Sacramento

BOSTON (95) Pierce 5-15 9-9 19, Bass 7-11 2-2 16, Garnett 5-10 0-0 10, Rondo 2-9 0-0 4, Allen 9-16 3-3 26, Stiemsma 0-1 0-2 0, Pietrus 3-3 2-3 9, Bradley 2-7 1-2 5, Pavlovic 1-4 0-0 2, Dooling 0-0 0-0 0, Daniels 1-2 0-0 2, Johnson 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 36-80 17-21 95. SACRAMENTO (120) Salmons 3-6 1-2 7, Thompson 9-11 3-3 21, Cousins 9-17 2-2 20, Thomas 5-11 2-2 13, Thornton 13-24 5-6 36, Honeycutt 1-3 0-0 2, Greene 2-4 2-2 7, Hayes 0-3 0-0 0, Fredette 1-1 0-0 3, Outlaw 3-6 4-4 11, Whiteside 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 46-86 19-21 120. Boston 20 31 23 21— 95 Sacramento 26 26 41 27—120 3-Point Goals—Boston 6-19 (Allen 5-10,...

Ty Lawson scored 25 points, Kenneth Faried added 13 points and 10 rebounds, and the Denver Nuggets beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 106-101 on Wednesday night to ensure they won't be the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference playoffs. Kevin Durant scored 32 points to extend his lead in the NBA scoring race, leaving Kobe Bryant in need of 38 points in his season finale Thursday night against Sacramento to claim his third scoring title and prevent Durant from becoming the seventh player to win three in a row. Both are averaging about 28 points per game.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Deanna Nolan scored 21 points and Katie Smith scored all 16 of her points in the second half to help the Detroit Shock even the WNBA finals at a game apiece with a 73-63 win over Sacramento last night. For the better part of three quarters, it looked like the Monarchs would take a 2-0 lead back to Sacramento for Game 3 tomorrow, but Smith wouldn't let that happen. Her 3-pointer with two seconds remaining in the third quarter pulled the Shock -- who had trailed by as many as 11 points earlier in the game -- within 54-48.

Richard Hamilton scored 20 points, Luol Deng added 19, and the Bulls, playing without Derrick Rose again, beat the New York Knicks, 98-86, Tuesday night in Chicago. Hamilton had 18 points in the third quarter to help Chicago stay ahead after building a 12-point halftime lead. Kyle Korver added 14 points and three blocks, and the Bulls prevailed despite Carmelo Anthony's 29 points for New York. Rose, meanwhile, was in an all-too familiar spot for the Bulls, nursing yet another injury.

Nykesha Sales scored 13 of her 15 points in the first half and the Connecticut Sun beat the Liberty, 61-51, last night at New York in Game 1 of the WNBA's Eastern Conference finals. Taj McWilliams-Franklin had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Lindsay Whalen added 12 points for Connecticut, which used a 23-5 run in the first half to build a 16-point lead en route to its third straight win in the playoffs. Crystal Robinson scored 17 points for New York, which lost for just the second time in its last seven games and third in last 11 at home.

UNCASVILLE, Conn. -- Lindsay Whalen took jump shot after jump shot yesterday, testing her injured left knee while her Connecticut teammates ran drills at the other end of the court, preparing, if necessary, to move on without her. She helped the Sun to the best record in the WNBA and home-court advantage throughout the postseason. But now a small fracture in the heavily braced knee may keep the gritty guard from the WNBA finals, which begin tonight against Sacramento. "This is an opportunity for everybody to step up," Sun forward Nykesha Sales...

Kyrie Irving's two free throws with 0.4 seconds remaining gave the Cleveland Cavaliers a 93-92 win over Sacramento on Sunday night, extending the Kings' losing streak to five games. Irving's foul shots came after DeMarcus Cousins' basket with 2.9 seconds left gave the Kings a 92-91 lead. Cleveland called timeout to get the ball at midcourt. Irving inbounded to Antawn Jamison, who gave the ball back to the rookie point guard. Irving drove into the lane, where he was fouled by Tyreke Evans.

Jason Terry scored seven consecutive points in a minute to start a game-turning run for the Dallas Mavericks, who went on to a 90-81 victory over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night. Dirk Nowitzki had 21 points despite a bad shooting night (5 of 17) for the Mavericks, who have won consecutive games against Houston. Rodrigue Beaubois had 14 points and Brandan Wright 13. The Mavericks won 101-99 in overtime on Saturday night in Houston, which played at home again Monday and needed overtime to beat Sacramento.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Bill Laimbeer is fond of referring to Cheryl Ford as a "beast. " Even Laimbeer was surprised at the performance of his All-Star power forward last night. Ford pulled down a postseason-record 23 rebounds and scored 11 points as the Detroit Shock beat the Connecticut Sun, 70-59, in Game 1 of the WNBA Eastern Conference finals. "That's just a Herculean effort," Laimbeer said. "She's been very driven and focused all year, and it has been a joy to watch.

