NBA Capsules: John Wall tallies 37 points to lead Wizards past Cavaliers
CLEVELAND – John Wall scored 37 points, Bradley Beal added 27 and the Washington Wizards began a challenging road trip by beating LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers 127-115 on Saturday night.
Wall scored 18 in the first quarter, when the Wizards shot 82 percent, and Washington held on down the stretch to avenge an overtime loss to the NBA champions last month.
James, who briefly wore goggles to protect an eye injury sustained Friday night, scored 24 and added 11 rebounds and eight assists. Kyrie Irving added 23 points and Kevin Love 17 for Cleveland, playing at home for the only time in a seven-game stretch.
Washington’s victory cut Cleveland’s lead in the Eastern Conference to a half-game over idle Boston.
Clippers 108, Jazz 95
LOS ANGELES – Jamal Crawford scored 28 points off the bench, and Los Angeles beat Utah to clinch a playoff berth for the sixth straight year.
The Clippers trail the Jazz by a half-game in their race for the No. 4 playoff seed in the West.
Blake Griffin added 15 points and DeAndre Jordan had 15 rebounds for the Clippers.
Rudy Gobert had 26 points and 14 rebounds for Utah, and reserve Joe Johnson added 17 points. The Jazz have dropped four of five.
Spurs 106, Knicks 98
SAN ANTONIO – Kawhi Leonard scored 29 points, LaMarcus Aldridge added 19 points and 10 rebounds, and San Antonio beat New York.
San Antonio has won four straight heading into home games against Cleveland on Monday and Golden State on Wednesday. The Spurs (56-16) are two games behind the Warriors (58-14) for the league’s best record.
San Antonio ensured there would not be a repeat of its disappointing 94-90 loss in New York on Feb. 12, but not without some tense moments.
Derrick Rose and Willy Hernangomez each scored 24 points and Hernangomez added 13 rebounds. Mindaugas Kuzminskas had 19 points starting in place of Carmelo Anthony, who missed his second straight game with a sore left knee.
Raptors 94, Mavericks 86
DALLAS – DeMar DeRozan and Serge Ibaka scored 18 points apiece and Toronto beat Dallas for its fifth straight victory.
The Raptors, who came back from 15-point deficits to win each of their last two games, made it a little easier on themselves Saturday. Toronto scored the game’s first seven points and never trailed in dealing the Mavericks’ playoff hopes a damaging blow.
Harrison Barnes scored 23 points for Dallas, which missed 18 of its first 22 3-pointers and finished just 7 of 28 from behind the arc.
Patrick Patterson added 14 points for Toronto, including a perfect 4 for 4 on 3-pointers.
The Mavericks fell four games behind Denver for the final playoff spot in the West.
Trail Blazers 112, Timberwolves 100
PORTLAND, Ore. – CJ McCollum scored 32 points and Portland continued its push for the playoffs with a victory over Minnesota.
Damian Lillard added 21 points for the Blazers, who have won 10 of their last 13 games. Portland has seven of its last 10 games at home.
The Blazers pulled within a game of the Denver Nuggets for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Andrew Wiggins had 20 points for Minnesota, which lost its sixth consecutive game overall and seventh straight on the road. The Timberwolves, who trailed by as many as 24 points in the second half, are six games behind Portland in the West.