INDIANAPOLIS (AP) The Indiana Pacers approached Monday night’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves as though they were facing the Chicago Bulls or the Miami Heat.

The Pacers rolled to a 25-point lead in the first 9 minutes and beat the Timberwolves 111-88 for their fifth consecutive win.

This young team is starting to get it.

”We came out with the killer instinct tonight,” Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. ”That set the tone for us. That’s what we want to go into the playoffs with.”

David West had 22 points and 10 rebounds, Danny Granger scored 19 points, Paul George had 18 and Roy Hibbert added 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Pacers, who solidified their grip on the No. 3 position in the Eastern Conference standings.

Indiana has won eight of nine games, but none of the other wins started this well. The Pacers generally have been stronger in the second half than in the first, but this time, they did the right things from the opening tip.

”I think the biggest thing is that we continue to build good habits,” West said. ”We’re coming out and trying to make the right play every single time. I think that’s imperative for us. We continue the momentum we’re starting to build and hopefully, we’ll be playing some of our best ball a week-and-a-half from now.”

Indiana scored at least 100 points for the 10th time in 11 games.

”We’ve been trusting the pass,” George said. ”Everybody’s been willing to share the ball, and we’ve been moving.”

Jose Barea had 14 points and nine assists and reserves Michael Beasley and Derrick Williams added 13 points each for Minnesota, which lost its 10th in a row. Kevin Love, one of the league’s top scorers and rebounders, sat out for the third consecutive game with a mild concussion and a neck strain.

Minnesota coach Rick Adelman said Love’s injury was no excuse.

”You have to come out and compete, and we didn’t compete,” he said. ”It’s a glaring problem. We know we have injuries, but we’re better than that.”

The Pacers rolled to a 22-4 lead as Minnesota missed 10 of its first 11 shots.

”They came out with a lot of energy,” Minnesota forward Anthony Randolph said. ”They are getting ready for playoff basketball. It was just a tough loss.”

Indiana made three consecutive 3-pointers to take a 55-23 lead in the second quarter. Later in the period, Indiana got six offensive rebounds on one possession before an emphatic right-handed putback dunk by George Hill put the Pacers up 59-27.

The Pacers led 64-30 at halftime as Indiana made 8 of 14 3-pointers and outrebounded Minnesota 33-23. Minnesota shot just 27.5 percent in posting its lowest-scoring half of the season.

”It’s inexcusable to play the way we did in the first half,” Adelman said. ”They were tougher than we were. It’s as simple as that. They’re going to be physical and come at us, and we have to be ready to play.”

Indiana maintained its lead in the third quarter behind 12 points from West. The Pacers shot 50 percent in the third quarter in taking a 93-63 lead.

A flurry by Minnesota cut Indiana’s lead to 95-77 with 6:54 remaining, causing Vogel to call a timeout. The Pacers made just one of their first nine shots in the fourth quarter. The Timberwolves cut Indiana’s lead to 14 points before a 3-pointer by A.J. Price pushed the Pacers’ lead to 98-81 and helped the increasingly restless crowd relax.

Even with the shaky fourth quarter, West liked what he saw.

”This is the time of year where you’ve got to be coming together,” he said. ”We’re fine-tuning some things we want to do offensively. Obviously, trying to be a collective unit defensively. And then, just play with a certain level of aggression, especially when you’re dealing with teams that don’t have anything to play for this time of year, like the Timberwolves.”

The Pacers are 2 1/2 games ahead of Orlando and Atlanta for third place with five games remaining. A top three seed would give Indiana homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

”Everything we do is geared toward winning in the playoffs,” Vogel said. ”And the first step is getting homecourt advantage.”

Notes: Former Pacers C Brad Miller entered the game in the first quarter for the Timberwolves and got a loud cheer. … Indiana Mr. Basketball Gary Harris attended the game. He will play at Michigan State. … Indiana PG Darren Collison played after missing the past four games with a sore groin. He went scoreless and committed three fouls in 19 minutes as a reserve. … Minnesota shot 22.7 percent in the first quarter. … Granger scored at least 18 points for the 12th straight game. … It was West’s second game this season with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds. … Minnesota has allowed at least 111 points in six of the 10 losses.

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Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/cliffbruntap

Timberwolves-Nuggets Preview

By NOEY KUPCHAN

STATS Writer

(AP) — The scuffling Minnesota Timberwolves’ postseason hopes appear to have all but faded.

