Heat's playoff chances dented by loss to Raptors; Hornets keep postseason hopes alive with win over Pistons
Monday 8 April 2019 10:35, UK
The Brooklyn Nets and Orlando Magic ended their respective playoff droughts by recording victories on Sunday night to seal their places in the postseason.
D'Angelo Russell scored 20 points as the Brooklyn Nets clinched their first playoff berth since 2015 by leading most of the way in a 108-96 win over the Indiana Pacers.
The Nets (41-40) clinched at least the seventh seed after the Detroit Pistons lost to the Charlotte Hornets earlier on Sunday, and could have secured the No 6 seed if Orlando had lost its game at Boston later on Sunday.
Brooklyn completed an impressive back-to-back road sweep by following up its five-point victory at Milwaukee and led for the final 40:19. The Nets also completed a six-game stretch against the top five teams in the Eastern Conference by going 3-3.
Russell shot 7-for-15 and made a 3-pointer for the 60th straight game. He helped secure the victory on a three-point play with 5:14 left that gave Brooklyn a 98-85 lead.
Joe Harris added 18 of his 19 points in the first half, hitting three three-pointers during an 11-0 run in the second quarter that helped the Nets get an eight-point lead at halftime.
LeVert contributed 18 points for the Nets, who shot 45.5 percent. Jarrett Allen and Spencer Dinwiddie chipped in 12 points apiece in a game where Brooklyn outrebounded Indiana 52-33.
The Pacers lost for the ninth time in 12 games and officially are locked into the fifth seed. Even if Indiana and Boston finish tied, the Celtics own the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Domantas Sabonis led Indiana with 17 points and Thaddeus Young -- who was a starting forward in 2015 for the Nets -- added 16.
Terrence Ross scored 14 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter as the Orlando Magic clinched their first postseason berth in seven years with a 116-108 road win against the Boston Celtics.
The Magic's longest playoff drought in franchise history ended as Nikola Vucevic had 25 points and 12 rebounds for Orlando. Evan Fournier added 24 points, including the go-ahead dunk with 2:01 left in the game.
The Magic (40-41) are tied with Brooklyn for the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference with one game left in the regular season. Orlando finish up on Wednesday at Charlotte, but Brooklyn, who host Miami, own the tiebreaker.
Kyrie Irving led the Celtics with 23 points, and Al Horford added 18. Boston locked up the fourth seed in the East earlier in the day when the Pacers lost to the Nets.
Orlando have not been to the playoffs since the 2011-12 season, when they lost 4-1 to the Indiana Pacers in the first round and traded Dwight Howard to the Los Angeles Lakers after the season.
The Magic were 11 games under .500 on January 29 but have since gone 21-9 and are over .500 for the first time since November 18.
Danny Green scored 21 points - including seven in overtime - as the Toronto Raptors dented the Miami Heat's playoff hopes with a 117-109
Pascal Siakam added 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Norman Powell also had 23 points off the bench for the Raptors, who swept the four-game season series with the Heat.
The Heat (38-42) are now one game behind the Pistons -- and tied with the Hornets -- in the race for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East.
Kawhi Leonard had 22 points for Toronto, Serge Ibaka had 12 points while Marc Gasol had eight points and 10 rebounds.
Dwyane Wade scored 21 points for the Heat, who have lost four in a row. James Johnson added 18, Dion Waiters 17, Justise Winslow 15 and Hassan Whiteside 14 while Bam Adebayo had seven points and 13 rebounds.
The Heat had a chance to win the game at the end of regulation, but Johnson missed a 25-footer, sending the game to overtime tied at 103.
Kemba Walker scored 31 points and Frank Kaminsky added a season-high 24 as the Charlotte Hornets kept alive their playoff hopes by beating the Detroit Pistons 104-91.
It was a third straight win for the Hornets, who clinched a four-game sweep of the season series.
The Hornets (38-42) moved into ninth place in the Eastern Conference playoff race and are one game behind the No 8 Pistons (39-41). Charlotte hold the tiebreaker edge over both the Heat and the Pistons.
Walker added eight rebounds and seven assists and the Hornets also got 17 points from Jeremy Lamb, 14 from Dwayne Bacon, and 10 from Miles Bridges. They played without Cody Zeller, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Tony Parker and Marvin Williams.
Detroit, who shot just 37 percent from the field and were 10 of 41 from three-point range, have now lost four straight and seven of their last nine.
Ish Smith led the Pistons with 20 points. Blake Griffin scored 16 but was hobbling for much of the game with a knee injury. Andre Drummond finished with 15 points and 23 rebounds, and Wayne Ellington scored 14.
The Hornets will play at Cleveland on Tuesday and will close out the season on Wednesday at home against Orlando. The Pistons will host Memphis on Tuesday, then will play at New York on Wednesday.
