Pistons clinch first playoff berth in seven years

Reggie Jackson had 39 points and nine assists and the Detroit Pistons clinched their first postseason spot in seven years with a 112-99 victory over the visiting Washington Wizards on Friday night.

Detroit’s last playoff berth came in 2009, when it was swept in the first round by LeBron James and Cleveland. The Pistons are likely to face the same opponents this year.

Detroit had to overcome 29 points from Markieff Morris, who did everything possible to keep twin brother Marcus out of the postseason. Bradley Beal added 25 for the Wizards.

Marcus Morris had 17 points and nine rebounds in the clincher.

at Toronto 111, Indiana 98: Norman Powell, a rookie from UCLA, scored a season-high 27 points and the Raptors kept the Pacers from clinching a playoff spot. Indiana needs one more win or a Chicago loss to qualify for the postseason. They will clinch if the Bulls lose to Cleveland on Saturday night, or by beating Brooklyn on Sunday.

at Charlotte 113, Brooklyn 99: Kemba Walker scored 22 points, Troy Daniels made his first five three-point attempts and finished with 17 points, and the Hornets completed a four-game season sweep of the Nets. With the win, the Hornets (46-33) assured they’ll be no lower than the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

at Orlando 112, Miami 109: Nikola Vucevic scored 29 points and Evan Fournier added 28 to help the Magic beat the Heat for only the second time in the last 16 meetings. There were 23 lead chances and 11 ties in the game.

at Boston 124, Milwaukee 109: Tyler Zeller tied a career high with 26 points and the Celtics continued their playoff push with a fourth consecutive victory.

at Dallas 103, Memphis 93: Dirk Nowitzki scored 21 points and the Mavericks overcame an injury to sparkplug J.J. Barea while moving to the brink of a playoff spot. Barea left with a right groin strain in the first half.

at Denver 102, San Antonio 98: Jusuf Nurkic scored a career-high 21 points and the Nuggets ended a 10-game skid against the Spurs, who sat almost all of their regulars. Denver became the only team this season to beat both Golden State and San Antonio.

New York 109, at Philadelphia 102: Carmelo Anthony scored 20 points and Robin Lopez had 24 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Knicks in a game between two of the worst teams in the NBA.