Richard Hamilton scored 20 points, Luol Deng added 19, and the Bulls, playing without Derrick Rose again, beat the New York Knicks, 98-86, Tuesday night in Chicago. Hamilton had 18 points in the third quarter to help Chicago stay ahead after building a 12-point halftime lead. Kyle Korver added 14 points and three blocks, and the Bulls prevailed despite Carmelo Anthony's 29 points for New York. Rose, meanwhile, was in an all-too familiar spot for the Bulls, nursing yet another injury.

Jason Terry scored seven consecutive points in a minute to start a game-turning run for the Dallas Mavericks, who went on to a 90-81 victory over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night. Dirk Nowitzki had 21 points despite a bad shooting night (5 of 17) for the Mavericks, who have won consecutive games against Houston. Rodrigue Beaubois had 14 points and Brandan Wright 13. The Mavericks won 101-99 in overtime on Saturday night in Houston, which played at home again Monday and needed overtime to beat Sacramento.

Authorities say a Montana man tried to bring four loaded, semi-automatic handguns past a security checkpoint at Sacramento International Airport and was being held without bail Friday. Harold Waller, 45, was arrested Thursday afternoon after Transportation Security Administration officials found a gun in one of his carry-on bags, said Sacramento County Sheriff's Deputy Jason Ramos. When TSA screeners conducted a more thorough check, they found Waller was carrying a loaded gun, and had two other semi-automatic weapons packed in his carry-on...

BOSTON (95) Pierce 5-15 9-9 19, Bass 7-11 2-2 16, Garnett 5-10 0-0 10, Rondo 2-9 0-0 4, Allen 9-16 3-3 26, Stiemsma 0-1 0-2 0, Pietrus 3-3 2-3 9, Bradley 2-7 1-2 5, Pavlovic 1-4 0-0 2, Dooling 0-0 0-0 0, Daniels 1-2 0-0 2, Johnson 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 36-80 17-21 95. SACRAMENTO (120) Salmons 3-6 1-2 7, Thompson 9-11 3-3 21, Cousins 9-17 2-2 20, Thomas 5-11 2-2 13, Thornton 13-24 5-6 36, Honeycutt 1-3 0-0 2, Greene 2-4 2-2 7, Hayes 0-3 0-0 0, Fredette 1-1 0-0 3, Outlaw 3-6 4-4 11, Whiteside 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 46-86 19-21 120. Boston 20 31 23 21— 95 Sacramento 26 26 41 27—120 3-Point Goals—Boston 6-19 (Allen 5-10,...

SACRAMENTO - It was apparent from the opening tip that the Celtics were not invested in their matchup with the Kings Friday night at Power Balance Pavilion. Maybe it was too much time in California or the trade deadline passing with no deals, offering several Celtics on the roster security. The Celtics came out lackadaisical and were outplayed, outhustled, and even out trash-talked by an upstart Kings team missing its best player. The absence of Tyreke Evans made no difference, especially in the second half, when the Kings went on an impressive scoring spree to extinguish the reeling Celtics,...

The only place the Sacramento Kings are moving to is a new downtown home in California's capital. A year after almost being wiped off the NBA map, Sacramento cleared the most critical political hurdle late Tuesday night when the City Council approved a plan to help finance an estimated $391 million arena, setting off cheers through the cramped chambers that spilled onto the streets of downtown with a message that echoed from Anaheim to Seattle and...

The Sacramento City Council has begun a critical meeting that will decide the future of the Sacramento Kings. A year after the team almost moved to Anaheim, Sacramento's plan to help finance a new $391 million arena was a vote away from approval Tuesday night. The non-binding term sheet, signed off by the Kings and the NBA last week, would keep the team in Sacramento for at least another 30 years. Under the agreement, the city would contribute $255.5 million to the project, mostly by leasing out parking garages around the facility.

SACRAMENTO - It was apparent from the opening tip that the Celtics were not invested in their matchup with the Kings Friday night at Power Balance Pavilion. Maybe it was too much time in California or the trade deadline passing with no deals, offering several Celtics on the roster security. The Celtics came out lackadaisical and were outplayed, outhustled, and even out trash-talked by an upstart Kings team missing its best player. The absence of Tyreke Evans made no difference, especially in the second half, when the Kings went on an impressive scoring spree to extinguish the reeling Celtics,...

Gordon Hayward scored a season-high 21 points and C.J. Miles added 20 as the Utah Jazz snapped a two-game losing streak, defeating Sacramento 96-93 and spoiling Jimmer Fredette's return to the state where "Jimmermania" began. Fredette had a chance to give the Kings the win with 4.2 seconds left, but launched an air-ball 3-pointer. Hayward's free throw sealed it for Utah (11-7). Tyreke Evans led Sacramento (6-14) with 31 points on 12-of-20 shooting. Fredette, a former Brigham Young star and last year's national player of the year, finished with 14...

Building a new arena for the Sacramento Kings has never been closer to reality. The city, the Sacramento Kings and the NBA announced a tentative deal Monday to finance a new arena that would keep the team in California's capital for the long haul. The City Council will vote on the plan March 6. Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, NBA Commissioner David Stern and the Maloof family, which owns the Kings, emerged from three days of talks in Orlando, Fla., — where they had been negotiating during All-Star weekend — to announce that the framework of a deal had been reached, giving...