EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Vince Carter had 27 points and nine assists, and the New Jersey Nets ended Orlando’s bid for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference by beating the Magic 103-93 on Saturday night.

The Magic (58-22) may have lost more than the No. 2 seed. Star forward Hedo Turkoglu hurt his left ankle with 6:51 left in the game and he had to be helped to the locker room. There was no immediate word on his condition. Orlando came into the game needing to win its final three games and have Boston (60-19) lose its final three to get the second slot.

Suns 110, Timberwolves 97

MINNEAPOLIS – Grant Hill scored 19 points in 23 minutes to lead Phoenix to a 110-97 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Jared Dudley scored 16 points and Shaquille O’Neal had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Suns, who gave heavy minutes to youngsters Robin Lopez, Goran Dragic and Louis Amundson.

Pacers 106, Pistons 102

INDIANAPOLIS – Danny Granger scored 24 points and the Indiana Pacers stalled the Detroit Pistons’ bid for a higher playoff seed with a 106-102 victory.

Indiana led by 12 early in the final quarter, but Detroit rallied and took a 102-101 lead on a basket by Richard Hamilton with 56 seconds to go. The Pacers went back in front on a spinning layup by Jarrett Jack and iced the game with one free throw by Troy Murphy with 16 seconds left.

Bulls 113, Bobcats 106

CHICAGO – Ben Gordon scored 39 points, John Salmons finished with 19 after a slow start and the Chicago Bulls hit the .500 mark for the first time since mid-November with a 113-106 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats.

With the Bulls trailing 93-92 midway through the fourth, Salmons and Gordon hit back-to-back 3-pointers to start the decisive 10-point run and send Chicago to its fourth straight win and 11th in 14 games. Derrick Rose added 22 as the seventh-place Bulls (40-40) strengthened their standing in the Eastern Conference.


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