A rhythm shooter on a team out of sync, Jamal Crawford and the Los Angeles Clippers broke out on Saturday night.The veteran reserve came alive late, scoring 25 points to carry the visiting Clippers to a 101-91 victory over the Bulls.

”We definitely needed a win,” Crawford said after his 10-of-17 shooting performance. ”Everything is better. The food tastes better, the flight will be better, you know, but it’s a total team effort.”

Chris Paul added 17 points and Blake Griffin had 16 for Los Angeles, which lost in Milwaukee on Friday and had fallen to the fifth spot in the Western Conference standings.Crawford, a former Bulls guard who won his third Sixth Man of the Year award last season, scored 10 points during a 14-7 spurt in the fourth quarter as the Clippers won for just the second time in six games.

”He went 1-on-1 and you can’t do nothing when he is going like that,” said Dwyane Wade, who scored 10 points on 2-of-11 shooting. ”When they have guys making shots like that, we are taking the ball out of the basket. Our offensive rhythm is not the same as it was in the first half when we were able to get stops and go the other way.”

Jimmy Butler scored 16 points for the Bulls, who had won five of their last six games, including wins against Cleveland and Golden State.The Bulls led by 10 points five times in the second quarter, but the Clippers took control late in the third. Crawford’s long 3-pointer at the buzzer closed an 18-5 Los Angeles run at the end of the period to go up 82-73.Los Angeles then extended its lead to 96-80 midway through the fourth.Crawford, who averages 15.3 points per game in his career and will turn 37 in two weeks, was in single digits in five of his previous six games.The Clippers are 6-6 on the second of back-to-back games. In those cases, Los Angeles won its first five, then lost six in a row before Saturday’s win. … The Clippers won their first game in 10 tries after trailing at halftime on the road…..Bobby Portis scored 11 points and was in double figures for the third straight game. It was the first such streak for him this season. … The Bulls failed to record a blocked shot for the second time this season. … The Bulls’ 30 second-half points were a season low for any half this season. Their 12 points in the third quarter tied their fewest points in any quarter.

ROSEMONT—Trevon Bluiett scored 24 points, added 10 rebounds, and Xavier closed out the regular season with a much-needed 79-65 win over DePaul on Saturday.Xavier (19-12, 9-9 Big East), once ranked as high as No. 7, had lost six in a row and is in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament altogether.The Musketeers and Blue Demons will meet again Wednesday in the opening round of the Big East Tournament.Malcolm Bernard added 13 points for Xavier, which hit 10 3-pointers, won the rebounding battle, and finished with just nine turnovers.Billy Garrett Jr. led DePaul (9-22, 2-16) with 17 points while Eli Cain added 15. The Blue Demons shot just 40 percent and 6 of 21 from long range.DePaul kept the score close most the game but Xavier pulled away late. A Bluiett 3 gave the Musketeers a 72-61 lead, which they extended to 17 three possessions later.It was DePaul’s final home game at Allstate Arena(nee Rosemont Horizon)which was their home since 1980-81. The Blue Demons move into brand new Wintrust Arena near McCormik Place next season.

ST. LOUIS—MiKyle McIntosh scored 15 points and No. 1 seed Illinois State never trailed in a 63-50 win over fourth-seeded Southern Illinois on Saturday to advance to the Missouri Valley Conference tournament final.Paris Lee added 12 points, including 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range, and Phil Fayne grabbed 11 rebounds for the Redbirds, who will play second-seeded Wichita State on Sunday for the championship.Illinois State (27-5) rolled to a 43-20 halftime lead. A 3-pointer from Tony Wills early in the second half gave the Redbirds their largest advantage of the game, 52-22, before SIU used a 16-2 run to trim the gap back to 13 late in the game.Sean Lloyd led Southern Illinois (17-16) with 12 points and Mike Rodriguez had 11.The victory extended ISU’s record for most wins in a season.

PISCATAWAY—DeShawn Freeman scored 21 points and hit a 3-pointer with seven seconds left to lead Rutgers past Illinois 62-59 on Saturday.Freeman hit the game-winner from the wing, before flinging Tracy Abram’s missed 3-point attempt into the student section.Illinois led 44-34 after Michael Fink made a 3-pointer with 14:44 to go but Rutgers (14-17, 3-15 Big Ten) rallied, taking a 55-54 lead with five minutes remaining after Corey Sanders scored six straight points.Malcolm Hill and Maverick Morgan each scored 16 points for Illinois (18-13, 8-10).Corey Sanders had 17 points for Rutgers.

The Illini ended the regular season winning four out of five, but the loss may end its NCAA Tournament hopes and coach John Groce’s tenure…..The Scarlet Knights end a once promising regular season. After an 11-2 start under first-year coach Steve Pikiell, Rutgers managed to win just three games in the Big Ten. However, that matches the total from the first two seasons…..Illinois will head back East for the Big Ten Tournament in Washington.

Artemi Panarin scored with 1:14 left in regulation and then had the clinching goal in the shootout, helping the Blackhawks beat the New York Islanders 2-1 on Friday night for their sixth consecutive victory.Jonathan Toews also scored in the tiebreaker as the Hawks pulled within one point of idle Minnesota for the top spot in the Western Conference. Corey Crawford made 31 saves in his first start since Feb. 23.After Toews beat Thomas Greiss with a wrist shot, Crawford turned away Joshua Ho-Sang. Patrick Kane was stopped by Greiss and Nikolay Kulemin shot it off the right post before Panarin finished off the victory for the Blackhawks.Greiss made 30 stops for New York, and Brock Nelson scored his 14th goal in the second. The Islanders had won four of five, including a 5-4 victory at Dallas on Thursday night.

ST. LOUIS—Deontae Hawkins scored 19 points, Keyshawn Evans had 16 and Illinois State set a program record on Friday with its 26th win, beating Evansville 80-69 on Friday in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament quarterfinals.Paris Lee added 13 points with seven assists and DJ Clayton had 12 points for the Redbirds (26-5), who blocked a tournament and school record 14 shots. Hawkins, Phil Fayne and Daouda Ndiaye had four blocks apiece.The Redbirds face Southern Illinois in a semifinal on Saturday.ISU, the top seed, shot 51 percent (27 of 53), had five more 3-pointers and was plus-six at the foul line but didn’t put away the Purple Aces (16-17) until they made 7 of 8 free throws in the closing minute.Jaylon Brown, who had 24 points, scored four points and Christian Benzon had a layup as Evansville quickly cut a 10-point deficit down to 73-69 with less than a minute to play. But the Redbirds made their free throws and the Purple Aces missed their last two shots.Benzon had 11 points and 10 rebounds and David Howard scored 14 points for Evansville.

ST. LOUIS—Mike Rodriguez scored 16 points, Sean Lloyd had 14 and fourth-seeded Southern Illinois held off fifth-seeded Loyola 55-50 on Friday in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament.A week after the Salukis (17-15) beat the Ramblers (18-14) 72-70 with a late 3-pointer to close the regular season, both teams struggled.Southern Illinois, which faces top-seeded Illinois State in a semifinal on Saturday, led 49-41 on a Rodriguez layup with 1:14 to play. But the Salukis missed 6 of 10 free throws in the last minute, including the front end of two 1-and-1s.The Ramblers made four free throws to make it 50-45 before SIU’s Armon Fletcher got behind the press for a dunk. A 3-pointer by Milton Doyle with 13 seconds to go cut the deficit to 52-48 before Rodriguez made two free throws at 11.6 to seal it.Both teams struggled in the first half – Loyola had 14 turnovers, SIU nine – with the Salukis leading 23-20.The Ramblers shot 27 percent in both halves but had six 3s in the second. Ben Richardson knocked down his first five before missing his last six and scored 16 points.

Jimmy Butler scored 22 points and the Bulls beat Golden State 94-87 on Thursday night in the Warriors’ first game since Kevin Durant injured his left leg.Golden State was breathing a little easier after learning Durant probably will play again this season. He was hurt two nights earlier in a loss at Washington.The NBA-leading Warriors’ league-record regular-season streak without consecutive losses ended at 146 games.Stephen Curry scored 23 points, and Klay Thompson finished with 13. The star guards combined to hit just 3 of 22 3-pointers, and the Warriors made it back-to-back losses for the first time since April 2015.Bobby Portis added 17 points and a season-high 13 rebounds for the Bulls,who outscored Golden State 10-2 over the final three minutes to wipe out a one-point deficit and come away with their fifth win in six games.Butler made all 10 free throws and had five rebounds and six assists. And Portis had his best game of the season.Durant is scheduled to be examined again in about a month. If the eight-time All-Star is ready to return at that time, there would be about two weeks left in the regular season.Of course, the Warriors have won big without Durant. They captured the championship two years ago and followed that up with a league-record 73 wins last year.The Warriors, who beat the Bulls by 31 at home last month, were leading 85-84 when Butler hit two free throws with 2:53 left to start the game-ending run.Wade buried a fadeaway jumper and Paul Zipser nailed a 3-pointer from the right wing to make it 91-85 with 1:41 left.

NOTES—Steve Kerr coached the game after missing the morning shootaround because of a stomach illness. … Thursday marked the 55th anniversary of Wilt Chamberlain’s record 100-point game for the Philadelphia Warriors against the New York Knicks…..Michael Carter-Williams missed his third consecutive game because of knee tendinitis. … Zipser had been sidelined by tendinitis in his left ankle…..The Bulls host the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday.

