Kawhi Leonard tallied 27 points as the San Antonio Spurs clinched their 19th straight playoff berth and remained unbeaten at home with a 97-81 win over the Detroit Pistons Wednesday. The Spurs overcame a sloppy first half before running away with it in the second as they improved to 29-0 at home to stretch their record for the best home start by an NBA Western Conference team. "It was very good," said coach Gregg Popovich. "We allowed 30 points in the second half. "It's pretty special if you can do that. We played a better second half for sure." It was the Spurs' first game at the AT&T Center arena since February 6 because of their annual Rodeo Road Trip, during which their performance was outstanding. LaMarcus Aldridge finished with 23 points and a team-high 10 rebounds for the Spurs as four of their starters finished in double figures. Tim Duncan had 12 points and eight rebounds and Tony Parker scored 10 points for San Antonio, whose 19 straight playoff appearances ties the Boston Celtics (1951-69) for the fourth-longest streak in NBA history. It's the fewest games needed to punch their playoff ticket in franchise history, excluding strike-shortened seasons. The Spurs own the second-longest active playoff streak among the four major professional sports, trailing only the NHL's Detroit Red Wings (24). Raptors 104, Jazz 94 Kyle Lowry scored a game-high 32 points as the Toronto Raptors defeated the Utah Jazz 104-94 for their franchise-best 11th consecutive home victory. Lowry, who was rested in Sunday's loss in Detroit, showed no rust from his four-day layoff. He shot 13-for-20 from the field while adding four rebounds and five assists. Magic 102, Bulls 89 Nikola Vucevic had 24 points and rookie Mario Hezonja had a career-high 21 points, leading the Orlando Magic to a surprisingly easy 102-89 victory over the slumping Chicago Bulls Wednesday. The Bulls (30-30) lost their fourth consecutive game. It was the 15th straight game in which they surrendered 100 points or more. They gave up 129 points to the Heat in Miami Tuesday. They never seriously challenged the Magic in the second half. Hornets 119, 76ers 99 Kemba Walker scored 30 points, nine in a pivotal second-half run, as the Charlotte Hornets beat the Philadelphia 76ers 119-99. Cody Zeller added 15 points and four blocked shots, and Marvin Williams contributed 14 points and nine rebounds for the Hornets, who won for the eighth time in 10 games to improve to 32-28, the sixth-best record in the Eastern Conference. Celtics 116, Portland 93 The surging Boston Celtics captured their 12th straight home win and did it by blowing out a sizzling opponent. The Celtics went on a 41-15 tear in the final 2:52 of the first half and through the third quarter and ran to a 116-93 victory over Portland, ending the Trail Blazers' six-game road winning streak and handing the Blazers only their third loss in their last 15 games overall. Wizards 104, Timberwolves 98 Bradley Beal scored 26 points off the bench to lead the Washington Wizards to a 104-98 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. Pacers 104, Bucks 99 Jordan Hill had 19 points off the bench and Paul George knocked down four 3-pointers as the Indiana Pacers snapped a three-game losing streak with a 104-99 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Elsewhere it was: Grizzlies 104, Kings 98; Rockets 100, Pelicans 95; Nuggets 117, Lakers 107; Clippers 103, Thunder 98. — Agencies
