NBA ROUNDUP : Hornets’ Playoff Hopes Dimming

B.J. Armstrong’s three-point basket with 4.5 seconds to play gave the Chicago Bulls an 88-85 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Friday night at Charlotte, N.C., putting a serious dent in the Hornets’ postseason hopes.

“Sometimes you make them, sometimes you don’t,” Armstrong said of his game-winning shot. “This just happened to be a game where I made one. I just happened to be at the right place at the right time.”

The victory was the Bulls’ 10th in a row, matching a season-high winning streak for Chicago.

The Hornets, who had won five in a row, were in position to gain a game on the Miami Heat, who lead the Hornets by 2 1/2 games in the race for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Cleveland 109, Miami 100--Mark Price scored 26 points and sparked a 14-2 fourth-quarter run by the Cavaliers at Richfield, Ohio.

Miami retained its hold on the eighth and last playoff spot in the conference despite its fourth consecutive loss and 11th in 14 games.

Dallas 99, Denver 97--Jim Jackson’s eight-foot jumper with 3.4 seconds to play gave the Mavericks a victory at Dallas, preventing the Nuggets from clinching a spot in the playoffs.

New York 103, Washington 90--Reserves Anthony Mason and Herb Williams scored all but two of the points in a 12-0 fourth-quarter run that lifted the Knicks at New York.

Patrick Ewing scored 24 points and Hubert Davis 18 for the Knicks.

Atlanta 105, Milwaukee 96--Kevin Willis had 24 points and 18 rebounds and Danny Manning scored 23 points at Milwaukee to help the Hawks remain tied with the New York Knicks for the lead in the Eastern Conference.

Boston 113, Orlando 110--Dee Brown’s two free throws gave the Celtics the lead for good with 1:08 to play in the second overtime at Boston, enabling Boston to win despite 42 points by the Magic’s Shaquille O’Neal.

O’Neal, held to seven points after the third quarter, missed three of four free throws in the final minute after Brown had made the score 110-109.

Indiana 130, Minnesota 112--Rik Smits scored 30 points at Minneapolis to lead the Pacers.

Reggie Miller added 24 points as the Pacers recorded their 42nd victory, matching their second-best victory total since joining the NBA in 1976-77.

New Jersey 119, Detroit 114--Kenny Anderson scored 12 of his career-high 45 points in overtime at East Rutherford, N.J., as the Nets handed the Pistons their eighth consecutive loss.