Basketball

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Ja Morant shrugged off a sprained right ankle to score 22 points and add nine assists and the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Dallas Mavericks 120-106 on Friday night to advance to the NBA playoffs.

ATLANTA (AP) — Tyler Herro scored 30 points while sinking two 3-pointers in overtime and the Miami Heat regrouped after losing an early lead to beat the Atlanta Hawks 123-114 on Friday night and make NBA Play-In Tournament history.

Capsules on the Western Conference first-round series: No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder (68-14) vs. No. 8 Memphis (48-34) Season series: Thunder, 4-0.

There was Toronto in 2019, the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020, Milwaukee in 2021, Golden State in 2022, Denver in 2023 and Boston in 2024. Six different seasons, six different champions. A run of parity like none other in NBA history.

ATLANTA (AP) — After making NBA Play-In Tournament history by winning two road games, the Miami Heat won't be afraid of facing No. 1 seed Cleveland in the playoffs.

ATLANTA (AP) — Through the first half of Miami's NBA Play-In Tournament elimination game at Atlanta, Heat backup guard Davion Mitchell did not look a contender to finish as one of the stars of the game.

It was the year of the long winning streak in the NBA. There were five instances of teams winning 11 or more games in a row — three by Cleveland, two by Oklahoma City, and it's probably no coincidence that those two teams are the ones that earned No.

Capsules on the Eastern Conference first-round series: No. 1 Cleveland Cavaliers (64-18) vs. No. 8 Miami (37-45) Season series: Cavaliers, 2-1. Story line: It’s the classic — offense vs. defense.

Duke guard Tyrese Proctor is entering the NBA draft and skipping his senior season. The team announced Proctor's move in a social-media post Friday night .

San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich is doing well at home after needing medical attention earlier this week following an incident at a restaurant, a person with knowledge of the matter told The Associated Press on Friday.