NBA CURRENT STANDINGS AND PLAYOFF PICTURE

EASTERN CONFERENCE

NBA ATLANTIC	W	L	PCT	GB	CONF	DIV	HOME	AWAY
Toronto	37	16	.698	-	22-10	5-4	21-5	16-11
Philadelphia	34	19	.642	3.0	20-13	5-6	21-5	13-14
Boston	33	19	.635	3.5	24-10	9-3	21-6	12-13
Brooklyn	28	26	.519	9.5	20-14	7-5	16-11	12-15
New York	10	41	.196	26.0	6-29	2-10	4-19	6-22
NBA CENTRAL	W	L	PCT	GB	CONF	DIV	HOME	AWAY
Milwaukee	38	13	.745	-	26-7	9-1	22-4	16-9
Indiana	33	19	.635	5.5	25-10	7-2	18-7	15-12
Detroit	22	29	.431	16.0	14-18	4-5	14-13	8-16
Chicago	12	41	.226	27.0	9-23	3-8	5-20	7-21
Cleveland	11	42	.208	28.0	9-25	2-9	6-20	5-22
NBA SOUTHEAST	W	L	PCT	GB	CONF	DIV	HOME	AWAY
Charlotte	26	26	.500	-	19-15	6-2	19-8	7-18
Miami	24	27	.471	1.5	14-19	3-8	11-16	13-11
Washington	22	30	.423	4.0	15-19	6-4	16-10	6-20
Orlando	22	31	.415	4.5	16-15	4-5	14-15	8-16
Atlanta	17	35	.327	9.0	11-23	5-5	8-13	9-22

WESTERN CONFERENCE

NBA NORTHWEST	W	L	PCT	GB	CONF	DIV	HOME	AWAY
Denver	37	15	.712	-	23-10	7-1	23-4	14-11
Oklahoma City	33	18	.647	3.5	18-14	4-4	17-7	16-11
Portland	32	20	.615	5.0	18-17	4-7	22-7	10-13
Utah	30	24	.556	8.0	17-15	5-6	16-10	14-14
Minnesota	25	27	.481	12.0	15-20	4-6	17-10	8-17
NBA PACIFIC	W	L	PCT	GB	CONF	DIV	HOME	AWAY
Golden State	37	15	.712	-	22-10	9-2	19-7	18-8
L.A. Clippers	29	24	.547	8.5	19-17	8-3	15-12	14-12
Sacramento	27	25	.519	10.0	14-19	2-9	16-10	11-15
L.A. Lakers	27	26	.509	10.5	19-18	7-4	16-12	11-14
Phoenix	11	43	.204	27.0	7-26	1-9	7-20	4-23
NBA SOUTHWEST	W	L	PCT	GB	CONF	DIV	HOME	AWAY
San Antonio	32	22	.593	-	23-15	7-5	22-7	10-15
Houston	30	22	.577	1.0	18-14	6-5	19-8	11-14
Dallas	24	28	.462	7.0	13-19	3-5	18-7	6-21
New Orleans	23	30	.434	8.5	14-20	7-6	15-9	8-21
Memphis	20	33	.377	11.5	13-19	4-6	12-14	8-19

CURRENT Top of Form

PLAYOFF PICTURE 

EASTERN CONFERENCE

RANK	TEAM	GB
1	Milwaukee	-
2	Toronto	2.0
3	Philadelphia	5.0
4	Indiana	5.5
5	Boston	5.5
6	Brooklyn	11.5
7	Charlotte	12.5
8	Miami	14.0
^^ IN PLAYOFFS ^^
9	Detroit	16.0
10	Washington	16.5
11	Orlando	17.0
12	Atlanta	21.5
13	Chicago	27.0
14	Cleveland	28.0
15	New York	28.0

WESTERN CONFERENCE

RANK	TEAM	GB
1	Denver	-
2	Golden State	-
3	Oklahoma City	3.5
4	Portland	5.0
5	San Antonio	6.0
6	Houston	7.0
7	Utah	8.0
8	L.A. Clippers	8.5
^^ IN PLAYOFFS ^^
9	Sacramento	10.0
10	L.A. Lakers	10.5
11	Minnesota	12.0
12	Dallas	13.0
13	New Orleans	14.5
14	Memphis	17.5
15	Phoenix	27.0

Bottom of Form

NBA SCOREBOARD

WARRIORS 115, LAKERS 101

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Klay Thompson returned from a one-game absence with an illness to score 28 points and light up the Lakers for the second time in 13 days, leading the Golden State Warriors to a 115-101 victory Saturday night over a Los Angeles team again missing LeBron James.

