Cavs enter NBA playoffs

LOS ANGELES – As the push to the post-season headed into its final two weeks, the Cleveland Cavaliers clinched their first playoff berth since 2018 with a 108-91 victory over the Houston Rockets on Sunday (Monday, Manila time).

Jarret Allen tied his season high with 24 points, pulled down 14 rebounds and blocked three shots, while All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell added 22 points for the Cavs, who are assured of one of the top six places in the Eastern Conference to avoid the play-in tournament for the seventh- through 10th-placed teams.

It's the first time since 1998 that the Cavaliers have reached the playoffs without James, whose 20-year NBA career has included two stints with his hometown team, where he won one of his four titles in 2016.

Elsewhere, Jaylen Brown scored 41 points and pulled down 13 rebounds to lead the Boston Celtics to a 137-93 home rout of the San Antonio Spurs.

Leading scorer Jayson Tatum's injury absence was no problem for the Celtics, who kept the pressure on Milwaukee in the race for top seed in the East.

Morant leads Grizzlies
Ja Morant returned to the Memphis starting lineup after coming off the bench in his first two games since suspension, scoring 27 points to lead the Grizzlies in a 123-119 victory over the Hawks in Atlanta that pushed Memphis' winning streak to six games.

The Dallas Mavericks' downward spiral continued with a 110-104 loss to the Hornets in Charlotte, where Mavs star Luka Doncic received his 16th technical foul of the season, which will trigger an automatic one-game suspension.

After failing to make a basket in the first quarter Doncic finished with 40 points, but it wasn't enough to stave off a second loss in three days to the hapless Hornets — who are second-to-last in the Eastern Conference.

In the day's final game, the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Golden State Warriors 99-96. 

The game was decided with 11 seconds left when Karl-Anthony Towns took advantage of Kyle Anderson's steal from Draymond Green to drain the winning 3-pointer.