UNDATED (AP) — The Utah Jazz have come away with the first overall seed in the NBA playoffs by finishing first in the Western Conference.
Jordan Clarkson scored 33 points and the Jazz completed a 52-20 campaign by hammering the Kings, 121-99. Rudy Gobert added 13 points and 16 rebounds for Utah, which needed to win its final two games to hold off Phoenix for the top spot.
Mike Conley had 11 points, nine assists and six rebounds in his second game back after missing two weeks because of a right hamstring injury. Bojan Bogdanovic chipped in 18 points for the Jazz.
Utah finished one game ahead of the Suns and won’t know its first-round opponent until after the play-in tournament.
Checking out other NBA action on the final day of the regular season:
— E’Twaun Moore scored 22 points and made a 3-pointer with 2.2 seconds remaining that lifted the Suns past the Spurs, 123-121. Jevon Carter and Cameron Payne had 19 points each for Phoenix, which also received 54 points its bench. Carter and Payne started in place of Devin Booker and Chris Paul, who were given the day off.
— The Lakers were relegated to the play-in tournament despite earning their fifth straight win, 110-98 over the Pelicans. LeBron James scored 25 points before he appeared to mildly aggravate a right ankle injury. Anthony Davis scored 14 points and Andre Drummond added 13 with 13 rebounds for Los Angeles.
— Damian Lillard delivered 22 points and 10 assists for the Trail Blazers in a 132-116 victory against the Nuggets. CJ McCollum added 24 points, including five 3-pointers. The Blazers secured the sixth seed, which means they’ll face the Nuggets in the opening round.
— The Thunder topped the fourth-seeded Clippers, 117-112 as Rookie Aleksej Pokusevski scored a career-high 29 points for the winners. Josh Hall had never scored more than 10 points in an NBA game before contributing career highs of 25 points and 10 rebounds for Oklahoma City. Moses Brown had a career-best 24 points and grabbed 18 rebounds for the Thunder, who snapped a nine-game losing streak.
— Anthony Edwards scored 30 points in his final audition for NBA Rookie of the Year, leading the Timberwolves to a 136-121 victory over the postseason-bound Mavericks. Karl-Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russell scored 23 points apiece for Minnesota, which set a team record with 113 points through three quarters. Luka Doncic had 18 points, six rebounds and six assists in 21 minutes for the fifth-seeded Mavericks.
— Kevin Durant and the Nets have claimed the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 123-109 win over the Cavaliers. Durant fell two rebounds shy of a triple-double, providing 23 points and 13 assists in the Nets’ fifth straight win. Kyrie Irving had 17 points for the Nets, who rested James Harden after he played the last two games following an 18-game injury absence.
— Thaddeus Young furnished 20 points and Coby White added 19 to lead the Bulls’ 118-112 win over the Bucks. Giannis Antetokounmpo and the rest of the Bucks’ starters sat out the game when the No. 2 seed became out of reach. Bucks rookie Jordan Nwora set career highs with 34 points and 14 rebounds.
— The Knicks have wrapped up the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference with a 99-92 win over the Celtics. Julius Randle capped his All-Star season with 20 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in helping the Knicks finish 41-31. RJ Barrett chipped in 22 points for New York, which is in the postseason for the first time since 2013.
— The Wizards posted a 115-110 win over the Hornets to earn the eighth seed in the East and a play-in matchup against the Celtics. Russell Westbrook posted his 38th triple-double of the season and Bradley Beal scored 20 of his 25 points in the second half for Washington. Westbrook chipped in 23 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists.
— Tyrese Maxey had 30 points, seven rebounds and six assists while the 76ers rested their starters in a 128-117 victory against the Magic. Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, Tobias Harris, Seth Curry and Danny Green stayed on the bench two days after Philadelphia clinched the top see in the East. Maxey picked up the slack by going 11 of 19 from the field, including 3 of 4 from 3-point range.
— Rookie Onyeka Okongwu set career highs with 21 points and 14 rebounds in the Hawks’ 125-95 laugher over the league-worst Rockets. Seven other players scored in double figures to lead Atlanta’s second-biggest win of the season. The Hawks went with a makeshift lineup after being relegated to the fifth seed earlier Sunday.
— Oshae Brissett delivered a career-best 31 points and Domantas Sabonis added 25 points, 16 rebounds and three steals, leading the Pacers to a 125-113 victory against the Pacers. Doug McDermott scored 20 points and hit four 3-pointers, while Caris LaVert added 13 points and six assists. Indiana comes away with the ninth seed in the East and will take on Charlotte in the play-in tournament.
— Stephen Curry became the oldest scoring champion since Michael Jordan in 1998, finishing with 46 points as the Warriors downed the Grizzlies, 113-101. He made 9 of 22 3s and also contributed nine assists and seven rebounds in Golden State’s sixth straight win, a streak that gives the Warriors the eighth seed in the West. The 33-year-old Curry averaged 32 points during his second 2,000-point season.
— Nemanja Bjelica scored 17 of his 21 points in the first half of the Heat’s 120-107 win over the Pistons. Precious Achiuwa scored a career-high 23 points and Max Strus added 20 for Miami, which rested its starters after being tethered to the sixth seed in the East. The loss assured that the Pistons would finish alone with the second-worst record in the league.
