The Associated Press Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham drives against Orlando Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. during the first half in Game 5 of a first-round NBA basketball playoffs series Wednesday.

The New York Knicks and Boston Celtics aim to advance to the second round of the NBA playoffs with road victories while the Denver Nuggets look to force a Game 7 against the injured Minnesota Timberwolves tonight.

Back-to-back losses have the Atlanta Hawks looking into their arsenal of defensive schemes and bench rotations as they search for an answer to defending a high-powered Knicks offense. Karl-Anthony Towns posted a triple-double on Saturday night as Atlanta sealed off Jalen Brunson. The roles were reversed on Tuesday night when a freed-up Brunson scored 39 points.

“Everyone’s going to make adjustments,” Towns said. “So just being prepared for whatever the defense throws at us and being able to react accordingly.”

Defensively, the Knicks have found a solution for CJ McCollum, who stole Games 2 and 3 with clutch offensive performances. The Hawks’ top scorers, Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, have struggled to replicate their regular-season success.

“Their defense never really let us establish consistently how we need to play to beat them,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said after Tuesday’s 126-97 loss. “We need to execute on who we are and what we’ve done to be a good team, and like I said, that’s hard against a team of their caliber.”

Meanwhile in Boston, 76ers’ center Joel Embiid proved he’d been what the team was missing in just his second game back after an appendectomy. The former league MVP paced Philadelphia with 33 points and led the team to a 113-97 road win.

“He (Embiid) was dominant, especially in the second half,” Tyrese Maxey said after the game. “He did a really good job of just inserting himself, and you know, I was proud of him tonight, man.”

The Sixers, with newfound momentum, will try to tie the series at home while the Celtics hope to punch their ticket to the Eastern Conference semifinals.

“It’ll take everything we’ve got,” Maxey said Tuesday. “It’ll take even more of an effort than it did tonight.”

The Timberwolves might not have lost their confidence or swagger with the injuries to star Anthony Edwards and sparkplug Donte DiVincenzo, but their discipline and focus sure disappeared in the Game 5 defeat in Denver.

Pistons stay alive

DETROIT — Cade Cunningham scored a franchise playoff-record 45 points, including a step-back jumper with 32 seconds left, and the top-seeded Detroit Pistons beat the eighth-seeded Orlando Magic 116-109 in Game 5 of their first-round series to stave off elimination.

Orlando leads the series 3-2 and will get a second chance to advance at home on Friday night.

Cavs go up 3-2

CLEVELAND — Dennis Schroder scored 11 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter, Evan Mobley hit a pair of pivotal 3-pointers in the final period and finished with 23 points, and the Cleveland Cavaliers rallied for a 125-120 victory over the Toronto Raptors in Game 5 of their first-round series.

Cleveland leads the series 3-2. Game 6 is Friday night in Toronto.

Twyman-Stokes award

New Orleans Pelicans center DeAndre Jordan was named the 2025-26 Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year in the NBA.

Presented annually since the 2012-13 season, the award recognizes the player deemed the league’s best teammate, based on selfless play, leadership on and off the court as a mentor and role model to other NBA players, and commitment to the team.

The award is named for Jack Twyman and Saint Francis legend Maurice Stokes, whose storied friendship transcended their Hall of Fame accomplishments.