Visiting the Denver Nuggets doesn’t seem likely to help their cause.

Hoping to snap its season-worst losing streak, Minnesota tries to avoid a 10th defeat in 11 trips to Denver on Wednesday night.

The deflated Timberwolves (25-33) looked like contenders a little over a month ago but have since dropped 14 of 18 and into 12th place in the West. They’ve been outscored by an average of 13.0 points during a six-game skid – their longest since closing the 2010-11 schedule with 15 consecutive defeats.

“We just need to go down swinging, have fun with the game, live in the present,” said Kevin Love, who had 25 points and 13 rebounds during Monday’s 114-90 loss to Phoenix. “We can’t go out like this … It’s hard to be out there and see that there’s no energy.”

Minnesota gave up a season-high point total for regulation and allowed the Suns to shoot 57.3 percent – the highest mark it’s surrendered since December 2010. The Timberwolves have allowed an average of 109.0 points in five games this month.

“(Defense) has to be on all the time, 48 minutes,” Martell Webster told the team’s official website. “We showed spurts of it, but that will never win you games, that will never get you into the postseason.”

The Timberwolves remain a handful of games out of the playoff picture with just eight to go, and coach Rick Adelman is hoping his team isn’t headed for another disastrous finish.

“I just told them, ‘How do you want to finish the season? Every team we play is playing for something. We’ve got to respond,” Adelman said.

“We have to find it. The coaches, the players, everybody. The season’s not over, and we have to understand that.”

Getting back on track at the Pepsi Center could prove difficult. Minnesota has lost four straight and nine of 10 at Denver (31-26), including a 103-101 overtime defeat Feb. 20. The Nuggets are 10-5 at home over the past two months, with only one loss coming to a sub-.500 team.

The Timberwolves, though, took the most recent matchup 117-100 on March 25 behind 30 points and 21 boards from Love.

Leading the league with 48 double-doubles, Love could be in for a battle down low with Nuggets rookie Kenneth Faried. The 22nd overall pick out of Morehead State posted season highs of 27 points and 17 rebounds Monday as Denver defeated visiting Golden State 123-84 to split a home-and-home set with the Warriors.

“All I know is, he was the guy with the biggest motor,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson told the Nuggets’ official website. “He was probably on a different level than anyone on the floor and he set the tone.”

The Nuggets also received a boost from Danilo Gallinari, who scored 15 points to go along with six assists and five rebounds in his first game after missing 10 with a broken left thumb.

“Coming back this way was very important for us,” Gallinari said. “It builds confidence. We know all these games are very important. We have four home games (remaining). … If we get all of them, we have a really good chance to stay in a good position in the playoffs.”

Winner of three in a row at home, Denver is one of five teams within 2 1/2 games of each other battling for the final three playoff seeds in the West.

Updated April 10, 2012

The scuffling Minnesota Timberwolves‘ postseason hopes appear to have all but faded.

Visiting the Denver Nuggets doesn’t seem likely to help their cause.

Hoping to snap its season-worst losing streak, Minnesota tries to avoid a 10th defeat in 11 trips to Denver on Wednesday night.

The deflated Timberwolves (25-33) looked like contenders a little over a month ago but have since dropped 14 of 18 and into 12th place in the West. They’ve been outscored by an average of 13.0 points during a six-game skid – their longest since closing the 2010-11 schedule with 15 consecutive defeats.

“We just need to go down swinging, have fun with the game, live in the present,” said Kevin Love, who had 25 points and 13 rebounds during Monday’s 114-90 loss to Phoenix. “We can’t go out like this … It’s hard to be out there and see that there’s no energy.”

Minnesota gave up a season-high point total for regulation and allowed the Suns to shoot 57.3 percent – the highest mark it’s surrendered since December 2010. The Timberwolves have allowed an average of 109.0 points in five games this month.

“(Defense) has to be on all the time, 48 minutes,” Martell Webster told the team’s official website. “We showed spurts of it, but that will never win you games, that will never get you into the postseason.”

The Timberwolves remain a handful of games out of the playoff picture with just eight to go, and coach Rick Adelman is hoping his team isn’t headed for another disastrous finish.

“I just told them, ‘How do you want to finish the season? Every team we play is playing for something. We’ve got to respond,” Adelman said.

