Denver ? Juwan Howard scored 20 points, and Calbert Cheaney added 17 in Denver’s 98-90 victory on Tuesday.

Utah, which had won five of six, failed to gain ground on seventh-place Seattle in the Western Conference. The SuperSonics have a 1 1/2-game lead over the Jazz, who are four games ahead of the Los Angeles Clippers for the final playoff spot in the West.

Utah plays the Clippers on Wednesday night.

Karl Malone overcame a knee sprain in the first quarter to finish with 15 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. John Stockton scored all of his 19 points in the second half and had 11 assists.

Lakers 113, Wizards 93

Washington Michael Jordan had the worst scoring game of his career just two points in 12 inconsequential minutes, another career low as Los Angeles overwhelmed Washington. Jordan, who entered the game late in the first quarter, was 1-for-5 with three assists and three turnovers and did not play in the second half.

Kings 107, Grizzlies 83

Memphis, Tenn. Sacramento had six players in double figures, led by Bobby Jackson’s 19, as it easily dispatched Memphis. Chris Webber added 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Hedo Turkoglu finished with 16 points for the league-leading Kings.

Celtics 105, Pacers 94

Indianapolis Paul Pierce scored 29 points, and Boston used a big fourth quarter to rally past Indiana. Erick Strickland scored 22 points and Walter McCarty had 18 points and 12 rebounds for the Celtics, who outscored the Pacers 36-14 in the fourth quarter.

Pistons 90, Heat 87

Miami Ben Wallace grabbed 16 rebounds and blocked six shots, including one by Alonzo Mourning with 15 seconds left to preserve the lead, and Detroit beat the fading Heat.

Knicks 91, Hornets 85

New York Mark Jackson got the better of David Wesley down the stretch, helping the New York Knicks avoid another blown double-digit lead. The Knicks got 11 points and 19 rebounds from Kurt Thomas in handing the Hornets just their second loss in 11 games.

Hawks 100, Bucks 92

Atlanta DerMarr Johnson scored a career-high 28 points, and Jason Terry added 19 as Atlanta sent Milwaukee to its seventh straight road loss. The game was delayed 28 minutes in the fourth quarter because of a power failure.

Rockets 100, SuperSonics 98

Houston Steve Francis scored 32 points and Houston’s reserves played a major role in a winning rally. The Rockets overcame a triple-double by Seattle guard Gary Payton, who finished with 25 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds.

Cavaliers 101, Suns 96

Cleveland Ricky Davis, on a late-season scoring tear he hopes gets him a bigger contract, had 28 points as Cleveland snapped a six-game losing streak.

Warriors 107, Blazers 91

Oakland, Calif. Jason Richardson scored 26 points as the Golden State Warriors handed the Portland Trail Blazers their fourth loss in five games. Reserve guard Bob Sura scored 12 of his 23 points in the final quarter, when the last-place Warriors outscored Portland 30-13. Gilbert Arenas had 22 points.