NBA ROUNDUP : Jordanaires Will Play On as a Singles Act

There were no celebrations in Chicago. No hooting. No hollering.

Been there. Done that.

The Bulls clinched a return trip to the playoffs and a chance to defend their NBA championship a third time Tuesday night with a 106-103 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.

So what? They knew they would be back, whether Michael Jordan plays the outfield or not.

“We proved a lot of people wrong. We’re third in the East. We planned on being very competitive. We took a lot of pride,” Scottie Pippen said after his 27 points led the Bulls.

“There’s nobody pouring champagne. We expected to make the playoffs. It was a forgone conclusion,” said Steve Kerr, who made two free throws with 5.6 seconds to play.

The future is less bright for Philadelphia. The 76ers lost their eighth in a row and 23rd in 24 games, though they made the Bulls, who led by 10 points after three quarters, earn the victory.

But close doesn’t count. “It’s not a moral victory,” guard Dana Barros said. “We aren’t going to remember if we played well or not. It’s a loss.”

Atlanta 101, New Jersey 98--Kevin Willis and Duane Ferrell scored six points apiece in the final 4:08 as the Hawks rallied to win in Atlanta.

It was their sixth victory in seven games and gave the Hawks the league’s best home record, 31-5. The Nets’ three-game winning streak ended.

Ferrell sank two free throws to give Atlanta a 91-90 lead it held for good.

Willis had 24 points and 16 rebounds for Atlanta. Johnny Newman and Kenny Anderson led New Jersey with 17 points apiece.

New York 106, Charlotte 95--Charles Oakley, a doubtful starter because of a knee sprain, had 22 points and 17 rebounds at New York as the Knicks won their 14th in a row.

The streak is their longest since a team-record 18 in a row in 1969-70.

The victory was a product of the New York reserves, who, led by Anthony Mason’s 17 points, outscored the Hornets’ backups, 45-17.

San Antonio 117, Dallas 92--David Robinson dominated inside with 37 points, 22 in the first half, as the Spurs won at Dallas and handed the Mavericks their 15th consecutive defeat.

Robinson, who also had seven rebounds, six assists and five blocks, moved past Orlando’s Shaquille O’Neal into the NBA scoring lead with a 29.2 average as the Spurs won their 50th game of the season.

The Mavericks completed their first winless calendar month in club history, finishing March with a 0-13 record.

Detroit 123, Miami 115--Sean Elliott scored eight of his 16 points in the final 3:06 as the Pistons won at Miami.

Joe Dumars paced Detroit with 30 points, all but five in the first and third quarters. Terry Mills added 20 for the Pistons, who shot 58%.

Matt Geiger scored 23 points for Miami, which lost its fifth consecutive game.

Orlando 120, Washington 101--Shaquille O’Neal had 25 points and 10 rebounds at Orlando where the Magic tied a club record with its 41st victory.

Don MacLean had 23 points and Rex Chapman 16 for Washington, which has lost nine in a row and 25 of 28.

Boston 119, Milwaukee 107--Rick Fox had a career-high 33 points and sank six free throws in overtime in Milwaukee to lead the Celtics to their third victory in a row.

The Bucks have lost five consecutive games.

Golden State 116, Utah 113--Latrell Sprewell scored 35 points, six in the final minute, as the Warriors withstood a fourth-quarter comeback to defeat the Jazz at Salt Lake City.

Seattle 114, Portland 100--Shawn Kemp scored 28 points, 16 in the third quarter, and the SuperSonics pulled away in the fourth at Portland in winning for the sixth time in a row.

The Trail Blazers have lost two consecutive games at home after winning 11 in a row.

Houston 122, Sacramento 101--Otis Thorpe scored 21 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, and seven Rockets scored in double figures in winning at Sacramento.

Houston played without center Hakeem Olajuwon because of a one-game suspension and also without guard Vernon Maxwell and forward Carl Herrera for much of the game because of ejections.