Houston ? The Rockets clinched a playoff berth for the first time in five years Friday night, but they don’t want this to be the high point of their season.

The Rockets defeated the Denver Nuggets, 106-103, behind a season-high 33 points from Steve Francis, who is headed to the playoffs for the first time in his five-year career.

Although confetti dropped from the rafters at the end of the game, the Rockets weren’t in much of a festive mood in the locker room afterward.

“Since my rookie year, all I’ve wanted to do was be in the playoffs,” Francis said. “But it’s like coach (Jeff Van Gundy) said, we don’t want to be complacent. We want to move up. We have games to play and we don’t want to just show up.

“We want to go in the playoffs on a good note. We know we can play with anybody. Tonight was a good game for us and we want to try and keep the same mentality. We don’t want to settle for just being in the playoffs. We want to make some noise in them.”

Cuttino Mobley, who had 22 points, hopes for better things in the playoffs.

“Now the monkey is off our backs,” Mobley said. “But the monkey will probably come back when we get in the playoffs.

“A lot of the good teams beat us in close games, but now we have to go out and play hard and see what happens.”

Yao Ming, who had 12 points and six rebounds, knows making the playoffs is important to the veterans.

Denver guard Jon Barry (20) swats the ball from Houston center Yao Ming. The Rockets beat the Nuggets, 106-103, Friday in Houston.

“You can tell more from the other players because they’ve been here longer,” Yao said. “They have more of a feeling for it. It’s like New Year’s to me.”

Marcus Camby scored 23 points and Carmelo Anthony had 20 as the Nuggets lost for the sixth straight time in Houston. Denver dropped into a three-way tie with Utah and Portland for eighth place in the Western Conference.

“The third quarter was the difference,” Andre Miller said. “They started hitting open shots. The shots they missed in the first half, they made.”

Pistons 74, Raptors 66

Auburn Hills, Mich. — Richard Hamilton scored 10 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter, leading Detroit to its sixth straight win.

Pacers 90, Nets 80

Indianapolis — Ron Artest’s 24 points and four steals helped the Pacers clinch homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs.

Hawks 116, Bulls 101

Chicago — Stephen Jackson scored 36 points and Bob Sura had his first career triple-double. Kansas University product Kirk Hinrich scored a career-high 29 points to lead the Bulls.

Spurs 84, Blazers 74

San Antonio — Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili each scored 21 points, leading the Spurs to their eighth straight win.

Hornets 89, Celtics 80

New Orleans — Jamaal Magloire’s 23 points and 17 rebounds led New Orleans.

Heat 106, Cavaliers 91

Miami — Dwyane Wade had 20 points, and Miami eliminated LeBron James and the Cavs from playoff contention.

Lakers 103, Grizzlies 95

Los Angeles — Kobe Bryant scored 33 points and Shaquille O’Neal had 28 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Lakers.

T’wolves 92, Warriors 74

Oakland, Calif. — Kevin Garnett had 29 points and 15 rebounds for Minnesota.

Wizards 83, 76ers 80

Philadelphia — Gilbert Arenas sank a three-pointer as time expired and scored Washington’s final 12 points.