76ers show some spirit

Allen Iverson had 26 points and 15 assists and Kyle Korver scored 20 off the bench, helping the 76ers move into sole possession of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with a 105-97 victory over the Washington Wizards last night in Philadelphia.

Stephen Hunter, playing for the injured Chris Webber, tied a career high with 20 points, and Andre Iguodala added 19 as the Sixers won their second straight game to move a half-game ahead of Chicago for eighth place in the East.

Antawn Jamison scored a season-high 37 and Gilbert Arenas had 32 for Washington, which missed an opportunity to clinch a playoff spot.

The Sixers (36-41) had lost 13 of 17 before beating the Bulls in Chicago Saturday night. They closed within a game of sixth place in the jumbled East. Philadelphia has five games remaining while the Bulls have six. Chicago holds the tiebreaker advantage.

The Wizards (39-38) hold the fifth spot in the East, but are only two games ahead of sixth-place Milwaukee with five games remaining, including two games between the teams.

After going back and forth most of the second half, the Sixers went on a 7-0 run to take a 98-90 lead late.

Jazz 85, Rockets 83 -- Carlos Boozer scored 25 points and Utah kept its slim playoff hopes alive by holding off visiting Houston when a basket by the Rockets' Juwan Howard at the buzzer was ruled too late.

The Rockets lost center Yao Ming in the first quarter with a broken foot. The Chinese star appeared to injure the foot when Utah's Andre Kirilenko stepped on it.

The Jazz improved to 38-39 and are within 2 1/2 games of the Lakers and Kings, who are tied for the last two playoff spots.

Pacers 101, Knicks 82 -- Stephen Jackson scored 28 points and Peja Stojakovic added 23 to help host Indiana beat New York and improve its chances of making the playoffs.

Austin Croshere added 17 points and 11 rebounds as the Pacers (37-40) moved into a tie for sixth in the East.

Jamal Crawford led the Knicks with 26 points and seven assists.

Cavaliers 103, Hornets 101 -- LeBron James (32 points) hit a jumper from the top of the key with 0.5 seconds left as Cleveland edged New Orleans in Oklahoma City.

The loss dropped New Orleans 3 1/2 games behind the Lakers and Kings. The Hornets have five games left.

Magic 105, Hawks 88 -- Dwight Howard scored 20 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to help host Orlando to win for the ninth time in its last 10 games.

Jameer Nelson added 17 points and Hedo Turkoglu had 16 for the Magic.