PHILADELPHIA — Derrick McKey hasn't forgotten how to score or defend. He did enough of each in the final minute Sunday to solidify Philadelphia's hold on a playoff berth.
McKey hit a corner jumper with 45 seconds left and forced Ray Allen into an airball on the final play of the game as the 76ers defeated Milwaukee 89-87, the Bucks' ninth consecutive road loss.
"I can't do what I used to do unless I'm telling a story about how good I was," quipped the 35-year-old McKey, a 14-year veteran who was signed by the Sixers in mid-January.
McKey shot 5-for-6 from the field and scored a season-high 10 points. Aaron McKie scored 15, including nine in the fourth quarter, as Philadelphia's reserves contributed 41 points.
Eric Snow had 15 points and a season-high 14 assists as the 76ers moved out of a tie with Milwaukee for sixth place in the Eastern Conference. The teams play again Tuesday at Milwaukee.
"I said to the guys when we huddled up: 'This is the biggest game of the year,"' Snow said.
In their eighth game since Allen Iverson broke his left hand, the 76ers sent the Bucks to their fifth loss in six games and took a 2-1 lead over Milwaukee in the season series.
After its rematch with the Bucks, Philadelphia finishes the season with two games against Washington and one each against Orlando, Chicago and Indiana.
A loss would have left the Sixers with just a one-game lead over the eighth-place team in the conference.
"This team, honestly, needed this desperately," coach Larry Brown said. "Look at the last five or six games with Allen out. Every game has been similar to this one and we haven't had much to show for it."
Ray Allen made a surprise return to the starting lineup for the Bucks and finished with 25 points, and Sam Cassell added 19. Glenn Robinson made his first four shots but missed his final nine, finishing with nine points.
Neither team led by more than seven in the physical game, a rematch of last season's Eastern Conference finals.
"This team is not ready. It's obvious we're living off last year," Bucks forward Anthony Mason said. "Other teams are making adjustments, and this team is not smart enough to realize that."
Before the game, Bucks coach George Karl said he will continue to bring Allen off the bench for two or three more games while limiting the guard's minutes because of a knee injury. But Karl changed his mind a few minutes before tipoff, and Allen got the start and made his first three shots — two of them 3-pointers.
Without Iverson, the Sixers looked to control the tempo and work the ball into the paint. Of their 48 first-half points, 28 came from inside.
Mason gave Milwaukee a 74-69 lead with 9:35 remaining in the fourth, but the Bucks struggled to score after that and didn't make their next field goal until 4:50 remained. In the meantime, McKie scored five consecutive points and McKey hit a corner jumper to give the 76ers an 80-76 lead with 5:27 left.
LAKERS 96, HEAT 88: At Miami, Shaquille O'Neal, returning from a wrist injury that sidelined him for two games, scored 40 points Sunday to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 96-88 victory over the Miami Heat.
The Heat lost for the eighth time in 10 games and moved closer to elimination from the playoff race. They are 11th in the Eastern Conference with six games left, five games behind eighth-place Toronto in the chase for the final berth.
The Lakers, who have five games remaining, moved a game ahead of third-place Dallas in the Western Conference.
O'Neal made 14 of 22 shots, grabbed 11 rebounds in 41 minutes and reached 40 points for the sixth time this season when he sank a free throw with 31 seconds left. His baskets included a fast-break layup when Robert Horry fed him with a behind-the-back pass.
The Lakers lost both games while O'Neal was sidelined, scoring 81 points and shooting 34 percent Friday against Boston, both season lows.
RAPTORS 94, PACERS 84: At Toronto, Alvin Williams scored 26 points as the surging Toronto Raptors moved into playoff position with a 94-84 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.
Toronto pulled a game ahead of the Pacers in the race for the eighth and final postseason berth in the Eastern Conference. Both teams have six games remaining, including Wednesday's rematch at Indiana.
The Raptors, on a remarkable roll since losing Vince Carter to a season-ending knee injury, set a franchise record with their eighth straight win after losing 17 of 18 games.
Antonio Davis had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Keon Clark had 15 points and nine rebounds for the Raptors.
Reggie Miller led the Pacers with 26 points. Jermaine O'Neal scored 24, and Brad Miller added 15 points and eight rebounds.
Toronto is just a game behind Milwaukee for seventh place and two back of sixth-place Philadelphia.
The Raptors lead the four-game season series 3-0, so if the teams are tied at the end of the regular season, Toronto would win the tiebreaker.
Chris Childs had nine points and eight assists for the Raptors, who are yet to lose since Carter had season-ending arthroscopic knee surgery March 26.
An 8-0 Raptors run midway through the fourth quarter helped give them their fourth straight win at home.
After Davis' two free throws gave the Raptors an 82-81 lead with 3:01 left, O'Neal missed a jumper and Clark grabbed the rebound.
Going the other way, Williams hit a 3-pointer as the crowd cheered and Toronto took an 85-81 lead. After Clark caused an Indiana turnover, Childs beat the shot clock with a 3.
Miller hit a couple of big 3-pointers of his own in the fourth, but Toronto responded both times.
Miller made an off-balanced 3 to tie it at 73 a minute into the fourth, then gave Indiana a 75-73 lead with 6:26 left on a pair of free throws.
His second 3-pointer was from the corner over Childs' outstretched arms to give Indiana its last lead, 81-78.
Davis' monster dunk with 51 seconds left gave the Raptors a 90-82 lead and put the game away.
The Pacers got some crisp shooting in the first half from Jonathan Bender, who nailed a 3-pointer to give Indiana a 45-40 lead with 1:28 to go.
The Raptors closed the half on a strong note when Williams stripped the ball from Bender a minute later and made two free throws. Davis also hit a pair of foul shots with 5 seconds left to give Toronto a 46-45 advantage at the half.