Bulls Beat Toronto, NBA Roundup

TORONTO -- The Chicago Bulls are feeling good about themselves as they head toward the playoffs. Jimmy Butler scored 23 points, Pau Gasol had 18 and the Bulls beat Toronto 116-103 on Wednesday night for their fifth consecutive victory over the Raptors.

Making his second straight start after missing 11 games with a sprained left elbow, Butler was 7 for 8 from the field and 7 for 9 at the free-throw line. The All-Star guard also had five rebounds and three assists.

"The more he plays, that rhythm will come back," Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau said. "He's put a lot of extra work in the last couple of days. Obviously we need him on both sides of the ball."

Tony Snell scored 17 points as the Bulls moved 1 1/2 games ahead of the Raptors for third in the Eastern Conference. Aaron Brooks had 16 points, and Nikola Mirotic finished with 15.

Nets 91, Hornets 88

Brook Lopez was disappointed when he turned the ball over on an inbounds pass with 3.2 seconds left in the game and the Brooklyn Nets up by three.

"It might have looked like I was point shaving, like I made a call to my Uncle Huey in (Las) Vegas," Lopez joked.

So he felt a measure of redemption when he deflected the ensuing inbounds pass from Charlotte's Gerald Henderson, preventing the Hornets from getting off a tying 3-pointer in Brooklyn's 91-88 win Wednesday night.

Clippers 111, Knicks 80

Doc Rivers sat his starters down early, then benched himself after the game. Rivers sent out assistant Mike Woodson to handle the postgame interviews, and the former Knicks coach had plenty to smile about after his new team smashed his old one. DeAndre Jordan raised the NBA's best shooting percentage above 71 percent by making all seven shots and scoring 14 points, and the Los Angeles Clippers pounded New York 111-80 on Wednesday night. Woodson said his boss claimed he was ill, but he downplayed his first trip back to face the team that fired him as a motivator for the Clippers.

Hawks 95, Magic 83

The Atlanta Hawks want to do everything they can over their last dozen games to be as playoff-ready as possible. They started by saying goodbye to their longest losing streak of the season. Paul Millsap had 25 points and 11 rebounds, and the Hawks snapped a three-game losing streak with a 95-83 victory over the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night. Jeff Teague added 16 points, despite spraining his left ankle in the first quarter.

Pacers 103, Wizards 101

George Hill's recent scoring binge had dovetailed with the Indiana Pacers' losing streak. Until Wednesday night. Hill's driving layup with 2.7 seconds left lifted the Pacers over the Washington Wizards 103-101, snapping Indiana's six-game skid. Hill scored 29 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter as Indiana (31-40) rallied from a 10-point deficit. At the end, he assumed the role often filled by the injured Paul George.

Wednesday, March 25 Scoreboard

Brooklyn 91, Charlotte 88

LA Clippers 111, New York 80

Atlanta 95, Orlando 83    Millsap

Indiana 103, Washington 101

Chicago 116, Toronto 103

Miami 93, Boston 86

Cleveland 111, Memphis 89

LA Lakers 101, Minnesota 99 (OT)

Houston 95, New Orleans 93

Philadelphia 99, Denver 85

Portland 92, Utah 89

San Antonio 130, Oklahoma City 91

Sacramento 108, Phoenix 99

Thursday, March 26 Schedule (Time Central)

Indiana at Milwaukee, 7 p.m.