Splash Brother Stephen Curry missed his first eight shots before a layup with 6:20 remaining and still wound up with 14 points, two days after going off for 41 in a loss to the 76ers when he hit 10 3-pointers. Andre Iguodala hit a go-ahead 3 in the final minute of the third, and two more early in the fourth as Golden State pulled away and finished with 17 points. DeMarcus Cousins had 18 points and 10 rebounds in his second home game and seventh in all since coming back from a nearly yearlong recovery from surgery for a ruptured left Achilles tendon. Kevin Durant added 21 points and 11 of the Warriors' 31 assists.

The Lakers hung tough without James just as they did here in a 127-101 victory Christmas night. They lost James in the third quarter of that game to a strained left groin. He returned from a 17-game absence Thursday night against the Clippers only to sit again Saturday.

James' rest was for what coach Luke Walton called "load management." The four-time MVP had been set for his second game back but woke up Friday "very sore" after playing 40 minutes in the 123-120 overtime win against the Clippers. He finished with 24 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists.

SPURS 113, PELICANS 108

SAN ANTONIO -- LaMarcus Aldridge had 25 points and 14 rebounds and San Antonio withstood another bat intrusion -- with a nifty play from the team's coyote mascot -- and held off the depleted New Orleans.

The bat began hovering above the court three minutes into the game, causing officials to delay play. It was the second straight home game delayed by the winged intruders, with three bats buzzing the court Thursday night against Brooklyn.

An arena official walked onto the court with a net, but missed the bat on his first attempt. Almost on cue, the mascot charged onto the court dressed in a Batman costume with a net. He missed his first swipe at the bat, then dove near the scorer's table and caught the bat in his net to huge cheers from Spurs players and fans. The worker placed the bat into a towel and took him from the court, with play resuming after a delay of only 1 1/2 minutes.

Rudy Gay and Marco Belinelli added 17 points each for San Antonio.

Frank Jackson had a career-high 25 points to lead New Orleans.

ROCKETS 125, JAZZ 98

SALT LAKE CITY -- James Harden had 43 points for his 26th straight game with at least 30 points in Houston's victory over Utah.

Harden's 30-point streak is the third-longest in NBA history, trailing only Wilt Chamberlain's runs of 65 and 31 games. Harden also had 12 rebounds, six steals, five assists and four blocks. He was 12 of 22 from the field, making 4 of 12 3-pointers, and made all 15 of his free throws.

Gerald Green added 25 points, and Kenneth Faried had 16 points and 12 rebounds before fouling out with 5:07 remaining. Houston snapped a two-game losing streak, holding the Jazz to 36 percent shooting and forcing 23 turnovers. Donovan Mitchell had 26 points and nine assists for Utah.

BUCKS 131, WIZARDS 115

WASHINGTON -- Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 37 points, making all of his season-high 17 free throws in a perfect night at the line for Milwaukee, and had 10 rebounds to help the NBA-leading Bucks rout Washington.

Two games ahead of Toronto for the Eastern Conference lead, the Bucks have won three straight, nine of 10 and 20 of 24.

Brook Lopez added 21 points, and Khris Middleton had 20. Starting point guard Eric Bledsoe sat out to rest a sore left Achilles.

The Bucks were 24 of 24 from the free-throw line. They had a 17-2 run late in the second quarter, led by 23 at halftime and 32 early in third quarter. Antetokounmpo scored seven of the last 10 points in big second-quarter run, including a thunderous slam over Jeff Green that led to a three-point play.

Bradley Beal scored 24 points for Washington.

NUGGETS 107, TIMBERWOLVES 106

MINNEAPOLIS -- Nikola Jokic had his 25th career triple-double with 13 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists, including a late full-court pass that set up a key basket to help Denver beat Minnesota.

The Nuggets won their sixth straight game, and added another accolade by ensuring that coach Mike Malone will head to the All-Star game with Jokic by virtue of their NBA franchise-best 37-15 start.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 31 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists for Minnesota.

