NBA: Two of the top teams in the Western Conference share the court tonight when the Los Angeles Lakers host the San Antonio Spurs. The Lakers are trying to hold on to the No. 2 spot in the West. They entered Monday’s games tied with Dallas and one game ahead of Oklahoma City. The Spurs have clinched the top seed in the West and hold a one-game lead over Chicago for the best record in the league. 10:30 p.m., TNT

Today’s Highlights		TV	Radio
Pro baseball
7 p.m.	Florida at Atlanta	FoxSN
7 p.m.	Tampa Bay at Boston	MLBN
7 p.m.	Minor league, Myrtle Beach at Frederick		93.9-FM
10 p.m.	Los Angeles Dodgers at San Francisco	MLBN
Pro basketball
8 p.m.	Chicago at New York	TNT
10:30 p.m.	San Antonio at Los Angeles Lakers	TNT
Pro hockey
8 p.m.	NHL Draft Lottery	VERSUS
Soccer
2:30 p.m.	UEFA Champions League, quarterfinals, Barcelona at Shakhtar Donetsk	FoxSN
8 p.m.	UEFA Champions League, quarterfinals, Chelsea at Manchester United (same-day tape)	FoxSN

SAN ANTONIO — Richard Jefferson said the San Antonio Spurs want to finish with the NBA’s best record. Then someone told him how many more victories it could take to assure that.

“We got to win two more?” Jefferson said.

They’ll try, but the Spurs have other priorities.

Jefferson scored 20 points and the Spurs, mindful of the playoffs starting next weekend, won their fourth in a row while starting to rest some players in a 111-102 win over the Utah Jazz on Saturday night.

San Antonio (61-19) has already locked up the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, and, with two games left, are 1 ½ games ahead of Chicago for the NBA’s best record. Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker all started and played more than 20 minutes while Antonio McDyess got the night off.

Coach Gregg Popovich said he’s “certainly not going to overplay anybody” with the playoffs starting next week but also doesn’t want to fall out of rhythm..

“We’ve played this well all season long we’d love to finish out atop the NBA,” said Duncan, who had 10 points. “We’re going to try to do the best of managing minutes and winning games and doing that all at the same time.”

Al Jefferson scored 23 points as the Jazz lost for the 10th time in 11 games, unable to pull a second upset this week after beating the Los Angeles Lakers.

That stunner Wednesday is what clinched the fifth No. 1 seed for the Spurs in the Tim Duncan era. The Spurs visit the Lakers on Tuesday, but with little at stake, the game hardly figures to be a potential Western Conference finals preview.

The Jazz, who won’t be in the playoffs for the first time in five years, just want to get through their season finale Wednesday.

Coach Tyrone Corbin had only 10 healthy players and guessed it might stay that way in their final two games. Derrick Favors scored 17 points and Paul Millsap added 16.

“We gotta finish this season with our head up high and have some pride for ourselves. We just ain’t going out here and lay down,” Al Jefferson said. “We’re going to play hard. I really thought we had a chance to win the game tonight. We just made too many mistakes.”

Ginobili had 12 points in 27 minutes and Parker had 13 in 29 minutes. Both played into the fourth when the Jazz crept within single digits.

Utah trailed by 11 at halftime but quickly fell behind in the third, when San Antonio stretched the lead to 17 while shooting 12 of 15 from the field.

Richard Jefferson put together his first 20-point game since November by shooting 6 of 10 from the field and hitting four 3-pointers. His most memorable play, however, came on an alley-oop dunk from Gary Neal moments after George Hill wowed the crowd with an impressive one-handed dunk over Earl Watson.

Who the Spurs will meet in the first round is still up in the air. Memphis held the No. 8 seed on Saturday but was a game behind New Orleans, which faces the Grizzlies on Sunday. Portland, currently holding the No. 6 spot, could also drop to the final slot.

“You take whoever comes,” Jefferson said.

Devin Harris added 13 points for Utah on just 3 of 11 shooting. He also took two tumbles into the front row, the second time into a young fan. A member of the Spurs’ training staff went over to check on the boy, who appeared to be OK.

