BOSTON (AP) – Golden State guard Klay Thompson will sit out Friday night’s game at Boston as the unbeaten Warriors try to win their 24th straight game this season.
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Led by the efforts of guard Avery Bradley (19 points before fouling out) and swarming double-teams, Curry was forced into a 9-for-27 night from the field.
Curry’s performance was clutch if not efficient, as he made two critical free throws with just 13 seconds remaining in the second overtime that gave the Warriors a 122-119 lead. Andre Iguodala posted his own double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds with 5 assists while Festus Ezeli and Shaun Livingston added 12 points each.
“We will definitely cherish this, because it doesn’t happen often”, Warriors center Andrew Bogut said afterward.
“We appreciate [the streak] because we know that this hasn’t been done in history before, so every game we win from here on out is adding to that record”, Curry said.
“Exhausting, but it was fun”, was the way Curry described it. “Obviously it was nice to get the win but we had to claw our way to it. Everybody had a huge impact, had to dig deep and made the plays we needed to”.
Curry entered this night shooting 42 percent from 28 feet and beyond for the season.
While taking on mighty Golden State, not even Draymond Green, considered by many to be the most versatile defensive player in the National Basketball Association, could corral Olynyk.
Pacers 96, Heat 83: Monta Ellis had 24 points, six assists and six steals to help IN end a three-game losing streak. He’s just the third player ever to hit the 20-10-5-5-5 mark in a single game (Hakeen Olajuwon five times, Derrick Coleman once) according to ESPN. While the Celtics were fighting tooth and nail deep into the night, the Hornets were able to rest their regulars down the stretch in an impressive 123-99 win at Memphis on Friday.
Curry’s numbers looked gaudy, but the Celtics (13-10) made life extremely hard for the sharpshooter with a lightning-quick release. “They did a phenomenal job on him and he scored 38”. The highlight came when he curled into a quick-release three, the type of play he makes so regularly but hardly anyone else can replicate.
Curry had foul trouble, but returned to the court to score 12 points over nine fourth-quarter minutes.
In Orlando, LeBron James had 25 points and eight assists as Cleveland rolled past the Magic. But he was 6 for 13 from 3-point range and a ideal 14 of 14 from the free throw line.
Morris, a Philadelphia native, had 13 points in a decisive third-quarter stretch as Detroit (13-11) ended a four-game road losing streak and a three-game slide in Philadelphia. Before the game, the team announced that coach Brett Brown had signed a multiyear contract extension.
NEW ORLEANS – Tyreke Evans scored 27 points and New Orleans rallied to defeat Washington.
RAPTORS 90, BUCKS 83 (at Toronto) – DeMar DeRozan had 27 points and Toronto held off late-charging Milwaukee.
SALT LAKE CITY – Kevin Durant scored 21 points Friday night, including the last 11 for the Oklahoma City Thunder in a 94-90 win over the Utah Jazz.
Each team scored seven points in a sloppy first overtime. and Golden State scored just two points in the final 3:03 of the session.
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Spurs 109, Lakers 87: Rookie D’Angelo Russell of Ohio State had a career-high 24 points and added six assists and six rebounds for visiting Los Angeles.