MAVERICKS 111, CAVALIERS 98

CLEVELAND -- Rookie Luka Doncic matched his season high with 35 points and did a little bit of everything for Dallas, and Harrison Barnes scored 13 points in the fourth quarter to lead the undermanned Mavericks past Cleveland.

With a contingent of fans waving Slovenian flags to support Doncic, the 19-year-old showed why the Mavericks are so excited about their future. He added 11 rebounds, six assists and made a couple long 3-pointers that drew gasps from the Quicken Loans crowd.

Barnes finished with 17 points. The Mavericks played their second game since acquiring star Kristaps Porzingis from New York in a blockbuster trade. Tim Hardaway Jr., Courtney Lee and Trey Burke also came in the deal, but are not eligible to play until their physicals are completed.

Jordan Clarkson scored 19 points for Cleveland.

CLIPPERS 111, PISTONS 101

DETROIT -- Lou Williams scored 16 Los Angeles points in a row during a torrid fourth-quarter stretch, and the Clippers overcame a 25-point deficit to beat Detroit.

The Clippers trailed by 25 in the second quarter and were down 83-60 in the third before storming back to tie it 89 in the fourth. It was 91-all before Williams scored every Los Angeles point during a decisive run that put the Clippers up 107-96.

Williams finished with 39 points. Detroit's Blake Griffin had 24 points and 11 rebounds against his former team, and Reggie Jackson added 29 points for the Pistons.

KINGS 115, 76ERS 108

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Buddy Hield scored 34 points and set a career high for 3-pointers with seven, and Sacramento weathered a fourth-quarter flurry from Jimmy Butler to beat Philadelphia.

Sacramento (27-25) matched its win total from last season. De'Aaron Fox had 19 points and eight assists, Willie Cauley-Stein also scored 19 points.

Joel Embiid had 29 points and 17 rebounds for Philadelphia. Butler added 29 points, 18 coming in the fourth quarter when he made two four-point plays.

PACERS 95, HEAT 88

MIAMI -- Bojan Bogdanovic scored 31 points, Darren Collison added 20 and Indiana had a big third quarter to beat stumbling Miami.

Indiana ended a season-long four-game losing streak, which started in the game immediately following the one where All-Star Victor Oladipo left with a season-ending knee injury.

Dwyane Wade scored 21 points for Miami.

HORNETS 125, BULLS 118

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Kemba Walker had 15 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter and the Charlotte Hornets pulled away to beat Chicago for its fifth straight victory.

Walker had 10 assists and finished 5 of 6 from the field in the fourth quarter, sparking an 18-4 run to hand the Bulls their fifth loss in six games.

Bobby Portis led Chicago with 33 points, and Lauri Markkanen had 30.

HAWKS 118, SUNS 112

PHOENIX -- John Collins matched his career high with 35 points and fell one shy of his career best with 16 rebounds, and Atlanta handed Phoenix its 10th straight loss.

Trae Young scored 17 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter.

Devin Booker scored 32 points for Phoenix.

MAGIC 102, NETS 89

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Nikola Vucevic had 24 points and 12 rebounds, Evan Fournier added 16 points and Orlando beat Brooklyn.

D'Angelo Russell had 23 points for Brooklyn, and Shabazz Napier added 15.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL TOP 25 SCOREBOARD

NO. 12 VIRGINA TECH 47, NO. 23 NORTH CAROLINA STATE 24

RALEIGH, N.C. -- No. 23 North Carolina State was held to a stunningly low point total, beaten by No. 12 Virginia Tech 47-24 on Saturday in the Wolfpack's lowest-scoring output of the shot-clock era.

Kerry Blackshear had 13 points and 13 rebounds and Nickeil Alexander-Walker added 11 points for the Hokies (18-3, 7-2 Atlantic Coast Conference), who led the entire way despite playing without point guard Justin Robinson. Virginia Tech didn't put up huge numbers, shooting just 36 percent and making 7 of 21 3-pointers.

Then again, Virginia Tech didn't need much production against the cold-cold-cold-shooting Wolfpack (16-6, 4-5).

N.C. State made just 9 of 54 shots for the game, a conversion rate of 16.7 percent that included a 2-for-28 showing from 3-point range. It was N.C. State's lowest scoring output in any game since managing 12 points in a win against Duke in the 1968 ACC Tournament, nearly two decades before the implementation of the shot clock.

