.

The Bulls' loss coupled with the Raptors' loss in Atlanta left the teams tied for eighth in the conference with 38-41 records with three games left in the regular season.

Hawks 107, Raptors 101

ATLANTA (AP) - Jamal Crawford scored 15 of his 25 points when Atlanta took the lead in the second period, and the Hawks held on to win 50 games for the first time in 12 years.

The Hawks matched their season low for points in a first quarter when they trailed 25-14, but scored a season-high 45 points in the second quarter and never looked back.

Atlanta (50-29), which moved ahead of Boston into the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference, had not won 50 games since the 1997-98 season.

Amir Johnson had 18 points and 13 rebounds for Toronto, which remained tied with Chicago for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Thunder 96, Suns 91

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Kevin Durant scored 35 points and rookie reserve Serge Ibaka hit a crucial basket in the final minute, allowing Oklahoma City to stave off a late Phoenix rally.

The Thunder limited Phoenix to a season-low 34 points in the second half but needed a late basket from an unlikely source to avoid a third straight hearbreaking defeat.

Ibaka scored inside with 33.3 seconds left to push Oklahoma City's lead to 91-86, after the Suns had closed a 12-point deficit to three. Ibaka ended up matching his career high with 15 points, and Jeff Green and Thabo Sefolosha also scored 15 for the Thunder.

Amare Stoudemire had 24 points and 15 rebounds to lead Phoenix, which took a step back in the race for the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference playoffs.

Mavericks 83, Trail Blazers 77

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Dirk Nowitzki scored 40 points, making a key 3-pointer with under three minutes left, and Dallas clinched the Southwest Division by beating Portland.

Nowitzki added 10 rebounds and was 17 for 17 from the free throw line for the Mavericks, who needed both the victory over Portland and a Memphis win over the Spurs. The Grizzlies obliged earlier in the night by winning 107-99 at San Antonio.

LaMarcus Aldridge had 27 points for the Blazers, who had won the three previous meetings with the Mavericks this season.

Jazz 114, Hornets 103

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Deron Williams had 27 points and 16 assists, and Utah remained within striking distance of the second playoff seed in the Western Conference.

Rookie Wesley Matthews added 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting, while Carlos Boozer had 19 points and 10 rebounds for Utah. Paul Millsap added 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Jazz, which led by as much as 21 points in the third quarter but had to hold off a late rally to secure the win.

Darren Collison had 28 points and seven assists, leading a Hornets comeback attempt that trimmed their deficit to five in the fourth quarter before Utah held on. David West had 19 points and Marcus Thornton 15.

Pacers 116, Cavaliers 113

CLEVELAND (AP) - Danny Granger had 36 points, including nine of Indiana's final 11, and the Pacers beat Cleveland's backups for their ninth win in 11 games.

With home-court advantage clinched through the NBA finals, Cavs coach Mike Brown is using this week to rest some regulars. Cleveland played without starters LeBron James, Antawn Jamison, Mo Williams and Shaquille O'Neal, plus reserve Daniel Gibson.

The Pacers were happy to take advantage, ending a 10-game losing streak in Cleveland.

Wizards 106, Celtics 96

BOSTON (AP) - Andray Blatche had 31 points and 11 rebounds as Washington opened a 28-point first-half lead and held off a late flurry of 3-pointers from Nate Robinson to beat Boston.

Backup JaVale McGee had 14 points with 11 rebounds for the Wizards, who have won four of six since snapping a 16-game losing streak.

Rajon Rondo had 17 points and 12 assists for playoff-bound Boston, which lost for the fifth time in seven games and was once again booed by the home crowd. The Celtics have lost four out of five at home - the only win in Boston in the last two weeks was Sunday's overtime victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Rockets 97, Bobcats 90

HOUSTON (AP) - Aaron Brooks scored 10 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, and Trevor Ariza added 17 in the Rockets' third straight victory.

Gerald Wallace and Boris Diaw scored 18 points apiece for the Bobcats, while leading scorer Stephen Jackson sat out to rest various injuries. Charlotte still clinched no worse than the No. 7 spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs after losses by Chicago and Toronto.

Brooks and Kyle Lowry both hit a pair of free throws in the last 15 seconds for the Rockets, who have defeated Charlotte in eight of the last nine meetings.

Bucks 95, 76ers 90

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Carlos Delfino scored 23 points and Luke Ridnour had 18 to lead Milwaukee into sole possession of fifth place in the Eastern Conference.

The Bucks have won four straight games even without injured center Andrew Bogut. They led wire-to-wire against the woeful Sixers and have held three straight teams to 90 or fewer points. Brandon Jennings had 16 points and seven assists.

Andre Iguodala led the Sixers with 21 points. Philadelphia missed 11-of-20 attempts from the free throw line.

Grizzlies 107, Spurs 99

SAN ANTONIO (AP) - Zach Randolph had 28 points and 15 rebounds, and Memphis dealt San Antonio a heavy setback in a tight playoff race.

Rudy Gay added 21 points for the Grizzlies who, with nothing to play for with their own playoffs hopes gone, settled for dropping the Spurs back down to the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference.

It was the first win for Memphis in San Antonio since 2005. With just three games left for the Spurs, letting the Grizzlies finally walk out with their first win in 11 tries was especially untimely.

Manu Ginobili led the Spurs with 26 points, hours after signing a three-year, $39 million extension earned with a dazzling last few weeks.

Magic 118, Knicks 103

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Dwight Howard and Vince Carter scored 25 points apiece, and Orlando tuned up for the playoffs by beating New York.

Reserve Ryan Anderson added 19 points to help the Magic build a 24-point lead and hold on for their 17th win in their last 20 games. The Magic swept the season series 3-0 against the Knicks and geared up for a matchup with top-seeded Cleveland on Sunday.

Danilo Gallinari had 28 points, and Chris Duhon had 13 for the Knicks, who have lost six of their last eight. They trimmed the deficit to eight points early in the fourth quarter before Orlando again pulled away.