ORLANDO, Fla. — Courtney Lee scored 20 points and Jeff Green added 17 as the Boston Celtics cruised to a 120-88 victory over the Orlando Magic on Saturday night.
The win locked up the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference for Boston, which never trailed in winning its eighth straight over Orlando.
All five Celtics starters reached double figures, with Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce scoring 14 and 12 points, respectively, after resting Friday against Miami.
Tobias Harris led the Magic with 22 points, and Nik Vucevic added 16 points and 12 rebounds. Orlando hasn’t won back-to-back games since December.
BOBCATS 95, BUCKS 85
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kemba Walker had 21 points, Josh McRoberts nearly had a triple-double and Charlotte handed Milwaukee its ninth straight road loss.
The loss locked the Bucks into eighth place in the Eastern Conference, meaning they’ll draw the defending champion Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs.
McRoberts had 18 points, nine rebounds and a career-high nine assists. Bismack Biyombo chipped in with 13 points and 17 rebounds, as the NBA-worst Bobcats dominated the Bucks 52-36 on the boards.
Mike Dunleavy had 19 points and Monta Ellis added 16 to lead the Bucks, who have lost 11 of their last 14.
TIMBERWOLVES 105, SUNS 93
MINNEAPOLIS — Ricky Rubio had a career-high 24 points, 10 assists and five steals, and J.J. Barea scored 16 points to lead Minnesota past Phoenix.
Derrick Williams added 15 points and six boards for the Timberwolves, who gave coach Rick Adelman victory No. 1,001. It’s also the first time the Wolves (30-50) have won at least 30 games in a season without Kevin Garnett on the roster.
Markieff Morris had 20 points and nine rebounds and Jared Dudley scored 16 for the Suns, who turned the ball over 28 times. The Suns have lost 15 of their last 17 and already are assured of having their worst record since their inaugural season in 1968-69.
CLIPPERS 91, GRIZZLIES 87
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Chris Paul hit a free throw with 18.3 seconds left, and Los Angeles edged Memphis in a possible preview of a first-round playoff series.
With the win, the Clippers took the season series 3-1 for what could be a crucial tiebreaker giving Los Angeles home-court advantage in the postseason even though the teams now are tied at 54-26. That puts them both one-half game behind Denver for the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference.
DeAndre Jordan led the Clippers with 16 points. Paul finished with 13, Blake Griffin had 12 and Willie Green 10.
Marc Gasol had 18 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists for Memphis. Zach Randolph finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Boston seizes postseason spot with win
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