Jazz seal top spot in NBA for 1st time in franchise history

By Muhammed Enes Calli

ANKARA (AA) - The Utah Jazz finished the regular season at top with a 52-20 win/loss record after beating the Sacramento Kings 121-99 late Sunday.

Jordan Clarkson played with 33 points and Rudy Gobert posted a double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds for the Jazz.

Mike Conley finished with 11 points, nine assists, and six rebounds and Bojan Bogdanovic had 18 points.

Terence Davis added 20 points and Damian Jones scored 19 points for the Kings that completed the season at the 12th spot with 31 victories.

- Blazers defeat Nuggets 132-116 to avoid play-in

The Portland Trail Blazers beat the Nuggets 132-116 to secure the sixth seed and avoid play-in.

Damian Lillard led the Blazers with 22 points and 10 assists as CJ McCollum added 24 points.

For the Nuggets, Nikola Jokic added 21 points and Markus Howard came off the bench to add 23 points.

The Blazers will take on No. 3 seed Nuggets in the playoffs.

- Curry becomes top scorer with average of 32.0 points per game

Stephen Curry became the 2020-2021 season's top scorer for the second time in his career by scoring 46 points in the Golden State Warriors’ 113-101 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

A two-time MVP (Most Valuable Player) who won his first scoring title in 2016, Curry averaged 32.0 points for the regular season, ahead of Bradley Beal, who played with 31.3 points per game.

Jonas Valanciunas finished with 29 points and 16 rebounds while Ja Morant scored 16 points and nine assists for the Grizzlies.

- Play-in tournament to start this week

The Warriors will take on the Los Angeles Lakers in the play-in tournament and the winner of this match will take on No. 7-seed Phoenix Suns in the playoffs.

The Memphis Grizzlies will host the San Antonio Spurs and the winner of the match will play against the loser of the Lakers vs. Warriors game to earn the eighth spot in the playoffs.

In the Eastern Conference, the Washington Wizards will take on the Boston Celtics and the winner side will face the Brooklyn Nets in the playoffs.

The Charlotte Hornets will face the Indiana Pacers and the winner will play against the loser of the Celtics vs. Hornets game to seal the No. 8-seed place in the playoffs.

Playoff matchups

- Western Conference

Utah Jazz (1) - Play-in winner (8)

Phoenix Suns (2) - Play-in winner (7)

Los Angeles Clippers (4) - Dallas Mavericks (5)

Denver Nuggets (3) - Portland Trail Blazers (6)

- Eastern Conference

Philadelphia 76ers (1) - Play-in winner (8)

Brooklyn Nets (2) - Play-in winner (7)

New York Knicks (4) - Atlanta Hawks (5)

Milwaukee Bucks (3) - Miami Heat (6)