NBA roundup: Pelicans move into eighth spot in West

[April 08, 2015]  The Sports Xchange

NEW ORLEANS -- Forward Anthony Davis scored 23 of his game-high 29 points in the second half, including a running jumper in the lane and two critical free throws in the final 1:21, to power the New Orleans Pelicans to a 103-100 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night at the Smoothie King Center.

With the win, the Pelicans moved into the eighth playoff position in the Western Conference. New Orleans is a half-game ahead Oklahoma City for the final playoff spot in the West after the Thunder lost at home against the San Antonio Spurs.

The Pelicans trailed Golden State by 12 points at halftime, but they erased most of the lead with a 10-0 run to start the second half.

Guard Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 25 points.

Clippers 102, Lakers 96

LOS ANGELES -- After three decades of lopsided results in favor of the Lakers, the battle of Los Angeles has belonged to the Clippers over the past three seasons, with this campaign being no exception.The Clippers completed the season-series sweep of the Lakers with a win at Staples Center.

The Clippers continued their quest for home court in the first round, moving to 53-26 to remain in fifth place in the West. That kept them half a game ahead of scorching hot San Antonio, who trounced the Thunder in Oklahoma City.

The Lakers sunk to 20-57, giving them the NBA's fourth-worst record.

Spurs 113, Thunder 88

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Forward Kawhi Leonard scored 26 points to lead San Antonio over Oklahoma City.

The Spurs stretched their winning streak to eight games and now trail the idle Houston Rockets by only a game and half for second place in the Western Conference and the lead in the Southwest Division. The Thunder have lost four straight games and six of their last seven.

Guard Russell Westbrook led the Thunder with 17 points on 7-for-16 shooting. He also had six steals and four turnovers in 26 minutes of action.

Hawks 96, Suns 69

ATLANTA -- Atlanta set a franchise mark for victories in a season with its 58th win. Forward DeMarre Carroll made all but one of his nine shots and the Hawks held Phoenix to 31.3 percent shooting while winning before the team's 22nd sellout in the past 25 games.

Guard Jeff Teague and forward Mike Muscala, filling in for Paul Millsap, joined Carroll with 16 points. Center Al Horford scored 14 and the Hawks shot 49.4 percent.

Heat 105, Hornets 100

MIAMI -- Goran Dragic led a balanced effort with 28 points and five assists as Miami defeated Charlotte in a pivotal game in the race for one of the Eastern Conference's final playoff berths.

With Boston and Indiana idle, the Heat moved into ninth place and within a half game of the Celtics for the final playoff spot. Miami moved a half-game ahead of the Pacers.

Kings 116, Timberwolves 111

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Forward Rudy Gay scored 33 points, and forward Omri Casspi added a career-high 31 as Sacramento beat Minnesota.

Gay, back after missing three games with concussion symptoms, shot 9-for-17 and also pulled seven rebounds as Sacramento snapped a five-game losing streak despite playing without center DeMarcus Cousins (foot).

Forward Kevin Martin led the Timberwolves with 37 points, matching his season best, and also added seven assists. However, he couldn't prevent Minnesota from losing its sixth consecutive contest.

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