FRIDAY’S OTHER NBA GAMES

Nuggets 108, Wizards 100

WASHINGTON

Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray each scored 25 points to keep the Denver Nuggets’ playoff hopes alive by beating the Washington Wizards. The one-two punch of Jokic and Murray plus outside shooting from Will Barton allowed the Nuggets to withstand a third-quarter charge from the Wizards and maintain their sights on one of the final two playoff spots in the Western Conference. Bradley Beal led Washington with 24 points.

Pacers 109, Clippers 104

INDIANAPOLIS

Bojan Bogdanovic scored 28 points and the Indiana Pacers used a late 9-0 run to hold on for a victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. The Pacers won for only the second time in five games but can clinch a playoff berth with one more win or a Detroit loss. Lou Williams led Los Angeles with 27 points and DeAndre Jordan finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds as the Clippers lost for the fifth time in six games.

Timberwolves 108, Knicks 104

NEW YORK

Karl-Anthony Towns had 24 points and 13 rebounds, and the Minnesota Timberwolves clinched their first winning record in 13 years by beating the New York Knicks. Taj Gibson scored 18 points, and Andrew Wiggins added 17 points and 11 rebounds to help the Wolves improve to 42-31. They came into the night tied with Utah for seventh place in the Western Conference. Nemanja Bjelica also had 17 points. Minnesota is trying to end the NBA’s longest current postseason drought. Tim Hardaway Jr. scored a career-high 39 points for the Knicks.

Raptors 116, Nets 112

TORONTO

Kyle Lowry had 25 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds in his 10th triple-double with Toronto, Jonas Valanciunas scored 23 and the Raptors beat Brooklyn for their 12th straight victory over the Nets. DeMar DeRozan scored 21 points, Fred VanVleet had 16 and Pascal Siakam 11 as the Eastern Conference leaders bounced back from Wednesday’s loss at Cleveland. D’Angelo Russell had 18 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds for his first career triple-double, but the Nets lost their second straight. Brooklyn couldn’t maintain a 14-point cushion over the Raptors.

Bucks 118, Bulls 105

CHICAGO

Shabazz Muhammad scored 21 points and the Milwaukee Bucks overcame another sluggish start to beat the Chicago Bulls. Former Bull Tony Snell added 18 points, and Brandon Jennings had 16 points and five assists to help the Bucks (38-34) move within a half-game of the seventh-place Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference playoff race. On a night when only one Bucks starter scored in double figures, Muhammad, Snell and Jennings came up big off the bench. Denzel Valentine led Chicago with 20 points, and Cameron Payne had 17 points and six assists.

Thunder 105, Heat 99

OKLAHOMA CITY

Russell Westbrook scored 17 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter to help the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Miami Heat. Westbrook went 6 for 6 from the field and made 3 of 4 free throws in the final period. He also had 13 rebounds and eight assists. Steven Adams added 24 points and 12 rebounds for the Thunder. They have won seven of eight. James Johnson scored 23 points and Goran Dragic added 20 for the Heat.

Associated Press