Harris gave the boy a token of apology: his wristband.

• NOTES: Popovich needs three wins to reach 800 with the Spurs. … San Antonio swept the season series 3-0 over Utah. … The Spurs must win their final two games (Lakers, Phoenix) to match their franchise-record 63 wins set in 2005-06.

• Bucks 108, Cavaliers 101: At Milwaukee, Drew Gooden had his first career triple-double and John Salmons scored 32 points for Milwaukee.

Gooden had 15 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists for the Bucks, hitting double-digits in all three stat categories in the middle of the third quarter.

Baron Davis scored 19 points and Ramon Sessions added 15 for the Cavaliers in a matchup between two teams that have been eliminated from playoff contention.

Although the game certainly didn’t mean anything in terms of the playoffs, Gooden — who missed a large chunk of the season due to plantar fasciitis in his left foot — showed the Bucks what he can do when he’s healthy.

• Rockets 99, Clippers 78: At Houston, Chase Budinger, Kevin Martin and Brad Miller scored 16 points apiece and Chuck Hayes had 12 points and 13 rebounds to lead Houston.

Goran Dragic had 14 points, seven assists and a career-high 10 rebounds in his first start for the Rockets since he was acquired from Phoenix at the trade deadline.

The Rockets played well one night after they were eliminated from playoff contention. They also played without injured starters Kyle Lowry (bone bruise in left foot) and Luis Scola (sore left knee).

Eric Gordon scored 19 points and Blake Griffin had 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers.

• Wizards 115, Hawks 83: At Washington, Andray Blatche scored 23 points, John Wall had 19, and Washington dealt playoff-bound Atlanta its fourth straight loss.

The reeling Hawks, who are set to play Orlando in the first round, are heading into the postseason in less than ideal shape.

The Wizards broke a 12-game losing streak against Atlanta, have won four of six and are probably playing their best this season. They have just 10 healthy players — including five rookies and three who played in the NBA D-League this season.

Al Horford led the Hawks with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Joe Johnson had 16 as coach Larry Drew pulled his starters early in the fourth quarter.

• Nuggets 130, Timberwolves 106: At Denver, Ty Lawson made his first 10 3-pointers and scored a career-high 37 points in leading the short-handed Denver Nuggets to a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Lawson, who was banged up from Denver’s rough-and-tumble loss at Oklahoma City one night before, didn’t score until sinking a pair of free throws at the 6-minute mark of the second quarter.

He then hit 10-of-11 from beyond the arc, including six during a 9-minute stretch spanning halftime that turned a tight game (41-39) into a laugher.

Martell Webster and Lazar Hayward led the Timberwolves with 15 points each.

Minnesota was without injured All-Star Kevin Love (groin) and center Darko Milicic (left ankle) again.

Jefferson scored 20 points and the Spurs, mindful of the playoffs starting next weekend, won their fourth in a row while starting to rest some players in a 111-102 win over the Utah Jazz on Saturday night.

San Antonio (61-19) has already locked up the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, and, with two games left, are 1½ games ahead of Chicago for the NBA’s best record. Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker all started and played more than 20 minutes while Antonio McDyess got the night off.

Coach Gregg Popovich said he’s “certainly not going to overplay anybody” with the playoffs starting next week but also doesn’t want to fall out of rhythm.

“We’ve played this well all season long we’d love to finish out atop the NBA,” said Duncan, who had 10 points. “We’re going to try to do the best of managing minutes and winning games and doing that all at the same time.”

Al Jefferson scored 23 points as the Jazz lost for the 10th time in 11 games, unable to pull a second upset this week after beating the Los Angeles Lakers.

That stunner Wednesday is what clinched the fifth No. 1 seed for the Spurs in the Tim Duncan era. The Spurs visit the Lakers on Tuesday, but with little at stake, the game hardly figures to be a potential Western Conference finals preview.

The Jazz, who won’t be in the playoffs for the first time in five years, just want to get through their season finale Wednesday.

