The Golden State Warriors lost at home again, this time to the Minnesota Timberwolves, capping off a busy night of NBA action, which puts their record breaking business at real risk. The San Antonio Spurs won their game on the buzzer, the Cleveland Cavaliers are one step closer to locking up the East and the Philadelphia 76ers can finally relax.
New Orleans Pelicans 93 Philadelphia 76ers 107: The 76ers finally win their 10th game of the season and avoid matching the franchise’s own NBA-worst record for wins in a season. At this point, without Anthony Davis, the Pelicans look like an improved D-League team. The Sixers got 22 points from Carl Landry, who had MVP chants coming his way close to the finish.
Charlotte Hornets 90 Toronto Raptors 96: A very good game from Jeremy Lin in a rare lineup appearance wasn’t enough with too many key players out for the Charlotte Hornets, stuck in sixth in the East. The Raptors got 26 from DeMar DeRozan and 21 from Kyle Lowry, keeping them 3.5 games behind the Cavaliers, pretty much uncatchable at this point.
Detroit Pistons 89 Miami Heat 107: Goran Dragic had 22 points and Hassan Whiteside added 14 with 12 rebounds and 4 blocks from the bench, to keep the Heat in fifth place, 0.5 a game behind the Atlanta Hawks for third in the conference. The Pistons didn’t really need the loss, but remain two games above the Bulls for the last playoff spot. Reggie Jackson and Tobias Harris each scored 21 points.
Phoenix Suns 90 Atlanta Hawks 103: The Hawks are hanging on to third in the East, the Suns did their best not to get in the way. Jeff Teague had 20 points, Kent Bazemore added 17 and 9 rebounds while Paul Millsap was two assists short of a triple double, joining his 13 points, 17 rebounds effort.
Chicago Bulls 92 Memphis Grizzlies 108: The Grizzlies get closer to clinching their playoff spot and stop a six-game losing streak with an impressive win against a bad Bulls team that’s losing all hope of making the NBA playoffs. Zach Randolph scored 27 points with his 10 rebounds, Vince Carter helped scoring 17 off the bench.
Cleveland Cavaliers 109 Milwaukee Bucks 90: The Cavs didn’t need too much from anyone as they win for the fourth time in a row, almost clinching home court advantage in their conference. J.R. Smith led the team with 21 points, all on three-pointers. LeBron James had 17 points and 9 assists, Kevin Love had 17 points and 9 rebounds.
Oklahoma City Thunder 124 Denver Nuggets 102: The Thunder don’t let one loss get to them and get back to winning. Kevin Durant led with 26 points, both Enes Kanter and Dion Waiters added 18 off the bench. Russell Westbrook reached triple double number 17, finishing with 13 points, 14 rebounds and 12 assists, taking only nine shots during the game.
San Antonio Spurs 88 Utah Jazz 86: The Jazz lost a game they shouldn’t have, with Kawhi Leonard hitting a jumper with 4.9 seconds left which theoretically keeps the Spurs within distance of still finishing first in the West. The Jazz, despite the loss, still have a 0.5 game advantage over the Rockets for the last playoff spot.
Portland Trail Blazers 115 Sacramento Kings 107: A big offensive game from both sides, but in the end, the Blazers avoid getting complicated in playoff battles and the risk of losing their spot. C.J. McCollum scored 30 points and Damian Lillard helped out with 22. DeMarcus Cousins also had 30 for the Kings.
Minnesota Timberwolves 124 Golden State Warriors 117: A second home loss for the Warriors and their first this season in overtime. Shabazz Muhammad scored 35 points, Andrew Wiggins had 32 as the Warriors turned the ball over 23 times, now forced to win all four remaining games, two against the San Antonio Spurs, to break the 1995-1996 Chicago Bulls record.
Los Angeles Lakers 81 Los Angeles Clippers 103: Chris Paul didn’t take it easy on Kobe Bryant or the Lakers with 25 points in an easy, easy win, while Jeff Green scored 21. D’Angelo Russell looked terrible with 4-for-17 from the field, Kobe Bryant was awful with six points and 2-for-12 from the field while Metta World Peace of all players led them with 17 points.
Eastern Conference Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 56 | 22 | .718 | – | 78 |
| 2 | Toronto Raptors | 52 | 25 | .675 | 3.5 | 77 |
| 3 | Atlanta Hawks | 46 | 32 | .590 | 10.0 | 78 |
| 4 | Boston Celtics | 45 | 32 | .584 | 10.5 | 77 |
| 5 | Miami Heat | 45 | 32 | .584 | 10.5 | 77 |
| 6 | Charlotte Hornets | 44 | 33 | .571 | 11.5 | 77 |
| 7 | Indiana Pacers | 41 | 36 | .532 | 14.5 | 77 |
| 8 | Detroit Pistons | 41 | 37 | .526 | 15.0 | 78 |
| 9 | Chicago Bulls | 39 | 39 | .500 | 17.0 | 78 |
| 10 | Washington Wizards | 37 | 40 | .481 | 18.5 | 77 |
| 11 | Orlando Magic | 33 | 44 | .429 | 22.5 | 77 |
| 12 | Milwaukee Bucks | 32 | 46 | .410 | 24.0 | 78 |
| 13 | New York Knicks | 31 | 47 | .397 | 25.0 | 78 |
| 14 | Brooklyn Nets | 21 | 56 | .273 | 34.5 | 77 |
| 15 | Philadelphia 76ers | 10 | 68 | .128 | 46.0 | 78 |
Western Conference Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Golden State Warriors | 69 | 9 | .885 | – | 78 |
| 2 | San Antonio Spurs | 65 | 12 | .844 | 3.5 | 77 |
| 3 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 54 | 24 | .692 | 15.0 | 78 |
| 4 | Los Angeles Clippers | 49 | 28 | .636 | 19.5 | 77 |
| 5 | Memphis Grizzlies | 42 | 36 | .538 | 27.0 | 78 |
| 6 | Portland Trail Blazers | 42 | 37 | .532 | 27.5 | 79 |
| 7 | Dallas Mavericks | 39 | 38 | .506 | 29.5 | 77 |
| 8 | Utah Jazz | 39 | 39 | .500 | 30.0 | 78 |
| 9 | Houston Rockets | 38 | 39 | .494 | 30.5 | 77 |
| 10 | Denver Nuggets | 32 | 47 | .405 | 37.5 | 79 |
| 11 | Sacramento Kings | 31 | 47 | .397 | 38.0 | 78 |
| 12 | New Orleans Pelicans | 29 | 48 | .377 | 39.5 | 77 |
| 13 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 26 | 52 | .333 | 43.0 | 78 |
| 14 | Phoenix Suns | 20 | 58 | .256 | 49.0 | 78 |
| 15 | Los Angeles Lakers | 16 | 61 | .208 | 52.5 | 77 |