Rockets Help Lakers Stay Home by Losing, 112-106

Gary Payton scored 31 points and had three steals in the final 1:13 as the Seattle SuperSonics defeated the Houston Rockets for the ninth consecutive time in the regular season, 112-106, Monday night at Houston.

The loss prevents the Rockets from being able to catch the Lakers for the No. 4 playoff spot in the Western Conference, giving the Lakers homecourt advantage in the first round. They will open the playoffs April 25 or April 26 at the Forum.

Sacramento 90, Denver 86--Mitch Richmond scored all 17 of his points in the second half, including two baskets in the final 1:10, to eliminate the Nuggets from the playoff race at Denver.

Indiana 90, Charlotte 87--Pacer reserves took the sting out of Reggie Miller’s absence and dealt a big blow to Hornet playoff hopes by rallying from a 19-point deficit at Indianapolis.

Doctors for Miller said he is progressing well a day after having surgery to reconstruct part of his right eye socket, although Miller is suffering from double vision, which could take two months to completely clear.

Miami 110, New Jersey 90--The Heat overtook the Nets and pulled away from the Charlotte Hornets at Miami.

Battling Charlotte for the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference, Miami rallied from a 12-point deficit for the victory.

Coupled with Charlotte’s loss to Indiana, the Heat moved one game ahead in the race for the eighth playoff slot in the conference.

New York 125, Toronto 79--The Knicks came within two points of matching a franchise record for largest victory margin.

Portland 121, San Antonio 97--Arvydas Sabonis had 22 points and nine rebounds at Portland as the Trail Blazers clinched the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference.

NBA Notes

Phoenix center Joe Kleine will undergo additional tests to determine what caused him to faint prior to Sunday’s game against the Lakers. Kleine returned to Phoenix on Monday after spending the night in Centinela Hospital for observation.