NO. 1 TENNESSEE 93, TEXAS A&M 76

COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Grant Williams scored 22 points and Tennessee set a school record with its 16th straight win.

The Volunteers (20-1, 8-0 Southeastern Conference) surpassed the 15-game streak they had from February 1915 to January 1917 and are off to their best start in conference play since also going 8-0 in 1981-82.

Tennessee was clinging to a two-point lead midway through the second half before a 5-0 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Jordan Bowden, made it 70-63. Those five points were the start of a 10-3 spurt, with a 3 from Lamonte Turner that extended the lead to 75-66 with 8 1/2 minutes to go. Williams added a dunk in that stretch and had a big defensive play with a block on TJ Starks.

Wendell Mitchell finished with 18 points for Texas A&M (8-12, 1-7), which lost for the fifth time in the last six games.

NO. 2 DUKE 91, ST. JOHN'S 61

DURHAM, N.C. -- Freshman phenom Zion Williamson scored 29 points, Tre Jones flirted with a triple-double and Duke routed St. John's.

RJ Barrett added 15 points and 14 rebounds while Jones had 13 points, seven rebounds and seven assists while also playing lockdown defense on Shamorie Ponds. The Blue Devils (19-2) shot 56 percent while winning their fifth straight.

Ponds, the hero of last year's upset win over Duke and a 20.9-point scorer, had all 11 of his in the second half. LJ Figueroa had 14 points and Marvin Clark II added 12 for the Red Storm (16-6), who fell behind by 20 before they hit a shot in the second half while losing their third in four games.

NO. 3 VIRGINIA 56, MIAMI 46

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- De'Andre Hunter scored 14 points, Mamadi Diakite had 11 points and three blocks, and Virginia locked down on defense again.

Kyle Guy added 10 points on just 4-for-15 shooting for the Cavaliers (20-1, 8-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who played without point guard and third-leading scorer Ty Jerome because of a sore back.

Chris Lykes scored 16 points to lead the Hurricanes (9-12, 1-8), who lost their fifth in a row. Zach Johnson and Sam Waardenburg each added 10, but Miami became the ninth team held below 50 points by the Cavaliers this season. The Hurricanes entered averaging 74.4 points per game.

NO. 4 GONZAGA 85, SAN DIEGO 69

SPOKANE, Wash. -- Rui Hachimura scored 32 points and Gonzaga beat San Diego to go undefeated through the first half of the West Coast Conference season.

Zach Norvell Jr. added 21 points for Gonzaga (21-2, 8-0), which won its 12th consecutive game since a pair of December losses knocked it from the No. 1 spot in The AP Top 25.

Isaiah Pineiro tied a career high with 30 points and added 11 rebounds for San Diego (15-8, 4-4), one of the surprise teams in the league this season. Isaiah Wright added 16 points.

INDIANA 79, NO. 6 MICHIGAN STATE 75

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Romeo Langford hit a go-ahead 3-pointer early in overtime and Indiana ended a seven-game skid, taking advantage of Michigan State's poor foul shooting.

The banged-up Hoosiers (13-9, 4-7 Big Ten) stopped their longest losing streak in nearly eight years. Already minus ailing forward Zach McRoberts, they lost star forward Juwan Morgan to a shoulder injury in the first half.

The Spartans (18-4, 9-2) have dropped two straight for the first time this season. Michigan State doomed its chances to win at the line, making just 8 of 22 free throws

NO. 7 KENTUCKY 65, FLORIDA 54

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Tyler Herro scored 19 points, including a dagger 3-pointer with about three minutes to play, and Kentucky rallied from an 11-point deficit to beat Florida.

PJ Washington added 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Wildcats (18-3, 7-1 Southeastern Conference), who won their eighth consecutive game and ended a two-game skid against the Gators (12-9, 4-4).

Kentucky used a 14-0 run during a 5-minute span late in the second half to turn the game around. Herro came up big in the spurt, scoring five points and finding Keldon Johnson in the corner for a 3. Herro's 3 made it 55-48. Florida fans soon started heading for the exits.

NO. 8 NEVADA 93, BOISE STATE 73

RENO, Nev. -- Caleb Martin scored 30 points and twin brother Cody Martin added a season-high 21 as Nevada cruised past Boise State.

