By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
April 7, 2016
Jeff Teague scored 23 points, Kyle Korver added 14, and the Hawks held off the Toronto Raptors[1] for a 95-87 victory in Atlanta on Thursday night.
It was one of the season's best performances for the Hawks, who remained in third place in the Eastern Conference by beating the East's No. 2 seed. With Paul Millsap scoring 13 points and Al Horford, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Mike Scott each adding 11, Atlanta knocked off Toronto for the first time in four tries this season.
The Hawks have won 16 of 21 and are a half-game ahead of Boston for the third spot in the East. Toronto dropped three and a half games behind East-leading Cleveland.
Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan each scored 16 points, and Jonas Valanciunas had 13 for the Raptors, who have lost two of three.
SUNS 124, ROCKETS[2] 115 Mirza Teletovic scored 26 points off the bench, P. J. Tucker added 24 and visiting Phoenix another blow to Houston's dwindling playoff chances.
It was the second straight loss for the Rockets, who entered the day in ninth place in the Western Conference after a loss Wednesday at Dallas.
The game was back and forth through the first few minutes of the fourth quarter before the Suns took over. They scored 10 straight points, with 8 coming on free throws, to take a 117-110 lead with just over a minute left.
Tyson Chandler had 21 points for the Suns, who ended a seven-game skid.
James Harden led Houston with 30 points.
HEAT 106, BULLS[3] 98 Dwyane Wade scored 21 points, Joe Johnson added 17, and Miami shook off a slow first half to beat Chicago, clamping down in the final minutes for its ninth win in its last 10 home games.
Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside each had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Miami, which has 14 consecutive games of scoring 100 or more at home — the second-longest such streak in franchise history.
Luol Deng scored 13, Josh Richardson had 11 and Amare Stoudemire added 10 for the Heat (46-32), who remained fifth in the East.
Jimmy Butler scored 25 points for the Bulls (39-40), who now need a series of miracles to get into the postseason. Pau Gasol finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds, and Derrick Rose scored 17 for Chicago.
References
- ^ Recent news and scores about the Toronto Raptors. (topics.nytimes.com)
- ^ Recent news and scores about the Houston Rockets. (topics.nytimes.com)
- ^ Recent news and scores about the Chicago Bulls. (topics.nytimes.com)
Source → Hawks Top Raptors; the Rockets and the Bulls Fall