(SportsDirect) Carmelo Anthony recorded 36 points and 12 rebounds and J.R. Smith poured in 22 points off the bench as visiting New York pushed its winning streak to 12 games by topping Oklahoma City 125-120 on Sunday.
The Knicks moved 2 1/2 games ahead of the Indiana Pacers for the number two spot in the Eastern Conference. New York is on the verge of clinching its first Atlantic Division title since 1994, leading the Brooklyn Nets by six games with six remaining.
Russell Westbrook had 37 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists and Kevin Durant scored 27 as the Thunder’s three-game winning streak came to an end. Oklahoma City dropped one game behind the San Antonio Spurs for the top spot in the Western Conference.
Chris Kaman scored a season-best 26 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Shawn Marion added 20 points as visiting Dallas downed Portland 96-91.
The Mavericks led wire-to-wire to keep their sagging playoff hopes alive. Dallas trails eighth-place Utah by 2 1/2 games and the Los Angeles Lakers by two games in the battle for the final Western Conference playoff spot.
Rookie Will Barton recorded season-highs of 22 points and 13 rebounds and LaMarcus Aldridge scored 18 points for the Trail Blazers, who have lost a season-worst eight straight games. Mo Williams scored 25 points and Al Jefferson collected 19 and 12 rebounds as Utah earned a rare 97-90 road victory over host Golden State. Utah pulled a half-game in front of the Los Angeles Lakers for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
The Warriors could have clinched their playoff spot with a win over the Jazz but instead had their lead over the Houston Rockets for the sixth spot trimmed to one game. Blake Griffin had 24 points and 12 rebounds and Chris Paul had 24 points and 12 assists as the host Los Angeles Clippers completed a four-game season sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers to clinch the Pacific Division crown winning 109-95.
The Clippers won the first division title in the franchise’s 43-season history, which includes stints as the Buffalo Braves (1970-78) and San Diego Clippers (1978-84).
Kobe Bryant had 25 points and 10 assists and Dwight Howard scored 25 points as the Lakers slipped to ninth and a half-game behind the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Brandon Bass scored 20 points and Kevin Garnett returned from a two-week injury absence as Boston easily handled visiting Washington Wizards winning 107-96.
Garnett scored 12 points on 6-of-9 shooting in 24 minutes while returning from an ankle injury and Paul Pierce added 15 points for the Celtics, who pushed their lead over the Milwaukee Bucks to 2 1/2 games in the race for the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference.
Alonzo Gee scored 19 points and host Cleveland won its second straight game against the ORlanod Magic winning 91-85 following a 10-game losing streak.
Tristan Thompson had 15 points and 16 rebounds and Shaun Livingston contributed 12 points off the bench for the Cavaliers.
Nikola Vucevic had 21 points, 21 rebounds and a career high-tying six assists as Orlando lost its fifth straight and fell for the 13th time in 14 games.
Mike Conley scored 25 points as visiting Memphis defeated Sacramento 89-87 to move one game behind Denver for the third seed in the Western Conference.
Marc Gasol contributed 15 points, 10 rebounds and five blocked shots and rejected Marcus Thornton’s last-second 3-point attempt to seal the victory. Brandon Knight led six players in double figures with 20 points and host Detroit snapped an 18-game losing streak to Chicago with a 99-85 points win.
Carlos Boozer had 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Bulls, who fell two games behind idle Brooklyn in the race for the fourth spot in the Eastern Conference. Joakim Noah returned from an eight-game layoff with a foot injury to record 13 points.
Anthony Davis scored 10 of his 20 points in the third quarter to help lift visiting New Orleans to a rare road win as the eclipsed the Suns 95-82.
Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson scored 17 points apiece for the Hornets, who snapped an eight-game slide away from home.
Markieff Morris led Phoenix with 18 points as the Suns fell for the ninth straight time.