Nevada (21-1, 8-1 Mountain West) struggled the previous time it played the Broncos, winning 72-71 on Cody Martin's 3-pointer in the final seconds at Boise on Jan. 15. This time, the Wolf Pack broke away shortly before halftime and wound up shooting 55.6 percent. Nevada went on a 9-2 run and led 41-30 at the break.

Alex Hobbs led Boise State (10-12, 5-4) with 21 points. Justinian Jessup and Derrick Alston each scored 19.

NO. 9 NORTH CAROLINA 79, NO. 15 LOUISVILLE 69

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Luke Maye had 20 points and 11 rebounds, Cameron Johnson finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds, and North Carolina avenged a blowout loss against Louisville.

The victory came three weeks after the Tar Heels (17-4, 7-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) were pounded by 21 points by Louisville (16-6, 7-2), their worst defeat at home under coach Roy Williams.

The Tar Heels returned the favor in the rematch and ended Louisville's six-game winning streak. They set the tone with a 22-4 first-half run over 8:34. It put them up 34-19 and gave them a lead they never lost against one of the league's co-leaders.

NO. 11 KANSAS 79, NO. 16 TEXAS TECH 63

LAWRENCE, Kan. -- Dedric Lawson had 25 points and 10 rebounds, Devon Dotson added 20 points and Kansas took out the frustration of a lousy week on Texas Tech.

Lagerald Vick added 13 points and Ochai Agbaji had 10 for the Jayhawks (17-5, 6-3 Big 12), who came into the showdown of Big 12 title contenders having lost two straight and three of four.

The Jayhawks roared to a 20-point halftime lead against Texas Tech (17-5, 5-4), the league's dominant defensive team, then weathered a shaky start to the second half before pulling away again.

ARKANSAS 90, NO. 19 LSU 89

BATON ROUGE, La. -- Mason Jones hit a driving floater off the glass with 22 seconds left and Arkansas handed LSU its first conference loss this season and first home loss in more than a year.

Daniel Gafford scored 23 points and Isaiah Joe added 18 points for the Razorbacks (13-8, 4-4 SEC), who squandered an 18-point, second-half lead before pulling out the win and halting LSU's streaks of 18 straight victories at home and 10 overall.

Naz Reid scored 19 and Javonte Smart 18 for LSU (17-4, 7-1), which was trying to start 8-0 in the league for the first time since 1981 -- and very nearly did.

NO. 20 IOWA STATE 65, TEXAS 60

AMES, Iowa -- Talen Horton-Tucker scored 15 points, Marial Shayok had 12 and Iowa State held off Texas for its fifth win in six games.

Nick Weiler-Babb had 11 points and seven rebounds for the Cyclones (17-5, 6-3 Big 12), who hit their last four field goals to avoid the upset.

Kerwin Roach finished with 19 points and Matt Coleman had 13 points and five assists for Texas (12-10, 4-5), which committed 13 turnovers and shot just 26 percent on 3s.

NO. 22 MISSISSIPPI STATE 81, MISSISSIPPI 75

OXFORD, Miss. -- Quinndary Weatherspoon scored 27 points, freshman Reggie Perry added a career-high 21 and Mississippi State earned a road win over rival Mississippi.

Mississippi State (16-5, 4-4 SEC) has won four of its last six games. The Bulldogs got some payback after they lost to Ole Miss 81-77 at home last month.

Ole Miss (14-7, 4-4) led for a big portion of the second half before Mississippi State used a 9-0 run to take a 66-60 lead with eight minutes left. The Rebels pulled even at 73 on Breein Tyree's 3-pointer, but never could regain the lead.

NO. 25 FLORIDA STATE 59, GEORGIA TECH 49

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Mfiondu Kabengele and Terance Mann each scored 12 points and Florida State won its third straight game after the Yellow Jackets failed to score in the last 4:14.

This was the lowest point total by a Florida State (16-5, 4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) opponent this season and it ties the lowest output by Georgia Tech (11-11, 3-6) in a game this season.

Kabengele has scored in double figures in 14 of the Seminoles' 21 games, all as a reserve. Trent Forrest added nine points and six rebounds for the Seminoles (16-5, 4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference).