Nothing Is Super About Seattle in Loss

The Utah Jazz took over first place in the Western Conference by not playing, and the Lakers made up some ground by sitting around too.

The SuperSonics merely slept in Seattle on Monday night, losing to Phoenix, 102-92, when Danny Manning scored 23 points and Rex Chapman made two key shots down the stretch.

The victory was the fifth in a row for the Suns, who had to hang on to break a 12-game Seattle home winning streak.

Chapman’s three-point basket gave Phoenix a 96-86 lead with 1:55 to play. After the SuperSonics closed to 96-90, Chapman made a 17-footer to make it a 98-90 lead with 54.6 seconds left.

“This was a big win for us against the best team in the league,” said Sun Coach Danny Ainge. “This gives us a lot of confidence going into the playoffs.”

Phoenix closed to within 1 1/2 games of San Antonio for homecourt advantage in the first round.

Seattle dropped percentage points behind Utah and only 1 1/2 game ahead of the third-place Lakers.

Portland 79, San Antonio 75--Rasheed Wallace scored 28 points, including two on key free throws down the stretch, for the Trail Blazers, who won at San Antonio.

New Jersey 125, Charlotte 115--Sam Cassell had 35 points and 11 assists for the Nets, who won at East Rutherford, N.J., to move a game ahead of Washington for the eighth and final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference. Orlando (38-38) is still 1 1/2 games behind, despite beating Philadelphia.

Orlando 113, Philadelphia 92--Nick Anderson scored 34 points for the Magic in a win at Orlando that ended a losing streak at three games.

Anderson made his first seven shots and finished 13 for 20.