Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The Lakers take on the Bobcats in Charlotte, the Habs host the Hawks, and the NIT semifinals get underway in New York City.

Tipping off on the hardwood  . . .

Kobe Bryant and the Lakers will be looking to get in the way of the Bobcats’ playoff aspirations on Tuesday night when the two teams collide in Charlotte. The Lakers, who are cruising to the top overall seed in the Western Conference, fell 86-76 in Atlanta on Sunday, with Bryant scoring just 17 points. The Bobcats are looking to catch the Pistons or Bulls for eighth place in the Eastern standings, and they helped their cause Saturday by picking up a 96-85 win over the Knicks.

There are eight other games on the NBA’s schedule for Tuesday, including Detroit at Cleveland and Chicago at Indiana. As well, it’ll be Atlanta at Philadelphia, Dallas at Minnesota, Oklahoma City at San Antonio, New York at Denver, New Orleans at Sacramento, and Utah at Portland. The Jazz and Trail Blazers are both looking to catch Denver for first place in the Northwest Division.

Betting picks…

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Taking a trip around the rink . . .

The race for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference continues on Tuesday night as Montreal hosts Chicago and Florida gets a visit from Ottawa. The Canadiens fell 4-3 in overtime to the Sabres on Saturday, but at least managed to pick up one point in the standings. The Panthers knocked off Dallas 6-3 on Saturday, and they now trail the Canadiens by one point for eighth place.

It’s Nashville at Columbus, Vancouver at Minnesota, and Anaheim at Edmonton in the key Western Conference clashes on the National Hockey League schedule for Tuesday night as those teams scramble to get into postseason position down the stretch. As well, East-leading Boston will play host to Tampa Bay, and the fading Stars will be looking for some signs of life when they travel to Los Angeles.

Rounding out the Roundup . . .

The National Invitational Tournament stages its semifinal round at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night, with Baylor vs. San Diego State and Notre Dame vs. Penn State. Baylor edged Auburn 74-72 in the quarterfinals, while San Diego State got past St. Mary’s 70-66; the Bears are 1-point favorites on Tuesday with the total at 136 points. Notre Dame knocked off Kentucky 77-67 last round, and Penn State rolled past Florida 71-62; the oddsmakers have the Fighting Irish pegged as 4-point favorites, with the game’s total now at 138 points.

As well, the championship game of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament will take place on Tuesday night, with Old Dominion at Bradley. The Braves got past Pacific 59-49 in the semifinal round of the tournament, and the oddsmakers have them listed as a slim 1-point favorite in the championship game (with the total at 127.5 points). The Monarchs are coming off an 81-43 win over James Madison.