Celtics 100, Nuggets 99

Down the stretch, Avery Bradley couldn't miss.

Bradley hit a go-ahead 3-pointer and a jumper to help secure the lead in the final 1:24, and Boston hung on to beat Denver on Friday night, sending the Nuggets to their fifth loss in a row.

"He hit two big ones," Celtics coach Brad Stevens said of Avery, who finished with 18 points. "The 3 he hit in the corner was a really tough shot. When he gets that rhythm, step-in shot, he's usually pretty good at it."

The Nuggets played without star guard Ty Lawson, who was away from the team for what the club said were personal reasons following his arrest earlier Friday for allegedly driving under the influence.

Jameer Nelson, acquired from Boston in exchange for Nate Robinson in a trade Jan. 13, had 23 points in his first start for the Nuggets in place of Lawson. But with Tayshaun Prince guarding him tightly, he missed a mid-range jumper at the buzzer that would have beaten his former team.

"Tayshaun is known as a good defender his entire career," Nelson said. "He forced me to take a tough shot. Could I have gotten a better one? Maybe. It was a good look. I got the separation that I needed. I've just got to make the shot, make the play. I felt good. It looked good. You just make some and you miss some. Move on to the next game."

Brandon Bass had 17 points and Jared Sullinger 14 for the Celtics, who won consecutive games for the first time since winning three straight in mid-December. They beat Portland on the front end of their back-to-back set on Thursday on a last-second 3-pointer by Evan Turner.

"It's great from a progress standpoint," Stevens said. "They're both close games, they're one-point games. They both came down to the last shot. As history suggests, this is a difficult game to get on the second of a back-to-back."

Nuggets coach Brian Shaw said the loss notwithstanding, he liked the way his team scrapped.

"I feel like we should have won regardless of all the circumstances surrounding this game, but you can feel better about a loss when you have that effort," Shaw said.

Arron Afflalo added 20 points for Denver, and J.J. Hickson had 15.

Boston trailed by as many as 12 points midway through the third quarter, but fought back to tie it at 67 on a 3-pointer by Marcus Smart. The Celtics led 75-74 going into the fourth quarter on Marcus Thornton's jumper in the lane.

Trailing 86-80, the Nuggets used a 7-0 run — capped by Nelson's 3-pointer — to take an 87-86 lead with 6:24 remaining. The game remained tight in the waning minutes.

Bradley hit a 3-pointer from the corner over Afflalo to put Boston up 98-96 with 1:24 left. Wilson Chandler made one of two free throws for Denver, but Bradley answered by connecting on a jumper.

"I was able to make some shots because my teammates were able to get me open," Bradley said. "We were able to execute. I felt like we were able to get stops at the other end. We forced them to take tough shots and we were able to convert on the other end."

With 14.7 seconds left, Hickson put in a layup to get the Nuggets back within a point. Turner was fouled and missed both free throws, leaving an opening for the Nuggets. But Nelson's last-second jumper, shot under intense defensive pressure, was off the mark.

Knicks 113, Magic 106

The Knicks are suddenly streaking.

Carmelo Anthony scored 25 points and New York won its season-high third straight game with a victory over Orlando.

Jason Smith added a season-best 19 points for the Knicks, who improved to 8-36. Lance Thomas had 16 points, and Langston Galloway 15; both are in the midst of their second 10-day contract.

"I thought they were resilient as a unit out there," coach Derek Fisher said. "Just continued to find ways to stay together on both ends of the floor. We got some timely stops, which is always key in the fourth quarter. No matter what has happened prior to that in a close game, you have to be able to get stops in order to win and they did that tonight."

The three-game streak had Anthony smiling after the game — a rare occurrence for the majority of the season.

"I think it's just effort, energy, attention to details," Anthony said. "I think the guys that have been helping us and contributing to these last couple of games, (those) guys are hungry. They're showing it, they're playing like it. They're having a lot of fun. We're having a lot of fun out there now. I think that comes with putting forth the effort and the energy and being able to see results from there."

Nikola Vucevic led the way for the Magic (15-31) with 34 points and 18 rebounds. Elfrid Payton finished with 11 assists.

"You give up 113 points, I don't care if you'll be at the neighborhood gym, you'll have a hard time winning the game," coach Jacque Vaughn said.

Orlando led 96-94 with 4:01 left after Tobias Harris completed a three-point play, but Galloway gave the Knicksthe lead right back with a 3-pointer.

The Magic reclaimed the advantage on Vucevic's basket, making it 98-97 with 3:31 remaining. But Anthony's driving layup put New York back on top and the Knicks went on a 6-0 run that as capped by Thomas' basket with 1:55 left.

Payton's driving layup got the Magic close, making it a three-point game at 103-100 with 1:47 remaining. But theKnicks then went on a 9-2 run that sealed the victory.

With the win, New York moved out of the NBA cellar. The distinction of the worst team in the league now belongs to the Minnesota Timberwolves (7-35).

Hawks 103, Thunder 93

Paul Millsap scored 22 points, Jeff Teague added 17 and Atlanta eclipsed the franchise record with its 15th straight victory.

Before a raucous sellout crowd, the Hawks won for the 29th time in 31 games to extend their Eastern-best record to 36-8.

As usual, pretty much everyone chipped in.

Four starters were in double figures and backup point guard Dennis Schroder led a spurt at the start of the fourth quarter that helped the Hawks pull away. He finished with 13 points and five assists, igniting the arena with a towering finger roll that dropped gently through the net.

Russell Westbrook led the Thunder with 22 points.

Kyle Korver was the only starter who didn't reach double figures, but even he chipped in with a play that had everyone talking: another dunk in the waning seconds of the first half that sent the Hawks to the locker room with a 48-47 lead.

They never trailed again.

Warriors 126, Kings 101

Klay Thompson scored the most points in a quarter in NBA history, a 37-point third period that powered Golden State to victory.

Thompson, who finished with a career-high 52 points, pleased the announced sellout crowd of 19,596 at rowdy Oracle Arena with a performance that will long be remembered in the basketball-loving Bay Area. The All-Star hopeful made all 13 shots, including a league-record nine from 3-point range, and hit both of his free throws during a 12-minute span.

His streaky shooting touch helped the Warriors (35-6) erase a sloppy showing for its franchise-best 18th consecutive home victory. Golden State became the 10th NBA team to win at least 35 games halfway through a season.

The last player to score at least that many points in a quarter was Carmelo Anthony with 33 in 2008 while with Denver.

Cavaliers 129, Hornets 90

LeBron James scored 25 points and Cleveland put on a dominant performance by routing Charlotte for its fifth straight win.

The Cavaliers, with an artful display of shooting and passing, had the home crowd on its feet throughout the game. Cleveland's 75-40 lead at halftime was its biggest in franchise history and the margin reached 49 points in the fourth quarter.

J.R. Smith scored 21 points on seven 3-pointers, and Kyrie Irving added 18 in Cleveland's biggest win of the season.

Charlotte had won eight of nine, but was no match for the Cavaliers, who have again looked like title contenders since James returned from an eight-game absence with knee and back injuries.

Al Jefferson led Charlotte with 22 points.

Spurs 99, Lakers 85

Tony Parker scored 17 points and San Antonio never trailed in rolling to a victory over a depleted Los Angeles team that potentially has lost Kobe Bryant for the season.

Kawhi Leonard had 15 points and 14 rebounds, Manu Ginobili scored 15 points and Tim Duncan added 14 points for San Antonio.

Nick Young scored 17 points to lead the Lakers, who lost their seventh straight. Rookie point guard Jordan Clarkson, a San Antonio native, had 11 points and four assists in his first career start.

Bryant tore his right rotator cuff Wednesday in New Orleans.

Bulls 102, Mavericks 98

Derrick Rose scored 20 points, Jimmy Butler had 14 of his 20 in the second half and Chicago beat Dallas.

Pau Gasol had 13 points and 16 rebounds, and Joakim Noah added six points and seven boards in his return after missing four games with a sprained right ankle.

Dirk Nowitzki scored 24 points to lead the Mavericks.

Rockets 113, Suns 111

James Harden scored 33 points, including a 20-foot jumper as time ran out, to lift Houston to a victory over Phoenix.

Harden's 33 points came in the absence of injured star center Dwight Howard for three quarters.

Harden, the NBA's leading scorer entering the night at 27.2 points per game, added 10 assists and six rebounds and made 14 of 17 free throw attempts for the Rockets.

Eric Bledsoe had 25 points, eight rebounds and nine assists to lead the Suns,

Pelicans 92, Timberwolves 84

Newly minted All-Star starter Anthony Davis had 21 points and 12 rebounds to help New Orleans avoid what would have been another ugly road loss.

Eric Gordon scored 20 points and the Pelicans (22-21) shot 50 percent from the field to move over .500 for the first time since Jan. 2. Gorgui Dieng had 14 points and 15 rebounds for the Timberwolves (7-35), who have the fewest wins in the league.

Heat 89, Pacers 87

Luol Deng scored 23 points, Chris Bosh added 19 and Miami survived another second-half struggle at home, hanging on to top Indiana.

Dwyane Wade scored 13 for Miami, which led by 20 late in the third quarter before Indiana ripped off an 11-0 run and got right back into the game. Indiana's hope at overtime went awry when C.J. Watson's open 20-footer from the right corner rimmed out at the buzzer.

Luis Scola scored 14 points for the Pacers, who dropped their seventh straight.

Raptors 91, 76ers 86

Kyle Lowry scored 17 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter to lead Toronto to a comeback victory.

Patrick Patterson added 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Raptors, who overcame a nine-point deficit with 5 ½ minutes left.

Robert Covington scored 18 points to lead six 76ers in double-figures. It was the fourth straight loss and sixth in seven games for Philadelphia.