“We have to find it. The coaches, the players, everybody. The season’s not over, and we have to understand that.”

Getting back on track at the Pepsi Center could prove difficult. Minnesota has lost four straight and nine of 10 at Denver (31-26), including a 103-101 overtime defeat Feb. 20. The Nuggets are 10-5 at home over the past two months, with only one loss coming to a sub-.500 team.

The Timberwolves, though, took the most recent matchup 117-100 on March 25 behind 30 points and 21 boards from Love.

Leading the league with 48 double-doubles, Love could be in for a battle down low with Nuggets rookie Kenneth Faried. The 22nd overall pick out of Morehead State posted season highs of 27 points and 17 rebounds Monday as Denver defeated visiting Golden State 123-84 to split a home-and-home set with the Warriors.

“All I know is, he was the guy with the biggest motor,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson told the Nuggets’ official website. “He was probably on a different level than anyone on the floor and he set the tone.”

The Nuggets also received a boost from Danilo Gallinari, who scored 15 points to go along with six assists and five rebounds in his first game after missing 10 with a broken left thumb.

“Coming back this way was very important for us,” Gallinari said. “It builds confidence. We know all these games are very important. We have four home games (remaining). … If we get all of them, we have a really good chance to stay in a good position in the playoffs.”

Winner of three in a row at home, Denver is one of five teams within 2 1/2 games of each other battling for the final three playoff seeds in the West.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP)

Kevin Love won’t let the Minnesota Timberwolves go down without a fight.

The Denver Nuggets could use a little of the same punch right now.

Love followed up his 51-point game with 30 points and 21 rebounds to lead the Timberwolves to a 117-100 victory over the Nuggets on Sunday.

”We used to call him kind of a poor man’s Larry Bird,” Denver coach George Karl said. ”I think you can take `poor man’s’ off that comparison now. His ability to rebound is incredible and his offensive tools and skills are growing.”

Luke Ridnour had 25 points and six assists, and Wayne Ellington added 17 points for the Timberwolves, who are trying to stay relevant in the Western Conference playoff race.

The Wolves entered the game 3 1/2 games behind Denver for the eighth spot.

”You see all these teams ahead of us,” coach Rick Adelman said. ”Teams get a nice margin when they go out and win three or four in a row. That’s what we have to do.”

JaVale McGee had 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Nuggets.

Denver trailed by 28 points in the first half and lost its second straight game. The Nuggets played without starting shooting guard Arron Afflalo, who was suspended for throwing an elbow at Jazz forward Gordon Hayward’s head on Friday night.

Kenneth Faried had 17 points and Andrew Miller added 14 for Denver.

”We can’t put it in cruise control anymore,” Karl said.

Love is in overdrive after scoring 51 points and grabbing 14 rebounds in a double-overtime loss at Oklahoma City on Friday night.

Minnesota has struggled since point guard Ricky Rubio was lost for the season March 9 to a torn ACL in his left knee. They were in position to make the playoffs, sitting eighth in the West, when they played the Los Angeles Lakers that night, but have since gone 3-6 to fall to 11th in the conference.

To show how important this game was for the Wolves, they never led by fewer than 16 points in the second half, but Love did not sit until 2:40 was left to play.

”I worry about him all the time because he plays so many minutes,” Adelman said. ”He seems to get through it pretty good.”

Love had his seventh career 30-20 game, which leads all active players. At 23 years old, he already has done that more times than Tim Duncan (six), Kevin Garnett (five) and Dirk Nowitzki (two).

It was also his ninth this season with at least 30 points and 15 boards. Atlanta’s Josh Smith is the only other player in the league who has done it more than once this season. Smith has done it twice.

”Just another night for him,” said Wolves forward Anthony Tolliver, who had 10 points and six boards.

Nikola Pekovic missed his third straight game with bone spurs in his right ankle. Guard JJ Barea also missed the game with a bruised right thigh.

The Nuggets have basically been treading water for most of March, trying to get new faces Wilson Chandler and McGee up to speed.

They are 2-6 in their last eight road games and are two games into a seven-game road trip that could decide their season. They entered the game eighth in the West, a half-game ahead of Houston and 1 1/2 ahead of Phoenix.

”We might not be in the place where we’re going to play well all the time,” said Karl, whose team has given up 117.3 points per game over the last three. ”But if we fight the right way, we’ll find ways to get wins.”

