Jalen Green scored 30 of his 34 points in the second half, including a pair of late free throws, and the Houston Rockets edged the Utah Jazz for their 11th consecutive NBA win on Friday.
Fred VanVleet added 22 points and Amen Thompson had 18 points and 14 rebounds for the Rockets, who have won 12 of 13 games to remain one game behind the Golden State Warriors for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference.
Houston trailed the entire first half but swung momentum their way during a third-quarter scoring outburst from Green.
He had five of the Rockets' first six baskets of the second half to power a 20-7 run that put Houston up 61-54.
Green scored 20 of his team's 28 points in the quarter and Houston ultimately edged it 101-100.
Timberwolves win showdown with Nuggets
Anthony Edwards scored 25 points and Mike Conley added 23 with eight assists as the surging Minnesota Timberwolves moved atop the Western Conference with a 111-98 win over the Denver Nuggets.
Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 11 rebounds while Jaden McDaniels contributed 17 points as the Wolves won their fourth straight and seventh in eight games to tie Oklahoma City for first place in the West.
Nikola Jokic had 32 points and 10 rebounds for the Nuggets, who lost their second in a row and were without star point guard Jamal Murray for a fourth consecutive game.
Lakers' winning streak ends at five
Pascal Siakam and Tyrese Haliburton thrived as the Indiana Pacers beat the Los Angeles Lakers 109-90 in a game which had playoff implications for both teams.
The Lakers came into the game having won their last five, but Siakam finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds, while Haliburton added 21 points, eight assists and eight rebounds for the victorious hosts.
Indiana has won four of six to retain the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference, while the Lakers are trying to improve their playoff positioning from the No. 9 seed in the West.
All-Stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis both started despite being injury doubts.
Davis finished with 24 points and 15 rebounds, while James had 16 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. But the Lakers struggled from deep, going five of 29 on 3-pointers and committing 16 turnovers. five of which came from James.
The Pacers led for almost all the game and it was a sweet result for coach Rick Carlisle after his team had previously lost to the Lakers in the final of the NBA's inaugural In-Season Tournament and again been beaten 150-145 in Los Angeles five days before this contest.
Knicks salute 'warrior' Brunson after inspirational injury return in Pacers win
Jalen Brunson was hailed "a warrior" by team-mate Donte DiVincenzo after his return from injury inspired the New York Knicks to a second-half turnaround against the Indiana Pacers.
The Knicks ran out 130-121 winners in Game 2 at Madison Square Garden to take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semi-final series.
Things did not look good for the hosts, who also lost OG Anunoby in the third quarter to a hamstring injury, as Brunson was forced to exit during the first quarter with a foot problem.
However, with the Knicks trailing 73-63 at half-time, the point guard received a raucous ovation from the home supporters as he returned to warm up in a bid to shake off his injury.
"He's a warrior," said DiVincenzo, who finished with 28 points. "There was no doubt in my mind he'd be back."
"He's a great leader, and the players all have respect for that when a guy tries to give whatever he has. It says a lot about him," coach Tom Thibodeau added.
"To me, the actions say a lot more than the words. It says that you care a lot about your team and your team-mates."
Brunson's return certainly inspired New York, who were already without Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and Bojan Bogdanovic due to season-ending injuries.
He notched up 24 of his 29 points during the second half as the Knicks moved halfway towards reaching their first Eastern Conference final since 2000.
"It was really cool," Brunson said of his half-time reception. "But I just knew I had to get my mind in the right place to figure out how I was going to attack in the second half."
NBA: Brunson returns from injury to spark Knicks to 2-0 lead
Jalen Brunson shook off a right foot injury to score 24 of his 29 points in the second half, and the New York Knicks withstood an injury to OG Anunoby for a 130-121 win over the Indiana Pacers to take a 2-0 lead on Wednesday in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Brunson was forced to exit in the first quarter with the injury but returned to warm up at halftime, sending the Madison Square Garden crowd into a frenzy.
He fell short of becoming the second player in NBA history to score 40 or more points in five straight playoff games, but still provided the spark to move the Knicks halfway to their first East finals appearance since 2000.
The series shifts to Indiana for Game 3 on Friday.
Anunoby scored a career playoff-high 28 points before leaving in the third quarter with a left hamstring injury. New York is already playing without three key players (Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and Bojan Bogdanovic) due to season-ending injuries.
Donte DiVincenzo also scored 28 points with six 3-pointers, Josh Hart had 19 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists and Isaiah Hartenstein added 14 points, 12 boards and eight assists for the Knicks, who hit nearly half of their 3-point attempts (14 for 30).
Tyrese Haliburton bounced back from a poor Game 1 with 34 points, nine assists and six rebounds for the Pacers, who hurt themselves by shooting 10 for 17 from the free throw line.
Nuggets centre Jokic wins third NBA MVP Award
Denver Nuggets centre Nikola Jokic has added to his legacy by winning a third NBA MVP Award.
The NBA announced the Serbian superstar beat out the Oklahoma City Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Dallas Mavericks' Luka Doncic for the Michael Jordan trophy on Thursday.
Jokic won back-to-back awards in 2020-21 and 2021-22, and with this year's trophy, he becomes the ninth player to win three or more MVPs, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (six), Jordan and Bill Russell (five), Wilt Chamberlain and LeBron James (four), and Moses Malone, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson (three).
Jokic won the 2023-24 award in a runaway, capturing 79 first-place votes. Gilgeous-Alexander received 15 first-place votes, Doncic had four and the Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo had one.
Jokic led the Nuggets to the franchise's first NBA title last season and the second seed in the Western Conference play-offs in 2023-24 after averaging 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9.0 assists.
He was the only player in the NBA to rank in the top 10 in scoring, rebounding and assists, and his 25 triple-doubles were one fewer than the Sacramento Kings' Domantas Sabonis for the most in the league.
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