LOS ANGELES, April 10, 2018 (News agencies) - Having clinched a playoff berth, Anthony Davis and the New Orleans Pelicans are looking ahead. They are one of five teams in the mix for the No. 4 seed in the wild West, and a win against the Spurs in their regular season finale would give the Pelicans home-court advantage. "We know we're not done," Davis said after scoring 28 points in a 113-100 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. "It wasn't just our goal to get here, but to make some noise." Nikola Mirotic had 24 points and 16 rebounds in the Pelicans' fourth straight victory. They'll be making just their second playoff appearance in seven years, having earned it without big man DeMarcus Cousins, who sustained a season-ending Achilles injury on Jan. 28. The Pelicans proceeded to lose four of five before winning 10 in a row. "When he went down, everybody on the team just picked it up," Davis said. Sindarius Thornwell scored 20 points off the bench, DeAndre Jordan had 15 rebounds and Montrezl Harrell added 15 points for the Clippers, who have lost three in a row while being eliminated from playoff contention. The Pelicans shot 51 percent from the field and 56 percent from 3-point range in the first half. The Clippers fought back from an 11-point deficit to lead 47-45 before New Orleans closed on a 13-2 run to lead 59-49 at the break. The Pelicans were just getting rolling. Their scoring binge continued into the third, and when it was over - a 33-6 spurt over both halves - they led 79-53. Davis had nine points, Mirotic eight and E'Twaun Moore seven. "Anthony has taken this team and put it on his back," Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said. "If we could have had a better record his name would definitely be in the MVP conversation." Davis stirred the crowd with an off the glass pass from Rajon Rondo that resulted in a one-handed alley-oop dunk in the run. "That was exciting," teammate Jrue Holiday said. "I'd rather him do that in the playoffs than now." Thornwell got a roar for a jam over DeAndre Liggins in the game's final minutes. Cavaliers defeat Knicks Kevin Love had 28 points and LeBron James added 26 points, 11 assists and six rebounds to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 123-109 win over the host New York Knicks last night at Madison Square Garden. Michael Beasley had 20 points to lead the Knicks, who lost for the sixth time in seven games to fall to 28-53 on the season with one game left on their schedule. New York trimmed a 15-point deficit down to five midway through the fourth quarter before Love and James combined for 12 points down the stretch for Cleveland, which won for the 11th time in 13 games. JR Smith and Jordan Clarkson each added 16 points and Larry Nance Jr. had 10 points off the bench for the Cavaliers (50-31). Love sank six 3-pointers and both Smith and Clarkson had four apiece for Cleveland, which moved within a half-game of the idle Philadelphia 76ers for the third spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Sixers have two games left while the Cavs have one. Frank Ntilikina had 17 points, six rebounds and five assists and Courtney Lee added 17 points off the bench for the Knicks, who shot 53 percent. Lance Thomas had 14 points and Trey Burke added 12 points for New York. The Cavaliers broke the game open in the second quarter after leading 26-25 through one, following a Smith 3-pointer with 25.3 seconds left off an assist from James. Cleveland went on a 13-4 run to open the second, increasing its lead to double figures. New York trimmed the margin to as few as four points before the Cavaliers stretched it to a dozen late in the first half before taking a 61-49 lead into halftime. Love had 15 oints in the first half on 5-for-9 shooting and James added 14 points. Smith also had 14 first-half points for Cleveland, which shot 47 percent from the field but 11-for-24 from 3-point range in the first half. Ntilikina had 13 points in the first half on 6-for-11 shooting and Beasley added 12 to lead the Knicks, who shot 50 percent in the first half. Overall, Cleveland shot 47.1 per cent from the floor, but the Cavs had a 24-6 edge in free-throw scoring. Thunder overcomes Heat Paul George scored 27 points and Russell Westbrook bagged a triple-double as the Oklahoma City Thunder overcame an 18-point deficit to clinch a playoff berth with a 115-93 victory over the Miami Heat. Westbrook finished with 23 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists in a dynamic performance which assured the Thunder of a postseason berth and kept them in the hunt for home-court advantage in the first round. The Thunder improved to 47-34 with the win, leaving them level on wins in the Western Conference standings with fourth-placed Utah, who have played a game fewer. George and Westbrook were backed by Carmelo Anthony, who finished with 11 points, while Jerami Grant contributed 17 off the bench as the Thunder overcame a determined Miami side. Josh Richardson led the scoring for the Heat with 18 points while Hassan Whiteside had 16. The defeat saw Miami slide back to seventh place in the Eastern Conference, a half-game ahead of Washington. George said the Thunder would now aim to finish with a win in front of their home fans on Wednesday, when they host the Memphis Grizzlies. "It feels great. We've got one more to go, we're heading in the right direction," George said. "It's what we wanted. We wanted to come off the road trip 2 & 0 and we did that. We've got one more to close it up at home and get ready for these playoffs." Spurs streak continues The Thunder were joined in the playoffs by the San Antonio Spurs, who sealed their 21st consecutive appearance in the postseason with a 98-85 win over the Sacramento Kings. The Spurs advanced after strong performances off the bench, with Manu Ginobili chipping in with 17 points and Rudy Gay 18 points. It remains to be seen where San Antonio will start in the playoffs however, with the Spurs one of four teams locked on 47 wins heading into the final rounds of the regular season. New Orleans were the other team to clinch on Monday, with the Pelicans trouncing the Los Angeles Clippers 113-100 at the Staples Center on the back of a 28-point display from Anthony Davis.
