NBA: Atlanta Hawks Edge Out Cleveland Cavaliers to Help Milwaukee Bucks Clinch Central Division, Toronto Raptors Rout Miami Heat

Dejounte Murray sank three free throws with 2:14 remaining to give Atlanta the lead and added a fall-away jumper with less than a minute left to lead the Hawks to a 120-118 win over the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night.

Murray led Atlanta with 29 points and Onyeka Okongwu added a season-high 21. The Hawks remained tied with Toronto, which beat Miami 106-92 on Tuesday night, for the eighth-best record in the Eastern Conference.

The Cavaliers held out starting forward Isaac Okoro (left knee soreness) and centre Jarrett Allen (strained right groin) and were led by Donovan Mitchell’s 44 points. Mitchell, who surpassed 10,000 career points, tied LeBron James’ Cavaliers record of 10 games of 40-or-more points in a season.

With Atlanta’s win, NBA- and Eastern Conference-leading Milwaukee clinched the Central Division title.

Memphis Grizzlies 113-108 Orlando Magic

Desmond Bane scored 31 points and made 8 of 10 free throws down the stretch, leading Memphis past Orlando.

Bane’s free throws thwarted a last-minute rush by the Magic, led by Franz Wagner, who ended up with 25 points, including nine in the final 1:10.

Xavier Tillman had 20 points for Memphis, while Luke Kennard and Jaren Jackson Jr. finished with 16 points apiece. Jackson added 10 rebounds and three blocks.

Ja Morant, the Grizzlies’ leading scorer, sat out the first night of a back-to-back with right thigh soreness.

Paolo Banchero finished with 24 points and Wendell Carter Jr. added 14 for the Magic.

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Charlotte Hornets 137- 134 Oklahoma City Thunder

P.J. Washington scored 22 of his career-high 43 points in the fourth quarter, and Charlotte rallied to beat Oklahoma City for its third straight win.

Three Thunder players scored career highs — Isaiah Joe with 33 points and Josh Giddey and Jalen Williams with 31 each. But Williams and Giddey each missed one of two free throws in the final 16 seconds, and Williams missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer that would have forced overtime.

It was a potentially costly loss for Oklahoma City. The Thunder were looking to strengthen their position in the Western Conference play-in race despite being short-handed. Oklahoma City guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who entered the day fourth in the league averaging 31.3 points per game, sat out with a sprained left ankle.

Charlotte was short-handed, too. Terry Rozier (right foot discomfort) and Kelly Oubre (strained right shoulder) sat out for the third straight game and Dennis Smith (sprained right toe) also did not play.

Toronto Raptors 106-92 Miami Heat

Pascal Siakam scored 26 points, Scottie Barnes had 22 points and a career-high 12 assists and Toronto beat Miami.

O.G. Anunoby scored 22 points, and Precious Achiuwa and Fred VanVleet each had 12 as Toronto won for the 10th time in 11 home games.

Tyler Herro scored 33 points and Bam Adebayo had 21 points and 12 rebounds as Miami lost its second straight. The Heat are 15-22 on the road.

Miami played without leading scorer Jimmy Butler, who sat because of a sore neck.

Washington Wizards 130-111 Boston Celtics

Kristaps Porzingis had 32 points and 13 rebounds, and Washington boosted its flickering postseason hopes with a victory over Boston.

The Wizards, playing without Bradley Beal (left knee soreness) and Kyle Kuzma (right ankle sprain), pulled within 2 1/2 games of Chicago for the final play-in spot in the Eastern Conference. Washington has six games remaining in the regular season.

The Celtics had their three-game winning streak snapped. Jayson Tatum led Boston with 28 points, and Jaylen Brown contributed 18 points.

Deni Avdija matched a career-high with 25 points and added 10 rebounds for Washington. Monte Morris scored 19 points.

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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)