nba roundup | Friday’s games

Celtics 117, Pacers 97

INDIANAPOLIS

Jason Tatum scored 22 points and Gordon Hayward added 21 in his return to Indianapolis, leading the Boston Celtics to a crucial victory over the Pacers. Myles Turner led the Pacers with 15 points and seven rebounds, while Domantas Sabonis and Tyreke Evans each scored 12.

Hornets 113, Raptors 111

CHARLOTTE, N.C.

Kemba Walker scored 29 points, and Jeremy Lamb made another clutch 3-ponter as the Charlotte Hornets beat the Toronto Raptors. Lamb finished with 22 points and Frank Kaminsky added 22 points and 13 rebounds for the Hornets (37-42). Kawhi Leonard had 29 points for Toronto, but missed a fall-away jumper with 1 second left. Walker joined Glen Rice as the only players in franchise history to score 2,000 points in a season. Serge Ibaka had 20 points and 12 rebounds and Kyle Lowry had 16 points and 11 assists for the Raptors (56-24).

Magic 149, Hawks 113

ORLANDO, FLA.

The Orlando Magic used a franchise-record 81 points in the first half to cruise past the Atlanta Hawks in their regular-season home finale and take another step toward a playoff berth. Nikola Vucevic, Terrence Ross and Evan Fournier scored 25 points each for Orlando, which set a season high for points despite having 19 turnovers. Vucevic added 10 rebounds to compile his 59th double-double of the season. Trae Young led the Hawks with 22 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

Spurs 129, Wizards 112

WASHINGTON

LaMarcus Aldridge scored 24 points, Rudy Gay added 18 and the San Antonio Spurs beat Washington Wizards. Bryn Forbes and Patty Mills each scored 17 for the Spurs, who had lost five of eight. DeMar DeRozan scored 16 points. Bradley Beal scored 25 points and Thomas Bryant had 19 for Washington. The Spurs had eight players score in double figures.

Rockets 120, Knicks 96

HOUSTON

James Harden had 26 points, eight assists and eight rebounds in just 29 minutes to lead the Houston Rockets to a win over the New York Knicks. Chris Paul and Clint Capela both had double-doubles for Houston, with Paul getting 11 points and 10 assists and Capela adding 12 points and 15 rebounds. With Knicks point guard Emmanuel Mudiay sidelined with a sore left shoulder, Mario Hezonja started, posting 16 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists. Henry Ellenson also had 16 points off the bench for the Knicks. Kevin Knox added 13 and Mitchell Robinson had 12. Seven Rockets scored in double figures: Eric Gordon and Kenneth Faried each had 13, P.J. Tucker added 11, and Iman Shumpert 10.

Timberwolves 111, Heat 109

MINNEAPOLIS

Karl-Anthony Towns had 13 points and 12 rebounds and the Minnesota Timberwolves slowed Miami’s push for a postseason berth with a win over the Heat as Dwyane Wade’s 3-pointer try at the buzzer missed the mark. Dario Saric scored 19 points for the Timberwolves, Andrew Wiggins added 18 and Gorgui Dieng finished with a season-high 19 off the bench. Wade scored 24 points for Miami. Dion Waiters scored 22 and shot 6 of 12 from 3-point range.

Thunder 123, Pistons 110

OKLAHOMA CITY

Paul George scored 30 points to help the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Detroit Pistons. Russell Westbrook added 19 points, 15 assists and eight rebounds for the Thunder. Detroit’s Blake Griffin finished with 45 points, but he scored just one point in the fourth quarter as Oklahoma City broke open a close game. Griffin scored 31 points before the break and made 6 of 9 3-pointers.

Grizzlies 122, Mavericks 112

DALLAS

Delon Wright set career highs with 26 points and 14 assists in his first triple-double after Dirk Nowitzki’s first dunk of the season opened the scoring in what could be his second-to-last home game for Dallas, and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Mavericks. Nowitzki, playing a record 21st season, took a pick-and-roll pass from seldom-used guard Courtney Lee and dunked with two hands, hanging on the rim for emphasis. Nowitzki left to a standing ovation in the fourth quarter, finishing with 12 points and seven defensive rebounds. Justin Holiday scored 20 points as Memphis won again after blowing out the Mavericks by 30 on their home court in early March.

Associated Press