Coach Tyrone Corbin had only 10 healthy players and guessed it might stay that way in their final two games. Derrick Favors scored 17 points and Paul Millsap added 16.

“We gotta finish this season with our head up high and have some pride for ourselves. We just ain’t going out here and lay down,” Al Jefferson said. “We’re going to play hard. I really thought we had a chance to win the game tonight. We just made too many mistakes.”

Ginobili had 12 points in 27 minutes and Parker had 13 in 29 minutes. Both played into the fourth when the Jazz crept within single digits.

Utah trailed by 11 at halftime but quickly fell behind in the third, when San Antonio stretched the lead to 17 while shooting 12 of 15 from the field.

Richard Jefferson put together his first 20-point game since November by shooting 6 of 10 from the field and hitting four 3-pointers. His most memorable play, however, came on an alley-oop dunk from Gary Neal moments after George Hill wowed the crowd with an impressive one-handed dunk over Earl Watson.

Who the Spurs will meet in the first round is still up in the air. Memphis held the No. 8 seed on Saturday but was a game behind New Orleans, which faces the Grizzlies on Sunday. Portland, currently holding the No. 6 spot, could also drop to the final slot.

“You take whoever comes,” Jefferson said.

Devin Harris added 13 points for Utah on just 3 of 11 shooting. He also took two tumbles into the front row, the second time into a young fan. A member of the Spurs’ training staff went over to check on the boy, who appeared to be OK.

Harris gave the boy a token of apology: his wristband.

Notes

• Popovich needs three wins to reach 800 with the Spurs.
• San Antonio swept the season series 3-0 over Utah.
• The Spurs must win their final two games (Lakers, Phoenix) to match their franchise-record 63 wins set in 2005-06.

Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) – Manu Ginobili scored 12 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter as the San Antonio Spurs topped the Atlanta Hawks, 97-90, at Philips Arena.

Tony Parker finished with a game-high 26 points and Tim Duncan posted 17 points and six rebounds for the Spurs, who already clinched the Southwest Division and currently hold a three-game lead over the LA Lakers for the Western Conference’s top seed.

“I thought our guys were really good, we changed up a few things and they executed well,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “I think we kept (the Hawks) off stride because we changed it up several times.”

Joe Johnson paced the Hawks with 21 points. Jamal Crawford scored 20 in a reserve role and Kirk Hinrich finished with 13 points before fouling out late in the game. The Hawks have dropped consecutive games, but still hold the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Atlanta played without forward Josh Smith, who sat with a sore right knee. And unfortunately for the Hawks, replacement Jason Collins left the game in the second quarter after spraining his left ankle and did not return.

After trailing 46-43 at halftime, the Spurs used the opening minutes of the third to trim their slight margin and take the lead. Parker’s bucket 3 1/2 minutes into the stanza tied the game at 52, and he later he connected on a pair from the line to give San Antonio the lead.

The Spurs widened their lead to as high as four in the final minutes of the third quarter, but an Al Horford turnaround jumper with 53 seconds remaining cut the San Antonio lead to 66-65 entering the final stanza.

“I think the Spurs picked up the tempo a little bit (in the fourth quarter), and I think they took us out of some things we wanted to run,” Horford said. “We did miss some open looks but you have got to give them credit because they played great.”

San Antonio widened its lead to as high as 10 in the fourth quarter as an Antonio McDyess layup with 2:57 left gave the Spurs a 92-82 advantage. Their lead never fell below five down the stretch.

The Hawks shot 50 percent from the field in the first quarter and held the potent Spurs offense to only 16 points while yielding a 21-16 advantage entering the second. San Antonio responded, cutting its deficit to three entering the break.

Game Notes

The Spurs ended a four-game road skid with the win…San Antonio is 25-14 on the road this season…George Hill scored 13 for the Spurs…Horford posted 12 points, nine rebounds and five assists in the loss…San Antonio held a 39-25 rebounding margin and made 15-of-18 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter…The Spurs have won nine of 10 against the Hawks.

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