Wizards defeat Celtics to clinch No. 5 seed in East

BRADLEY BEAL scored 27 points and the Washington Wizards clinched the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 118-102 win over the host Boston Celtics last night.

The Wizards will be facing Chicago in their first playoff appearance since 2008.

Trevor Booker scored 20 points, Marcin Gortat had 15 with 10 rebounds, and John Wall 15 points for Washington, which finished the regular season 44-38. It's the most wins for the franchise since 45 in 2004-05.

Boston sat injured guards Rajon Rondo and Jerryd Bayless, and injured forwards Kris Humphries and Jared Sullinger, finishing with a 25-57 record.

* At Charlotte, Kemba Walker scored eight of his 22 points in overtime to help the Bobcats defeat the Chicago Bulls, 91-86.

Charlotte, the No. 7 seed, will meet No. 2 Miami in the first round of the playoffs.

* At Orlando, Rasual Butler led six players in double figures with a season-high 19 points and the Indiana Pacers rested several regulars in an easy, 101-86 win over the Magic to end the regular season.

The Pacers, who had already secured the top seed in the Eastern Conference, will open the playoffs against Atlanta.

* At Milwaukee, Mike Scott scored 17 points and the Atlanta Hawks defeated the Bucks, 111-103.

* At San Antonio, Jordan Hill had 18 points and 14 rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers (27-55) ended their worst season in franchise history with a 113-100 win over the Spurs, the No. 1 seed in the West.

* At New York, J.R. Smith scored 30 points, while Cole Aldrich finished with 13 points and 16 rebounds as the Knicks defeated the Toronto Raptors, 95-92.

The Raptors, the No. 3 in the East, will meet Brooklyn in the playoffs.

* At Cleveland, Brooklyn coach Jason Kidd sat his starters for the playoffs and the Nets closed the regular season as the sixth seed in the East with a 114-85 loss to the Cavaliers.

Although the Nets could have clinched the Eastern Conference's No. 5 spot with a win, Kidd elected to rest Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Joe Johnson, Deron Williams and Shaun Livingston.

* At New Orleans, Tyreke Evans had 25 points and 10 assists, and the Pelicans defeated the playoff-bound Houston Rockets, 105-100.

* At Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant scored 21 of his 42 points in the fourth quarter, including the game-winning dunk with 16.5 seconds left, as the Thunder wrapped up the No. 2 seed in the West with a 112-111 win over the Detroit Pistons.

* At Minneapolis, Trey Burke had 32 points and nine assists as the Utah Jazz defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves, 136-130, in double-overtime in a matchup of non-playoff teams.

* At Memphis, Mike Conley hit two free throws with 1 second left in overtime and Zach Randolph had 27 points and 14 rebounds as the Grizzlies downed the Dallas Mavericks, 106-105, to clinch the No. 7 seed in the West.

* Milwaukee owner Herb Kohl reached a deal to sell the franchise to New York investment firm executives Marc Lasry and Wesley Edens for about $550 million.

The deal is subject to approval by the NBA and its Board of Governors. Kohl has owned the team since 1985.