NBA Roundup: Celtics Win, Maintain Pressure in East

Boston — Isaiah Thomas and the Boston Celtics have almost caught Cleveland for the top spot in Eastern Conference. Now they’re focused on passing the Cavaliers.

Thomas scored 30 points, including 20 in the second half, and Boston beat the Miami Heat, 112-108, on Sunday night for its fourth straight victory.

The win moved Boston within percentage points of Cleveland for the No. 1 seed in the East. The Celtics have one more victory than the Cavs, but also one more loss. Boston (48-26) also equaled its win total from last season.

Thomas said no one in a Celtics uniform was celebrating, though.

“It’s just a tie, though, so it’s not that cool,” he said. “Hopefully we can secure that spot and be No. 1. We’ve just got to control what we can control and take it game by game. We can’t really worry about what Cleveland’s doing or what other teams are doing.”

Jae Crowder added a season-high 25 points and six rebounds for the Celtics.

Rockets 137, Thunder 125

Houston — Lou Williams scored 31 points, James Harden finished with 22 points and 12 assists, and Houston cruised over Oklahoma City.

Oklahoma City star Russell Westbrook had 39 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists for his second straight triple-double and his 36th this season, but Harden led the Rockets to a 25-point lead through three quarters in the matchup between top MVP candidates.

Bulls 109, Bucks 94

Milwaukee — Nikola Mirotic tied a season high with 28 points, Jimmy Butler had 20 points and a career-high 14 assists, and the Bulls pulled away for the win.

Butler broke his previous career best for assists (12) by the end of a pivotal third quarter, when Chicago stretched a one-point lead at the half to 91-79 going into the fourth.

Kings 98, Clippers 97

Los Angeles — Willie Cauley-Stein made a follow shot with two seconds left, lifting Sacramento to the road win.

Down 85-67 early in the fourth, the Kings rallied while Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan were resting.

Hornets 120, Suns 106

Charlotte, n.c. — Kemba Walker had 31 points and nine assists, and Charlotte handed Phoenix its eighth straight loss.

Marvin Williams added 21 points and Nic Batum had 18 points and 10 assists for the Hornets, who have won four of their last five games as they try to make a late playoff push.

Nets 107, Hawks 91

Atlanta — Brook Lopez scored 23 points and Brooklyn handed Atlanta its seventh straight loss.

Jeremy Lin had 19 points for the Nets (16-57), who have won three of four and are 7-8 in March.

Pacers 107, Sixers 94

Indianapolis — Myles Turner had 17 points and 16 rebounds, Paul George scored 21 and Indiana topped Philadelphia.

Jeff Teague added 16 points for the Pacers, who used a 30-point third quarter to turn a six-point halftime lead into a 12-point advantage as they snapped a two-game skid.

Warriors 106, Grizzlies 94

Oakland, Calif. — Klay Thompson scored 21 of his 31 points in the second half, and Golden State pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat Memphis for its seventh straight win.

Stephen Curry added 21 points and 11 assists, Andre Iguodala scored 20 and Draymond Green had nine points and seven rebounds as the Warriors (59-14) extended their lead to 2½ games over the San Antonio Spurs in the race for the top spot in the West.

Pelicans 115, Nuggets 90

Denver — Anthony Davis had 31 points and 15 rebounds, helping to compensate for the absence of injured DeMarcus Cousins, and New Orleans boosted its flickering playoff hopes by beating Denver.

The Nuggets began the night clinging to a one-game lead over Portland for the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference.