Raptors 125, Timberwolves 102

Pascal Siakam had 12 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high 13 assists for his second career triple-double, Gary Trent Jr. scored 29 points and the Toronto Raptors strengthened their hold on sixth place in the Eastern Conference by beating the Minnesota Timberwolves 125-102 Wednesday night.

Toronto (44-32) moved two games ahead of Cleveland for sixth after the Cavaliers lost to Dallas.

OG Anunoby scored 22 points, Scottie Barnes had 17 and Precious Achiuwa 13 as the Raptors overcame a 17-point second-quarter deficit to complete a 4-0 homestand.

Siakam said he enjoyed dishing out assists.

“Every time down the floor everyone was open,” he said.

Siakam failed to score 20 points for the first time in six games and made only five of 15 field goal attempts. He also had six turnovers.

“He brings a certain amount of attention to him,” Trent said of Siakam. “He did a great job of facilitating, finding everybody tonight and getting guys open shots.

“Great talent, great player,” Trent added. “I’m glad he’s on our team.”

Minnesota coach Chris Finch, formerly a Toronto assistant, called Siakam “super dynamic.”

“He’s playing really, really good basketball and he’s a big reason why they’ve won 10 of 12,” Finch said.

Fred VanVleet scored 12 points and Thad Young had 10 as Toronto matched idle Chicago for the fifth-best record in the conference. The Bulls hold the tiebreaker on the Raptors after winning three of four meetings.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Anthony Edwards scored 24 points as the Timberwolves (43-34) lost for the fourth time in five games and dropped three games behind sixth-place Denver in the Western Conference after the Nuggets beat Indiana. Minnesota visits Denver Friday.

“Things are tough right now,” Finch said. “We’ve got to plow through them.”

Sixth place is the last guaranteed postseason spot, with teams finishing in the Nos. 7-10 spots headed for the play-in tournament.

Minnesota has five games left, while Toronto has six games remaining.

“These games ain’t going to get any easier,” Towns said. “It’s going to get much, much harder.”

Towns had seven shot attempts in the first quarter but only six more the rest of the way.

“The game just didn’t find me,” Towns said.

Finch said the Timberwolves can’t afford to let that happen.

“We’ve got to do a better job of getting him the ball,” he said.

D’Angelo Russell scored 13 points, and Jarred Vanderbilt and Patrick Beverley each had 10 as all five Timberwolves starters reached double figures.

The Raptors trailed 40-23 with 9:42 left in the second quarter but closed the gap with a 19-6 spurt. Toronto shot 8 for 12 from 3-point range in the second, and VanVleet’s buzzer-beating 3 at the end of the half gave Toronto a 62-60 lead.

Trent scored 14 points in the third, connecting on 3 of 4 attempts from distance, as Toronto took a 97-82 lead to the fourth.

Grizzlies 112, Spurs 111

Tyus Jones scored 25 points and Memphis clinched the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, holding on to beat San Antonio.

Memphis never trailed, even as Ja Morant missed his sixth straight game with a knee injury. The Grizzlies improved to 19-2 without Morant this season.

San Antonio closed within a point, at 112-111, on a tip-in by Keldon Johnson with 27.8 seconds remaining. Following a miss by the Grizzlies’ Desmond Bane, Johnson missed a contested layup with 2.7 seconds remaining.

The Spurs dropped a half-game behind the Los Angeles Lakers for 10th in the West and the final berth in the play-in tournament.

Mavericks 120, Cavaliers 112

Luka Doncic scored 35 points, added 13 assists and just missed another triple-double, leading Dallas over Cleveland, which was without star forward Evan Mobley.

Dorian Finney-Smith added a career-high 28 points for Dallas, which entered the game fourth in the Western Conference. With the win and Minnesota’s loss to Toronto, the Mavericks locked up one of the top six playoff spots.

Doncic scored 20 with ease in the third, when the Mavericks took control by outscoring the Cavaliers 39-22.

Caris LeVert had his best game with Cleveland, scoring 32 points. Darius Garland added 25 points and 10 assists for the Cavs, who have dropped four of five and are trying to hang onto a home game in the play-in tournament.