The game got off to a sluggish start. Problems with the shot clock caused three delays in the first five minutes and led to a 40-minute first quarter.

The Nuggets had far more difficulty making the adjustment than the Wolves did. They outscored Denver 39-9 in a 12-minute bridge of the first and second quarters to blow the doors open.

Playing with a gimpy groin, Ridnour hit all seven of his shots in the first half, the last a 3-pointer from the corner that gave Minnesota a 68-41 lead just before halftime.

”This giving up 115 points a game the last three or four has got to stop,” Denver point guard Ty Lawson said.

NOTES: The Wolves had 20,023 fans in attendance, the first time in franchise history they’ve drawn a crowd of more than 20,000 in three straight games. … Timberwolves rookie Malcolm Lee scored the first points of his career on a driving runner in the second quarter. Lee missed most of the first two months of the season with a knee injury. … The Nuggets outscored Minnesota 29-2 in fast-break points and 64-38 in points in the paint.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) Kevin Love won’t let the Minnesota Timberwolves go down without a fight.

The Denver Nuggets could use a little of the same punch right now.

Love followed up his 51-point game with 30 points and 21 rebounds to lead the Timberwolves to a 117-100 victory over the Nuggets on Sunday.

”I think we used to call him kind of a poor man’s Larry Bird,” Denver coach George Karl said. ”I think you can take ‘poor man’s’ off that comparison now. His ability to rebound is incredible and his offensive tools and skills are growing.”

Luke Ridnour had 25 points and six assists, and Wayne Ellington added 17 points for the Timberwolves, who are trying to stay relevant in the Western Conference playoff race.

The Wolves entered the game 3 1/2 games behind Denver for the eighth spot.

”You see all these teams ahead of us,” coach Rick Adelman said. ”Teams get a nice margin when they go out and win three or four in a row. That’s what we have to do.”

JaVale McGee had 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Nuggets.

Denver trailed by 28 points in the first half and lost its second straight game. The Nuggets played without starting shooting guard Arron Afflalo, who was suspended for throwing an elbow at Jazz forward Gordon Hayward’s head on Friday night.

Kenneth Faried had 17 points and Andrew Miller added 14 for Denver.

”We can’t put it in cruise control anymore,” Karl said.

Love is in overdrive after scoring 51 points and grabbing 14 rebounds in a double-overtime loss at Oklahoma City on Friday night.

Minnesota has struggled since point guard Ricky Rubio was lost for the season March 9 to a torn ACL in his left knee. They were in position to make the playoffs – sitting eighth in the West – when they played the Los Angeles Lakers that night, but have since gone 3-6 to fall to 11th in the conference.

To show how important this game was for the Wolves, they never led by fewer than 16 points in the second half, but Love did not sit until 2:40 was left to play.

”I worry about him all the time because he plays so many minutes,” Adelman said. ”He seems to get through it pretty good.”

Love had his seventh career 30-20 game, which leads all active players. At 23 years old, he already has done that more times than Tim Duncan (six), Kevin Garnett (five) and Dirk Nowitzki (two).

It was also his ninth this season with at least 30 points and 15 boards. Atlanta’s Josh Smith is the only other player in the league who has done it more than once this season. Smith has done it twice.

”Just another night for him,” said Wolves forward Anthony Tolliver, who had 10 points and six boards.

Nikola Pekovic missed his third straight game with bone spurs in his right ankle. Guard JJ Barea also missed the game with a bruised right thigh.

The Nuggets have basically been treading water for most of March, trying to get new faces Wilson Chandler and McGee up to speed.

They are 2-6 in their last eight road games and are two games into a seven-game road trip that could decide their season. They entered the game eighth in the West, a half-game ahead of Houston and 1 1/2 ahead of Phoenix.

”We might not be in the place where we’re going to play well all the time,” said Karl, whose team has given up 117.3 points per game over the last three. ”But if we fight the right way, we’ll find ways to get wins.”

The game got off to a sluggish start. Problems with the shot clock caused three delays in the first five minutes and led to a 40-minute first quarter.

The Nuggets had far more difficulty making the adjustment than the Wolves did. They outscored Denver 39-9 in a 12-minute bridge of the first and second quarters to blow the doors open.

Playing with a gimpy groin, Ridnour hit all seven of his shots in the first half, the last a 3-pointer from the corner that gave Minnesota a 68-41 lead just before halftime.

