The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Utah Jazz 114-98 at the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Thursday, ending their three-game losing streak.

With one more game to go in the regular season, the Thunder are in a favorable position for the play-in tournament as the 10th team in the Western Conference standings. By contrast, the Jazz are officially ruled out of the postseason after Thursday's loss, though the team hadn't shown much evidence of their ability to make it past the regular season since the All-Star break.

Having rested most of their regular rotating players, the Jazz trailed by double digits in the second half, but they still managed to make the Thunder, especially their ace Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (SGA), uncomfortable with smart zone defense in the second quarter. As a productive scorer who leads the NBA in penetrations per game, SGA only took two shots, both away from the rim, and missed them, managing zero points in this period.

The Jazz counted on Kris Dunn and Kelly Olynyk for offense on Thursday night. Dunn continued his recent efficient performance and shot 9-for-10 from the field to score 22 points, seven rebounds and eight assists for his side. Olynyk made six of his eight attempts in the paint to contribute a double-double of 16 points and 14 rebounds while delivering eight assists, though with seven turnovers.

SGA had a strong third quarter, scoring 11 points and dishing out two assists to help the Thunder extend their lead. Four of his backup teammates, Aaron Wiggins, Dario Saric, Isaiah Joe and Lindy Waters III, all scored double-digit points. The team will host the Memphis Grizzlies in their final game at the Paycom Center on Sunday. As long as the Thunder win that game, they are certain to appear in the play-in tournament.

Other games on Thursday (away teams come first):

Miami Heat 129-101 Philadelphia 76ers

Though both sides sent their best players to the competition at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Thursday, the Heat were had a more desperate need for a win. They drained 18 triples out of 39 attempts, 12 of which came from Tyler Herro, Max Strus and Kyle Lowry. Jimmy Butler went 9-for-12 from the field to produce 24 points for the Heat.

The 76ers trailed by 21 points (67-46) after the first half of Thursday's game and thus had both Joel Embiid and James Harden sit out the fourth quarter. Despite the loss, they remain third in the Eastern Conference thanks to their tiebreaker over the Cleveland Cavaliers. They will face either the Brooklyn Nets or the Heat in the first round of the playoffs.

Denver Nuggets 115-119 Phoenix Suns

Though the Nuggets rested all of their regular starters in Thursday's game, they held the Suns to the final minute of the competition at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Kevin Durant blocked a 3-pointer shot by Jeff Green when there were less then seven seconds left in the fourth quarter to keep the Suns' lead at four points. He played over 40 minutes to score a team-high 29 points after draining six triples. Chris Paul made seven 3-pointers for the Suns.

On the Nuggets' side, Bruce Brown and Reggie Jackson combined to drop 51 points and 10 assists. Brown scored in double digits in both quarters in the second half. The Suns, which rank fourth in the West, will not know who they will face in the first round of the playoffs until the regular season ends on Sunday. The Nuggets will need to wait longer until the play-in tournament is over.

Cleveland Cavaliers 118-94 Orlando Magic

Portland Trail Blazers 127-129 San Antonio Spurs