BOSTON (AP) - J.R. Smith scored 32 points, Carmelo Anthony added 29 and the New York Knicks extended their winning streak to five games with a 100-85 victory over the Boston Celtics on Tuesday night.
The win moved the Knicks into second place in the Eastern Conference, percentage points ahead of the Indiana Pacers. The Celtics, who could face the Knicks in the first round of the playoffs, lost their fifth game in a row and remained in seventh.
The Celtics, playing their second straight game without Kevin Garnett, were led by Jeff Green with 19 points and Paul Pierce with 16. But they committed 20 turnovers, while the Knicks, who average the fewest turnovers in the NBA, had just eight.
TIMBERWOLVES 105, PISTONS 82
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) - Nikola Pekovic had 18 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota Timberwolves to a rare road win.
The game matched one of the league's worst home teams against one of the worst on the road. The Pistons haven't won at home since before the All-Star break, losing seven straight, while Minnesota had lost 10 of its last 11 road games.
Reserve J.J. Barea matched a season-best with 21 points for Minnesota, while Luke Ridnour scored 15 and Ricky Rubio added 14 points and nine assists.
Greg Monroe had 11 points and 12 rebounds for Detroit, while point guard Jose Calderon scored 14 points but only had one assist.
MAVERICKS 109, CLIPPERS 102
DALLAS (AP) - Dirk Nowitzki scored a season-high 33 points, including the first eight in overtime, and Dallas beat one of the top four teams in the Western Conference for the first time this season.
Chris Paul also had a season-high 33 for the Clippers.
The Mavericks improved to 1-11 against the top four teams in the West and pulled within a game of the Lakers for the final playoff spot.
Nowitzki put Dallas ahead for good at 101-100 on a jumper, and the Clippers went 4 minutes without a field goal in overtime.
The game went to overtime after a wild final 5 seconds in regulation starting with a go-ahead layup by Paul. O.J. Mayo answered when he slipped the ball in from behind the backboard to tie the score at 97-all with 0.6 seconds left.