By ASSOCIATED PRESS
CLEVELAND (AP) — Zach LaVine scored 37 points, including 11 in the decisive fourth quarter, and the Sacramento Kings remained in position for a play-in spot with a 120-113 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night, April 6.
DeMar DeRozan scored 28 points and Domantas Sabonis added 27 points and nine rebounds for the Kings, who moved into ninth place in the Western Conference with their second straight victory.
Ty Jerome led Cleveland with 20 points and Donovan Mitchell added 19. Jerome saw his first action since March 25 after he had missed five games due to left knee tendinitis.
The Cavaliers had a three-game winning streak snapped and will have to wait at least one more game to wrap up the top seed in the Eastern Conference. They dropped to 62-16.
Sacramento trailed 106-105 with five minutes remaining before taking control of the game with a 13-5 run.
Kings: DeRozan passed Jerry West (25,192) for 26th on the NBA’s career scoring list with a free throw with 5:03 remaining in the third quarter. DeRozan, who is in his 16th season, has 25,209 points in 1,183 games.
Cavaliers: Mitchell appeared to injure his left ankle early in the second half. He went to the locker room, but returned to the bench and then came back into the game six minutes later.
Meanwhile, Luka Doncic scored 30 points and the Los Angeles Lakers routed the league-leading Oklahoma City Thunder, 126-99.
Austin Reaves scored 20 points and LeBron James added 19 points and seven assists for the Lakers, who have won four of five.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 26 points and Jalen Williams added 16 for the Thunder.
Oklahoma City remained two games ahead of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the race for the league’s best record with five games to play. But instead of closing in on the top seed and homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs, the Thunder lost consecutive games for just the second time this season.
The teams will meet again Tuesday in Oklahoma City.
In San Francisco, Alperen Sengun had 19 points and 14 rebounds, Dillon Brooks scored 24 points and the Houston Rockets snapped the Golden State Warriors’ five-game winning streak with a 106-96 victory in a matchup of Western Conference powers.
Stephen Curry was held to three points on 1-for-10 shooting — missing seven of eight 3-pointers — for his lowest total this season in a game he was healthy. Curry scored two points Dec. 19 at Memphis, but suffered a pelvic contusion in a hard fall.
Jalen Green scored 21 points and Jabari Smith Jr. tested his right ankle sprain before the game and came off the bench to score 16 points for Houston, currently ranked second in the West standings with three games to go.
Buddy Hield had 20 points and Brandin Podziemski 19 points to lead the Warriors.
In Denver, Obi Toppin scored 22 points in his second start of the season and the Indiana Pacers overcame the absence of Pascal Siakam to hand the reeling Nuggets their fourth consecutive loss Sunday, 125-120.
Myles Turner’s 24 points led the Pacers, who overcame a 13-point first-half deficit and an off-night by Tyrese Haliburton, whose nine points on eight shots were less than half his scoring average.
The Nuggets lost their fourth straight despite Nikola Jokic’s 41 points, 15 rebounds and 13 assists and a career-high 30 points from Christian Braun.