”This giving up 115 points a game the last three or four has got to stop,” Denver point guard Ty Lawson said.

NOTES: The Wolves had 20,023 fans in attendance, the first time in franchise history they’ve drawn a crowd of more than 20,000 in three straight games. … Timberwolves rookie Malcolm Lee scored the first points of his career on a driving runner in the second quarter. Lee missed most of the first two months of the season with a knee injury. … The Nuggets outscored Minnesota 29-2 in fast-break points and 64-38 in points in the paint.

After dominating the series with the Minnesota Timberwolves for the last five years, the San Antonio Spurs have dropped this season’s first two matchups.

Their final meeting Wednesday night, however, seems like it could shape up differently.

This time, the Spurs have Manu Ginobili, the Timberwolves are without Ricky Rubio and the setting is the AT&T Center, where San Antonio has won the last 14 meetings.

The Southwest Division-leading Spurs (29-14) lost 106-96 to Minnesota on Jan. 2, snapping a 16-game winning streak in the series. Kevin Love had 24 points and 15 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who hadn’t defeated San Antonio since Jan. 3, 2007, and the Spurs were dealt a major blow as Ginobili broke his left hand.

Ginobili missed the next 22 games, including an 87-79 loss in Minnesota on Jan. 27. Love had 18 points and 16 rebounds, Rubio scored nine of his 18 in the fourth quarter and the Timberwolves finished the game on an 8-0 run.

San Antonio is 17-6 since and has moved into second place in the Western Conference. Minnesota (23-24) is on the outside of the playoff picture, and its postseason aspirations took a major hit when Rubio suffered a season-ending ACL tear two weeks ago.

The veteran Spurs should be well rested for this matchup having been off since Saturday’s 106-99 loss to Dallas. Tim Duncan and Danny Green scored 17 apiece while Tony Parker had 13 points and 11 assists for San Antonio, which lost for the first time in four games.

The time off should certainly benefit Ginobili, who had nine points on 3-of-11 shooting against the Mavericks after sitting out Friday’s 114-105 road win over West-leading Oklahoma City with a hip flexor injury. He had averaged 13.8 points on 57.1 percent shooting – 59.1 from 3-point range – and 5.4 assists in his previous five games.

“The hip is much better,” Ginobili said. “Not the best I’ve ever felt, but much better than last week. So that has me optimistic.”

A home game against the Timberwolves could have the Spurs feeling confident as they try to avoid losing two in a row for the first time since falling to Minnesota and Dallas at the end of January.

San Antonio has won 14 straight at home over the Timberwolves since a 100-93 loss Jan. 14, 2004. That’s tied for the fourth-longest active home winning streak over one team.

Minnesota arrives in San Antonio for the sixth stop of a seven-game trip after beating Golden State 97-93 on Tuesday. Love finished with 36 points and 17 rebounds for his league-leading 39th double-double as the Timberwolves won for the second time in seven games.

Love averages team highs of 25.9 points and 13.7 rebounds, and Minnesota has won six of the last seven times he’s reached the 30-point mark.

“When we have Kevin Love with 36 and 17, it’s really hard to beat us,” said forward Derrick Williams, who went 2 of 9 from the floor but had 11 rebounds Tuesday. “We had to get this one.”

The Timberwolves are trying to win three in a row over the Spurs for the first time since sweeping the four-game season series in 1996-97.

Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio‘s season for the Minnesota Timberwolves is over and he will likely miss the London Olympics after suffering a torn left knee ligament, according to the NBA club.

The 21-year-old rookie standout suffered the torn anterior-cruciate ligament on Friday in a 105-102 home loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, the T-Wolves’ 18th loss in a row to the Lakers.

With recovery time from such injuries typically six to nine months, the injury almost certainly dooms his hopes of playing for Spain in July at the London Olympics, a major setback for a strong Spanish side filled with NBA talent.

There was more potential bad news for Spain later Saturday, when Spanish international and Toronto Raptors guard Jose Calderon had to be helped off the court with a sprained right ankle in a loss at Detroit.

The Raptors said X-rays on Calderon’s ankle were negative but it was unclear if he would play Sunday against Milwaukee.

Calderon and Rubio shared the point guard duties at the European championships last summer. And before his own game — and injury — Calderon was holding out hope that Rubio would recover in time for the Olympics.

