Celtics march on, Durant sparks Nets comeback

With the identity of the six automatic playoff teams in the East already settled, the only issue remaining is to determine the final playoff seedings. Boston sits behind leaders Miami with two games remaining in the regular season.

With Miami poised to lock up the top spot, needing just one win from their games against Atlanta and lowly Orlando, all eyes are on the battle for second seed where Boston, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Philadelphia 76ers are in a three-way tussle. Milwaukee and Philadelphia's wins on Tuesday left all three teams locked on 49 wins apiece, meaning the Celtics' 50th win of the season on Wednesday allowed them to move one game clear of their rivals.

Brown spearheaded a dominant performance for the in-form Celtics, who led from start-to-finish and had five players in double figures. Al Horford weighed in with 17 points and 10 rebounds while Jayson Tatum finished with 16 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists as the Bulls -- occupying the sixth and final automatic playoff spot in the East -- fell to a third straight defeat.

"We just came out with a lot of energy," Horford said, revealing the team is determined to maintain their form after center Robert Williams sustained a serious knee injury last month.  "We understood it was an important game for us, we wanted to get back to the way we've been playing before Rob went down. We came out with a lot of good energy tonight and were able to sustain it for the whole game.

"For the past month we've been playing playoff-level basketball. This is what I expect from our guys." The Celtics' victory marks the first time since the 2017-2018 campaign that the franchise has posted 50 wins -- a source of pride for Boston coach Ime Udoka after his team's sluggish