It's a loaded schedule in the NBA on Friday night.
The night began with the Orlando Magic completely blowing out the Atlanta Hawks by scoring 149 total points. Meanwhile, the Charlotte Hornets remained in the playoff hunt with a narrow 113-111 victory over the Toronto Raptors with Jeremy Lamb hitting the game-winning shot versus Toronto yet again.
The San Antonio Spurs also got back on the winning track with a resounding win over the Washington Wizards.
The playoff race heated up in the Eastern Conference when the Boston Celtics took on the Indiana Pacers. Both teams came in tied for the No. 4 seed with less than a week remaining on the regular-season schedule, but the Celtics ran away with the victory to take sole possession of fourth place.
Meanwhile, the Western Conference is also very tight and the Oklahoma City Thunder helped their cause by picking up a win over the Pistons. The Detroit Pistons came in with just a half-game lead over the Brooklyn Nets, Miami Heat and Orlando Magic for the No. 6 seed in the East.
NBA schedule for Friday, April 5
*All times Eastern
Charlotte Hornets 113, Toronto Raptors 111 -- (Box Score)Orlando Magic 149, Atlanta Hawks 113 -- (Box Score)
San Antonio Spurs 129, Washington Wizards 112 -- (Box Score)
Boston Celtics 117, Indiana Pacers 97 (Box Score)Houston Rockets 120, New York Knicks 96 (Box Score)Minnesota Timberwolves 111, Miami Heat 109 (Box Score)Oklahoma City Thunder 123, Detroit Pistons 110 (Box Score)Memphis Grizzlies 122, Dallas Mavericks 112 (Box Score)Utah Jazz 119, Sacramento Kings 98 (Box Score)New Orleans Pelicans at Phoenix Suns, 10 p.m. (GameTracker) -- Watch on fuboTV with NBA League Pass extensionPortland Trail Blazers at Denver Nuggets, 10:30 p.m. (GameTracker) -- TV: ESPNCleveland Cavaliers at Golden State Warriors, 10:30 p.m. (GameTracker) -- Watch on fuboTV with NBA League Pass extensionLos Angeles Lakers at Los Angeles Clippers, 10:30 p.m. (GameTracker) -- Watch on fuboTV with NBA League Pass extension
Magic set team record in blowout win over Hawks
As the Magic defeated the Hawks 149-113, they set a team record for most points in a first half with 81 points. More importantly, they moved a half-game ahead of the Miami Heat for the Southeast Division crown.
Griffin scores 31 points in first half
Blake Griffin is ready to return to the postseason. After missing the playoffs last season for the first time in years, Griffin is leading the Pistons back into the dance with style. Check out his 31 points in the opening half versus the Thunder.
Lamb beats Raptors with buzzer-beating 3-pointer
The Hornets were desperate for a win and Jeremy Lamb delivered for them. With Charlotte trailing 111-110 towards the end of the fourth quarter, Lamb nailed the game-winning 3-pointer to give the home team the win.
Harden goes between-the-legs for dime
James Harden isn't just good for scoring -- he can also throw some highlight assists along the way. Harden pulled off a between-the-legs dime straight to big man Clint Capela.
Crowd erupts following Dirk dunk
Who says that a 40-year-old Dirk Nowitzki can't dunk? As the Dallas Mavericks started out their game versus the Memphis Grizzlies, the league's second-oldest player made the crowd erupt with this two-handed stuff.
