rockets 102, heat 98

Fred VanVleet scored 37 points and Houston won their ninth straight, beating Miami on Friday.

VanVleet shot 13 for 17 from the field and made a season-high 9 of 11 3-pointers as the Rockets extended the league’s longest active winning streak. Houston also snapped a nine-game skid against Miami, which lost its 10th straight. It is the Heat’s longest skid since they lost 11th straight in 2007-08.

magic 120, wizards 105

Paolo Banchero scored 30 points and Orlando eased to a victory over Washington.

Wendell Carter Jr. had 16 points and 12 rebounds, and Franz Wagner added 21 points for the Magic, who have now alternated wins and losses over their last seven games.

timberwolves 134,

pelicans 93

Julius Randle had 20 points, six rebounds and five assists and Minnesota avoided losing to one of the Western Conference’s worst teams for the second time in three days with a victory over New Orleans.

Jaden McDaniels and Anthony Edwards each scored 17 points, and Rudy Gobert had 13 points and 12 rebounds for Minnesota, which moved back within a game of Golden State for the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference with 10 games left in the regular season.

thunder 141, hornets 106

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points and Oklahoma City won their fifth in a row.

Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA’s top scorer at 33.0 points per game, returned to the lineup after sitting out Wednesday night’s lopsided win against Philadelphia. He made 13 of 18 shots to go with six rebounds and nine assists before sitting out the fourth quarter.

spurs 128. 76ers 120

Jeremy Sochan had 23 points, Keldon Johnson added 20 points and San Antonio rallied to close on an 11-3 run.

mavericks 123, pistons 117

Spencer Dinwiddie scored a season-high 31 points while P.J. Washington Jr. added 27, with a season-high five 3-pointers, as Dallas beat Detroit.

Eleven of Dinwiddie’s points came at the free-throw line.