Jalen Brunson needed only three quarters to score 39 points and the New York Knicks continued their push for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 118-109 win over the league-leading Boston Celtics on Thursday. (More Sports News)
Brunson was 15 of 23 from the field and 6 for 11 from long range, while Donte DiVincenzo added 17 points and Josh Hart had 16 points and 16 rebounds.
New York won its third straight and pulled within a game of Milwaukee for second in the East, with each team having two games left. The Knicks would need to win both and have the Bucks lose their games at Oklahoma City and Orlando, because Milwaukee has the head-to-head tiebreaker.
The Knicks dominated on the glass, 52-36, and had 22 second-chance points compared to 12 for the Celtics.
Boston got 18 points from Jayson Tatum and lost its second in a row.
Surging Warriors handle Trail Blazers
Stephen Curry scored 22 points and Jonathan Kuminga added 22 to propel the Golden State Warriors to their ninth win in 10 games, 100-92 over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Golden State, which played without Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, has already clinched a play in spot but can potentially improve its playoff seeding in the final two games
With their 45th victory, the Warriors surpassed their win total from last season, when they advanced to the conference semifinals.
Deandre Ayton had 25 points and 11 rebounds and Scoot Henderson tallied 18 and 12 assists for the Trail Blazers, who have won just two of their past 15 games.
Pelicans complete season sweep of Kings CJ McCollum and Zion Williamson scored 31 points apiece and the New Orleans Pelicans completed a five-game season sweep of the Sacramento Kings with a 135-123 win.
McCollum matched a season high with nine 3-pointers in 12 tries and added seven assists for the Pelicans, who improved to 27-14 on the road, a franchise record for wins and tied with Boston for the best mark in the NBA.
New Orleans is sixth in the Western Conference, one game ahead of Phoenix with two games remaining.
De’Aaron Fox scored 33 points as the Kings lost for the fourth time in five games and failed in a bid to avoid the play-in tournament.