EVANSTON—Dererk Pardon scored on a layup at the buzzer off a long inbound pass from Nathan Taphorn to give Northwestern a 67-65 victory over Michigan on Wednesday night.The Wolverines’ Zak Irvin had just missed a 3-pointer in the closing seconds. The ball got knocked out of bounds and, after timeout, Taphorn threw a baseball style pass the length of the court, hitting Pardon in stride for the winning shot.As the buzzer sounded, fans packing Welsh-Ryan Arena poured onto the court. The win was just what the Wildcats (21-9, 10-7 Big Ten) – trying to make their first NCAA Tournament – needed after dropping five of seven.Vic Law scored 18 for Northwestern. Bryant McIntosh added 13 points and five assists, and the Wildcats matched their highest conference win total since the 1932-33 team tied for the Big Ten championship.Derrick Walton Jr. shook off a slow start to score 15 for Michigan (19-11, 9-8). He hit 4 of 8 3-pointers. Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman finished with 13 points. Irvin scored 12 and Moritz Wagner grabbed 10 rebounds. But the Wolverines took the loss after winning five of six.Wagner had just been called for a lane violation attempting the front end of a one-and-one when McIntosh whipped a pass to Sanjay Lumpkin to give Northwestern a 65-63 lead with 1:47 remaining.Irvin tied it on a put-back with 1:28 remaining. Both teams missed some chances to take the lead, but Northwestern came out on top thanks to a perfect pass from Taphorn to Pardon.The Wildcats, who looked like a lock for the NCAA a few weeks ago, can breathe a little easier after a rough stretch…..Northwestern closes the Regular Season against Purdue in the final game at Welsh-Ryan Arena until the 2018-19 season. The Wildcats will play next year at Allstate Arena in Rosemont while their facility undergoes a $110 million renovation.

CHAMPAIGN—Too many times, Illinois had fallen to pressure.In a season filled with disappointment for Illinois coach John Groce and his team, Wednesday’s 73-70 win over Michigan State showed the team Groce thought he would have all season, and one players knew they could be.The Spartans fought all the way, erasing a couple of double-digit leads, but the Illini relied on a defense that’s grown stronger in the last few games.

”It just feels different,” said Malcolm Hill, who led the Illini with 22 points. ”I think it’s just clicking for us.”

Michigan State had a chance to win the game in the last 10 second, but Miles Bridges missed a layup when Illinois’ Te’Jon Lucas stripped the ball away.Illinois led 73-70 with three seconds left after Kipper Nichols made one of two free throws and Lourawls Nairn Jr. attempted a 3-pointer with the game clock expiring, but the shot caromed off the backboard, securing the Illini win.Hill scored 22 points on 6 of 16 shooting and helped the Illini control the pace for what was a close game for much of the night – leading for 25:33.Much of the success came from hot shooting. Illinois (18-12, 8-9 Big Ten) shot 45 percent from the field and 11-26 from 3-point range.But the key was a strong defensive effort that has helped Illinois win four straight and five of the last six games.For a team that has gone through a clich rollercoaster ride this season, Illinois still has a postseason shot with one game left. Insiders and fans may not have seen that coming after the rough start to the season.

”It was a high-level game, there was a lot of emotion both ways,” Groce said. ”It’s kind of cool when you’re still playing for something.”

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo had fewer answers on the other hand.His team shot 48 percent from the field, 8-21 from 3-point range, out-rebounded Illinois 33-25, but despite all the category wins, the Spartans couldn’t overcome Illinois and only led for 8:40.Izzo was worried about his team’s confidence after the Spartans beat No. 16 Wisconsin on Sunday, and he was right to be worried.

”It was not the focus that we need on the road to beat a good, experienced team,” Izzo said. ”I’m just disappointed. We didn’t do enough.”

Bridges led the way for Michigan State (18-12, 10-7 Big Ten) with 21 points and Alvin Ellis III scored 15 points, 13 of which came in the second half. The Spartans turned the ball over 15 times.Izzo’s team has one more game before the postseason starts. He wants an accountable team, and is eager to see how the Spartans respond.

”This time I thought the players did not bring what they needed to bring, and we’ll find a way to bring it to Maryland,” Izzo said.

Izzo can’t be happy with his team, losing a game that it should’ve won. With a game left in the season, the Spartans are poised for strong runs in both the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.The Illini won arguably their most important game of the season. A win against Rutgers and a few more in the Big Ten Tournament might be enough for an NCAA Tournament berth and save Groce’s job.Freshman guard Te’Jon Lucas continued to make flashy plays Wednesday. With 5:52 left in the game, the guard made a no-look pass to give Leron Black an uncontested dunk.Kipper Nichols continued a strong first season, scoring five points and bringing in three rebounds and one steal.Bridges had a strong start to the game, scoring seven points and bringing in six rebounds in the first 10 minutes of the game.Illinois travels to Rutgers on Saturday for its regular season finale.