DEMAR DeRozan poured in 23 points and three of his San Antonio teammates scored at least 20 as the Spurs moved a step closer to a spot in the play-in tournament with a 146-125 victory over the visiting Milwaukee Bucks on Monday (Tuesday in Manila) in a game with major playoff implications for both teams.
San Antonio (33-35) has won two of its past three games but just twice in its past eight outings. Despite the uneven results of the past three weeks, the Spurs are a near-lock for the NBA’s play-in tournament for the teams finishing 7-10 in the conference standings at the end of the regular season.
The Spurs’ win combined with New Orleans’ loss to Memphis reduced San Antonio’s magic number for clinching at least the 10th spot to just one game.
Dejounte Murray added 21 points, and Patty Mills and Keldon Johnson hit for 20 points apiece for the Spurs. Rudy Gay and Lonnie Walker IV scored 19 each and Devin Vassell hit for 10 for San Antonio, which shot 59.6 percent from the floor for the game.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks (43-25) with 28 points, with Khris Middleton adding 23, Jrue Holiday scoring 20, Bobby Portis Jr. hitting for 13 and Brook Lopez and Donte DiVincenzo tallying 12 points each.
In other games, it was the Hawks 125, Wizards 124; Warriors 119, Jazz 116; Blazers 140, Rockets 129; Grizzlies 115, Pelicans 110; and Pacers 111, Cavs 102.
Hawks 125, Wizards 124
Washington’s Russell Westbrook got his record-setting 182nd career triple-double, but the Atlanta Hawks came away with a victory over the visiting Wizards.
Westbrook had 28 points, 13 rebounds and 21 assists, his 36th triple-double of the season, passing Oscar Robertson’s career mark. It was his fifth triple-double in a row and his 18th in his past 21 games.
Westbrook sank a basket to get the Wizards within a point with 30.1 seconds left, but he missed a 25-footer with 2.3 seconds that could have won the game. The Wizards played without Bradley Beal (hamstring).
Atlanta rode the trio of Trae Young, John Collins, and Bogdan Bogdanovic to the win. Young scored 36 points and added nine assists, Collins had 28 points and eight rebounds, and Bogdanovic had seven 3-pointers and scored 25 points. Clint Capela added 10 points, 22 rebounds and four blocks.
