James’ big game puts Miami back in charge

NBA: LeBron James scored 36 points, and the Miami Heat moved back atop the Eastern Conference standings by running past the visiting Indiana Pacers 98-86 on Friday night.

The Heat scored the first 16 points of the second half and weren’t in trouble again. Miami (54-25) leads the Pacers (54-26) by a half-game in the East race.

Miami has games against Atlanta, Washington and Philadelphia left. Win them all, and the Heat would have home-court advantage through at least the East finals – which went seven games against Indiana last season.

• Spurs lock up best record with win over Suns: Danny Green had a career-high 33 points and the San Antonio Spurs rallied from a 21-point deficit to beat the visiting Phoenix Suns 112-104 and clinch the league’s best record.

Green was 7 for 10 on 3-pointers in pushing San Antonio (62-18) to victory without Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili, who both sat out the second game of a back-to-back for rest.

Eric Bledsoe had 30 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists to lead Phoenix (47-32), which fell into a tie with Memphis for the West’s eighth seed. Gerald Green scored 27 points, Markieff Morris added 20 and Channing Frye had 13.

Stars shut out Blues to reach playoffs for first time since 2008

NHL: Trevor Daley had a goal and an assist, Kari Lehtonen recorded his fifth shutout of the season, and the Dallas Stars clinched their first playoff berth since 2008 with a 3-0 victory against the visiting St. Louis Blues.

The Stars missed the postseason a franchise-record five straight seasons after never going more than one without a playoff trip since moving to Dallas in 1993.

St. Louis, outshot 40-22, dropped its fifth straight game for the first time since February of last year. The playoff-bound Blues also jeopardized their shot at the top seed in the Western Conference.

• Ovechkin’s 51st goal helps add to Washington’s rout of Chicago: Alex Ovechkin scored his NHL-leading 51st goal to help lead the home team Washington Capitals to a low-intensity 4-0 rout of the coasting Chicago Blackhawks in a game between teams whose postseason fates had already been decided.

Jay Beagle had his first career two-goal game, and Nicklas Backstrom also scored as the Capitals won their fourth straight, a hollow winning streak because they won’t be in the playoffs for the first time since 2007.

Jaroslav Halak made 34 saves in his first shutout since the trade deadline deal that brought him to Washington from the St. Louis Blues.

• Shanahan Leafs’ new president: Brendan Shanahan will run the Toronto Maple Leafs after handing out suspensions the last three years.

Shanahan became the team president, leaving his job as NHL director of player safety. He took over the disciplinarian job from Colin Campbell and will be replaced by Stephane Quintal.

• Jackets’ Horton out six weeks: Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Nathan Horton had surgery for an abdominal injury and is expected to be sidelined for six weeks.

Also, Columbus reassigned defenseman Tim Erixon to Springfield of the AHL.

• Smyth to retire after this season: Edmonton Oilers forward Ryan Smyth is retiring at the end of the season.

The 38-year-old Smyth said that the Oilers’ home game tonight against Vancouver will be his last. He has 386 goals and 456 assists in 1,269 regular-season games in 18 NHL seasons with Edmonton, the New York Islanders, Colorado and Los Angeles.

Real Madrid set to play defending champion Bayern in semifinals

Soccer: Real Madrid will play defending champion Bayern Munich in the Champions League semifinals, and Atletico Madrid will face Chelsea.

Madrid and Bayern have combined to win 14 European Cup or Champions League titles. They have also been runner-up eight times, yet never met in the final.

• Juventus plays for chance at home field in finals: Juventus will face Benfica in the Europa League semifinals with a chance to play for the title in its home stadium.

Also, Sevilla will face Valencia in an all-Spanish pairing. Three-time champion Juventus will travel to Portugal for the first match. Sevilla hosts Valencia first.

Former No. 1 high school recruit Green-Beckham kicked off team

Miscellany: Missouri wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham, once heralded as the No. 1 recruit in the nation out of high school, has been kicked off the team.

The move was announced a day after police in Columbia, Mo., said no charges would be filed in a suspected burglary because of reluctant witnesses fearing retaliation.

Green-Beckham led Missouri with 59 receptions as a sophomore last season and scored 12 touchdowns, including a school single-game record of four scores against Kentucky.

• Del Rio given the green light: Alabama transfer quarterback Luke Del Rio has been granted eligibility to play this season for Oregon State.

• UNC athlete literacy findings flawed: Three outside professors hired by the University of North Carolina say research data from a reading specialist doesn’t support claims of low athlete literacy levels at the school.

The university hired professors to review Mary Willingham’s findings.

Willingham told CNN in January that her research of 183 football or basketball players from 2004-12 found 60 percent reading at fourth- to eighth-grade levels and roughly 10 percent below a third-grade level.

• Close Hatches wins Apple Blossom at Oaklawn: Close Hatches won the $600,000 Apple Blossom Handicap for older fillies and mares by 1 1/4 lengths at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark.

• Wise Dan wins Maker’s 46 Mile at Keeneland: Two-time Horse of the Year Wise Dan made a triumphant return to the track in the Grade 1 $300,000 Maker’s 46 Mile at Keeneland in Lexington Ky., beating long-shot Kaigun by three-fourths of a length.