The AP reports: Ben Gordon scored 39 points, John Salmons finished with 19 after a slow start and the Bulls hit the .500 mark for the first time since mid-November with a 113-106 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats on Saturday night… Raymond Felton (26 points) and Boris Diaw (24 points) kept the Bobcats in it for 3 1/2 quarters. Charlotte, however, committed eight of its 16 turnovers in the fourth, and the Bulls pulled away… Gordon was 7-of-12 on 3-pointers in the game and scored 13 in the fourth, while Salmons had 11 after three quiet quarters.
Jefferson 35 points leads Bucks over Thunder
The AP reports: Richard Jefferson finished 13-of-21 from the field to tie a season high with 35 points and the Milwaukee Bucks snapped a four-game losing streak with a 115-98 victory over Oklahoma City on Saturday night… Luke Ridnour scored 18 points and Charlie Villanueva added 14 for the Bucks, who have long been eliminated from the postseason race but will finish with a winning record at home (21-19) with one final game at the Bradley Center on Monday against Orlando… “When he’s knocking down his jump shots, there’s nothing you can do about it,” said Kevin Durant, who had 19 points. “We were getting hands up and contesting but they were going in.”
Hill, Suns cruise past Timberwolves 110-97
The AP reports: The Phoenix Suns’ season is all but over. Their playoff hopes were vanquished on Wednesday, rendering the final four games of the season virtually meaningless. You wouldn’t know that by watching Grant Hill play on Saturday night. The 14-year veteran gave his younger teammates a lesson in professionalism, scoring 19 points in 23 minutes to lead Phoenix to a 110-97 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves… Jared Dudley scored 16 points and Shaquille O’Neal had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Suns, who gave heavy minutes to youngsters Robin Lopez, Goran Dragic and Louis Amundson. Sebastian Telfair had 21 points and shot 8-of-12 for Minnesota, but his teammates didn’t fare nearly as well in another slow start at Target Center.
Carter has 27; Nets end Magic bid for No. 2 seed
The AP reports: The Magic not only saw their bid for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference end with a 103-93 loss to the New Jersey Nets on Saturday night, they also endured the sight of Hedo Turkoglu being helped off the court in the fourth quarter with a sprained left ankle… Vince Carter led the way for New Jersey with 27 points and nine assists, but this also was a Nets’ starting lineup that featured three rookies—center Brook Lopez, forward Ryan Anderson and guard Chris Douglas-Roberts… Keyon Dooling added 12 points and 10 assists for the Nets, who played without All-Star guard Devin Harris (shoulder). Lopez added 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Nets, who were eliminated from playoff contention earlier this week. Douglas-Roberts had 10 points and Anderson nine.
Pacers stall Pistons quest for higher seed
The AP reports: Danny Granger loves playing the spoiler, especially against the Detroit Pistons. Granger had 24 points and the Indiana Pacers stalled Detroit’s bid for a higher playoff seed with a 106-102 victory Saturday night… The loss to Indiana won’t keep the Pistons out of the playoffs, but it could force them into a first-round matchup with Cleveland, which has the best record in the Eastern Conference. “It really don’t matter to us, to tell you the truth,” said Richard Hamilton, who led Detroit with 23 points… Richard Hamilton led Detroit with 23 points. Brandon Rush had 21 points for the Pacers, while Jack and T.J. Ford added 18 apiece. Prince scored 18 points for Detroit, and Antonio McDyess and Will Bynum each added 16.
Skinner’s season high leads Clippers over Kings
The AP reports: Brian Skinner scored a season-high 21 points, Eric Gordon added 20, and the Los Angeles Clippers snapped a six-game losing streak with a 109-78 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Friday night.
InsideHoops.com notes: Baron Davis was decent, hitting half of his 14 shots for 16 points, 5 assists and 3 steals. Chris Kaman was good off the bench, shooting 7-of-12 for 14 points, 13 rebounds and 4 blocks. In the loss, Beno Udrih had 18 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Ike Diogu in 20 minutes off the bench scored 13. Andres Nocioni added 11. No other Kings player scored double-digits. Sacramento shot a pathetic 32.6% and hit just 4-of-20 from three-point range.
Mutombo gives Rockets boost in win over Warriors
The AP reports: Dikembe Mutombo had 10 points and 15 rebounds, Luis Scola added a career-high 28 points and the Houston Rockets maintained their slim hold on the third seed in the Western Conference with a 113-109 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Friday. Making a rare start after center Yao Ming was scratched from Houston’s lineup during pregame warmups because of lingering soreness in his right foot, the 42-year-old Mutombo blocked four shots and played a season-high 36 minutes while helping the Rockets complete a four-game season sweep of the Warriors. Ron Artest added 19 points and six assists for Houston, which remained a half-game in front of Portland and San Antonio for the third seed in the Western Conference… Kelenna Azubuike had 32 points and C.J. Watson and Ronny Turiaf added 18 apiece for Golden State (28-51), which overcame a 14-point deficit in the second half before falling short.
Roy has 24, Blazers beat Lakers 106-98
The AP reports: Brandon Roy had 24 points and eight assists, and the Portland Trail Blazers held off the Los Angeles Lakers 106-98 on Friday night. Kobe Bryant scored 32 points for the Lakers, but missed a key 3-pointer, had a crucial turnover and was off on a jumper in the final minute. It was Portland’s eighth straight victory over the Lakers at the Rose Garden. The Lakers played without coach Phil Jackson, who didn’t travel with the team because of pain in his lower right leg, and fell 1 1/2 games behind Cleveland for the best record in the NBA and home-court advantage throughout the postseason… The Blazers held a narrow lead throughout most of the fourth quarter. Bryant pulled the Lakers into a 91-all tie with 5:15 to go, but Steve Blake answered with his own jumper for the Blazers.
Parker’s 31 powers Spurs past fading Jazz
The AP reports: In an important win over Utah, Tim Duncan scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds. It’s a mediocre outing by his standards but enough to help the Spurs get a big 105-99 victory over the fading Jazz on Friday night. Tony Parker scored 31 points, and the Spurs shook off their recent funk long enough to bury the Jazz further back in the playoff picture. Both teams are in, but Utah lost for the fifth time in six games to inch closer to facing the dominant Los Angeles Lakers in the first round… Deron Williams had 25 points and 10 assists for the Jazz, whose misery in San Antonio continues. The Jazz haven’t won here since 1999, a streak spanning 23 games… Mehmet Okur had 22 points and 10 rebounds for Utah.
Paul shines, but Mavericks beat Hornets 100-92
The AP reports: With a great start and a feisty finish, the rolling-at-the-right-time Dallas Mavericks were able to withstand a big game by Chris Paul and beat the New Orleans Hornets 100-92 on Friday night, forcing a tie between the teams for sixth place in the Western Conference. Now Dirk Nowitzki is eager to see if the Mavs can do it again—on Sunday, in New Orleans. “We’ve won some nice home games, but our true tests are on the road,” said Nowitzki, who scored 25 points… Paul scored 42 points, one shy of his career high, plus had nine rebounds and seven assists. However, he didn’t get much help. David West was the only other double-digit scorer with 20 points and it took him 20 shots. New Orleans trailed by 10 after a few minutes and was down 42-21 midway through the second quarter.