“We don’t know what is going to happen. We don’t know how long he is going to be out,” Calderon said. “It’s tough news for us. It’s family. It’s not the time to talk about who will be there in his place. We’ll see what happens in June or July.”

Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman said he knew Rubio would do whatever he could to speed his recovery.

“I feel for him with the summer coming up,” Adelman said. “If anybody can do everything he can do to get back where he was, he will.”

Rubio moved to help defend Lakers star Kobe Bryant in the final seconds and the Spaniard’s left knee buckled just before he and Bryant collided. Rubio was called for a foul and Bryant sank game-winning free throws.

Rubio was helped into the locker room by teammates and walked out of the arena with the help of a friend, taking with him much of the energy that had given Timberwolves fans hopes of reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

“He does so many things for us,” Adelman said. “He gives us a lot of intangibles.”

Rubio was averaging 10.6 points, 8.2 assists and 4.2 rebounds a game for Minnesota.

At 21-20, the T-Wolves rank ninth in the Western Conference, one loss behind Houston for the eighth and final playoff berth in the West.

Minnesota fans waited for Rubio for years after he was drafted as a teen prodigy but opted to stay in Spain and hone his talents. He became the youngest Spanish league player in history at age 14.

Now the Timberwolves must consider making a deal before Tuesday’s trade deadline to help them the rest of the way this season.

“We haven’t even sat down and talked about it,” Adelman said. “It’s still kind of a shock for everybody.”

Another game won, another All-Star power forward dominated, Kevin Love stepped to the postgame television interview and delivered a bold statement.

“This is my time right now,” Love proclaimed.

Love had 39 points and 17 rebounds to carry the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 95-94 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday in Minneapolis.

Love, an All-Star, 3-point shootout champion and perhaps budding MVP candidate, practically willed the Timberwolves over the .500 mark at 20-19.

He hit a jumper in Kenyon Martin’s face with 1:28 to play, then added what proved to be the winner by bulling to the basket for a little flip shot that has become one of his staples.

Love went 8 for 11 at the line

and 5 for 10 from 3-point range and scored nine points on 4-for-6 shooting with four rebounds in the fourth. The versatility and shot-making set him apart from Clippers star Blake Griffin, who had a good game of his own.

Griffin had 26 points and 12 rebounds, but he scored only four in the final period. He took only two shots in the period, went 0 for 4 at the line and picked up a costly technical foul when he jawed at referee Ken Mauer after pulling Luke Ridnour to the floor in one of the game’s many collisions near the basket.

“I think there was a lot of frustration,” Griffin said. “We have to do a better job of not letting that affect us. You don’t want to say that one particular thing won or lost the game, but it very well

could’ve been. I have to do a better job controlling my emotions.”

Thunder 95, Mavericks 91: Russell Westbrook scored 24 points and Kevin Durant added 22, and Oklahoma City scored the final eight points to defeat Dallas and run its home winning streak to 13 games.

Durant, Westbrook and top reserve James Harden went a combined 16 for 49 from the field as Oklahoma City managed to win without needing to make a basket in the final two minutes.

“The

thing is with us, we’ve just got to continue to just keep playing hard no matter if we’re making shots or not, and playing together on both ends,” Durant said. “It was a sloppy game, but I’m glad we came out on top.”

Westbrook answered Dirk Nowitzki’s fourth 3-pointer of the final period by hitting one of his own from the right wing to get Oklahoma City within 91-90 with 2:25 remaining, and Dallas didn’t score again.

Serge Ibaka hit two free throws with 46 seconds left to give Oklahoma City the lead for good.

Bulls 92, Pacers 72: Luol Deng scored 20 points, teaming with Derrick Rose in a decisive third-quarter rally that sent host Chicago past Indiana for its seventh consecutive victory.

Rose added 13 points and nine assists, making three 3-pointers while Deng had two in the third as the Bulls blew open a close game.

Bucks 97, 76ers 93: Beno Udrih hit a go-ahead jumper with just under a minute left, and host Milwaukee held off a late comeback to beat Philadelphia.

Brandon Jennings had 33 points and Drew Gooden added 25 points and 10 rebounds for the Bucks, who have been stuck in a funk for a little more than a month.

Nuggets 119, Kings 116: Arron Afflalo hit three free throws with 0.6 seconds left in regulation and Ty Lawson made a 3-pointer with four seconds remaining in overtime as host Denver rallied to beat Sacramento.