Kings 121, Rockets 118

Davion Mitchell, Damian Jones and Trey Lyles scored 24 points each, and Sacramento outlasted Houston.

It was a wild back-and-forth game where both teams had double-digit leads before staying close in the fourth quarter.

The Kings got the win despite big performances from two of Houston’s young stars. Rookie Jalen Green, the second overall pick in the draft, tied a season high with 32 points, and Kevin Porter Jr. had his first career triple-double with 30 points, 12 assists and a career-high 12 rebounds.

Donte DiVincenzo hit a 3 for Sacramento with about two minutes left and Jones added a layup on the next possession to give Sacramento a 117-113 lead with just more than a minute to go.

Nuggets 125, Pacers 118

Nikola Jokic flirted with another triple-double with 37 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists, helping Denver hold off Indiana.

The Nuggets led by 31 points during the second quarter before the Pacers stormed back. Indiana led 102-100 with 7:40 left in the fourth quarter before the Nuggets scored seven straight points to regain control.

Bones Hyland scored 20 points and Will Barton added 18 for the Nuggets, who shot 62.5% for the game.

Seven of the nine Pacers who played scored in double figures, led by Buddy Hield with 20 points, Terry Taylor with 18 and Goga Bitadze 17. The Pacers shot 45.4% for the game.

Wizards 127, Magic 110

Kristaps Porzingis scored 35 points, and Tomas Satoransky had an unusual double-double — no points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds — as Washington beat Orlando.

Satoransky became the third player to finish a game with no points and at least 10 rebounds and 10 assists, joining Oklahoma City’s Josh Giddey earlier this season and Cincinnati’s Norm Van Lier in 1971.

Satoransky attempted only two shots, but he was part of a solid offensive performance for the Wizards. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 25 points, and Rui Hachimura and Daniel Gafford contributed 17 apiece.

Franz Wagner scored 28 points for the Magic, who lost their fourth straight. Orlando (20-57) came into the game tied with Detroit and Houston for the worst record in the NBA.

Hawks 136, Thunder 118

Trae Young had 41 points and eight assists, and Atlanta rolled past Oklahoma City.

Young, who grew up in Norman and played for University of Oklahoma for one season, put on a show for a crowd that cheered him often. He made 13 of 24 field goals and 11 of 12 free throws in three quarters of action.

Kevin Huerter and Bogdan Bogdanovic each scored 20 points for the Hawks, who won their third straight and strengthened their hold on the No. 10 spot in the Eastern Conference standings. Atlanta is averaging 129.7 points during the win streak.

Lindy Waters III scored a career-high 25 points and made seven 3-pointers for the Thunder. Theo Maledon added 18 points and eight assists.

Pelicans 117, Trail Blazers 107

CJ McCollum received a 90-second standing ovation in his first visit to Portland since a February trade to New Orleans, then scored 25 points in a win.

The Pelicans lead the Los Angeles Lakers by 1 1/2 games for the ninth spot in the Western Conference, which would put them into a play-in postseason game.

Fans hailed McCollum during lineup intros, and he received several more ovations and cheers throughout the night. He egged on fans by scoring 14 points in the first quarter, drawing roars with each basket just like he did for the better part of nine seasons in Portland.

Brandon Ingram and Jonas Valanciunas had 19 points each, and Jaxson Hayes had 18 for the Pelicans. Drew Eubanks led the Blazers with 21 points and nine rebounds.

Suns 107, Warriors 103

Devin Booker’s two free throws with 34.2 seconds left put Phoenix ahead, Draymond Green traveled to turn it over before Chris Paul made a short jumper, and the NBA-best Suns held off Golden State.

Jordan Poole scored a season-best 38 points to match his career high and also contributed nine rebounds and seven assists. He had five free throws over the final 1:20.

Poole drew a loose ball foul on Booker with 39.8 seconds to go and converted two free throws before Booker came through for the Suns (62-14) in their ninth straight victory.

Paul had 15 points and eight assists, Mikal Bridges scored 22 points and Deandre Ayton added 16 points and 16 rebounds for Phoenix.