Golden State Warriors beat Cleveland Cavaliers to move within a win of Western Conference top seed
Nuggets beat Blazers to stay on track for second; Celtics top Pacers in crucial encounter; Magic rout Hawks to go sixth in East
Saturday 6 April 2019 10:11, UK
Stephen Curry rebounded from his lowest-scoring game of the season with one of his best, bombing in a game-high 40 points on Friday night as the Golden State Warriors outlasted the Cleveland Cavaliers 120-114.
Cleveland Cavaliers 114-120 Golden State Warriors
Stephen Curry rebounded from his lowest-scoring game of the season with one of his best, bombing in a game-high 40 points on Friday night as the Golden State Warriors outlasted the Cleveland Cavaliers 120-114.
The victory allowed the Warriors (55-24) to move within one win of clinching the top seed in the Western Conference playoffs, which start next weekend.
In sweeping the season series from the Cavaliers for the second consecutive season, the Warriors led wire-to-wire but saw a 21-point lead shrink to 115-112 with 2:52 to play. Cleveland then had a chance to tie, but Collin Sexton misfired on a 3-point attempt.
When Curry countered at the other end with his ninth trey of the game, the Warriors had enough breathing room to coast home for a fourth straight win.
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Curry passed Paul Arizin (16,266) for third place on the Warriors' all-time scoring list, trailing only Wilt Chamberlain (17,783) and Rick Barry (16,447). Curry ended the night with 16,283 points.
Draymond Green backed Curry with 20 points, and Kevin Durant had 15 points, Quinn Cook 14 and Klay Thompson 11 for the Warriors, who outshot the Cavaliers 52.9 percent to 44.3 percent and outscored them 60-21 on 3-pointers.
Sexton, the third-leading scorer among rookies this season, bounced back from a 1-for-8 first half to spearhead the Cleveland rally with 27 points. He finished 10-for-21 from the field.
Cedi Osman (15 points), Larry Nance Jr. (13), David Nwaba (13), Tristan Thompson (12), Ante Zizic (12) and Jordan Clarkson (10) also scored in double figures for the Cavaliers, who were completing an eight-day, five-game Western swing.
Portland Trail Blazers 110-119 Denver Nuggets
Nikola Jokic finished with 22 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists and Paul Millsap scored 25 points as the Denver Nuggets beat the Portland Trail Blazers 119-110.
Jamal Murray scored 23 points to help the Nuggets clinch the Northwest Division and at least the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. Denver (53-26) maintained a slim chance at the top seed and a 1.5 game lead over the Houston Rockets for the second seed.
Enes Kanter had 24 points, Rodney Hood had 17 points and Al-Farouq Aminu had 12 points and 14 rebounds for Portland (50-29). Damian Lillard scored 14 points and missed all six of his three-point attempts.
Down three heading into the final 12 minutes, Jokic gave Denver a boost. He scored the team's first seven points of the period and put the Nuggets ahead 98-91 with a spin move and layup with 8:21 left.
After a Portland turnover, Jokic fed Torrey Craig for a layup and Monte Morris' long jumper gave Denver a 102-93 lead with 7:14 left.
Portland cut it to three but a bank shot by Murray and a putback by Craig made it 114-107 with 1:12 left. Craig, who finished with 18 points and seven rebounds, hit a 3-pointer with 12.5 seconds left to seal it.
New York Knicks 96-120 Houston Rockets
James Harden scored 26 points in 29 minutes as the host Houston Rockets cruised to a wire-to-wire, 120-96 victory over the league-worst New York Knicks.
Houston (52-28) earned their fifth straight win and 19th in 22 games by seizing control early. The Rockets led by double digits for the final 40:04, and by at least 20 points for the final 29:20. They went in front by as many as 42 points.
Harden shot 8 of 21 and hit five of Houston's 22 three-pointers. He added eight assists and eight rebounds. Eric Gordon and Kenneth Faried added 13 points apiece, while center Clint Capela collected 12 points and 15 rebounds. Chris Paul totalled 11 points and 10 assists in 24 minutes for Houston, who shot 42.6 percent from the floor.
The Rockets hit at least 10 three-pointers for the 54th straight game, one shy of the longest streak in NBA history, which they set last season.
Mario Hezonja posted a triple-double with 16 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists for the Knicks, who lost to Houston for the 26th time in the past 28 meetings.
The Knicks (15-64) lost for the 16th time in 18 games. They must win their remaining three games to avoid matching the worst record in team history, set in 2014-15 under coach Derek Fisher and team president Phil Jackson.
Boston Celtics 117-97 Indiana Pacers
Jayson Tatum scored 22 points and Gordon Hayward added 21 as the Boston Celtics took sole possession of fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings with a 117-97 road victory over the Indiana Pacers on Friday night.
Kyrie Irving scored 17 points for the Celtics (48-32), who stayed on track for home-court advantage in the upcoming NBA playoffs.
Hayward was 9 of 9 from the field and 3 of 3 from the free-throw line, while Aron Baynes had 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Celtics.
Myles Turner scored 15 points for the Pacers, who are having their troubles down the stretch, losing eight of their past 11 games. Indiana (47-33) entered Friday's game after consecutive victories over the Detroit Pistons.
While the fourth-place Celtics and fifth-place Pacers are in line to meet each other when the playoffs begin next weekend, Boston did move 1.5 games behind the third-place Philadelphia 76ers with games remaining at home against the Orlando Magic on Sunday and at the Washington Wizards on Tuesday to close out the regular season.
The Pacers conclude their schedule with a game at home against the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday and a visit to the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.
Toronto Raptors 111-113 Charlotte Hornets
Jeremy Lamb was the star again as the Charlotte Hornets remained alive in the playoff race with a thrilling 113-111 win over the visiting Toronto Raptors.
Lamb, who hit a memorable game-winner in Toronto last month, made a three-pointer with 3.3 seconds remaining to give the Hornets the lead, and then Charlotte held on when Kawhi Leonard's attempt wedged between the rim and the backboard with one second remaining.
The Hornets (37-42) had lost three of their previous four and were in a total "must-win" mode Friday night. They trailed by as many as 14 points in the first half but led by as many as nine early in the fourth quarter before Lamb's last-minute heroics.
Kemba Walker led the Hornets with 29 points. Lamb scored 22, and Frank Kaminsky also scored 22 while grabbing 13 rebounds.
Leonard led the Raptors with 29 points. Serge Ibaka had 20 points and 12 rebounds, and Kyle Lowry scored 16 points and handed out 11 assists. Pascal Siakam added 14 points, and Fred VanVleet had 12.
The Raptors (56-24) came into the game locked into the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoff race, with Milwaukee clinching the No. 1 spot on Thursday.
The Hornets, who have three regular-season games left, remain in the No. 10 spot in the Eastern Conference standings. They are two games behind the Brooklyn Nets and Detroit Pistons, who are tied for seventh place, and one game behind the ninth-place Miami Heat. Each of those teams has three games left, while the Orlando Magic have a half-game lead for the sixth spot but are down to two games.
Atlanta Hawks 113-149 Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic set an offensive season high with a 149-113 rout of the Atlanta Hawks in their final home game of the regular season.
It was the third-highest point total in Orlando's history. The Magic's scoring record is 155, set back in 1990. The Magic set a franchise record for points scored in a first half with 81 and led by as much as 38 in the opening half.
Nikola Vucevic, Evan Fournier and Terrence Ross led the offensive surge, scoring 25 points apiece. Vucevic added 11 rebounds for his 59th double-double of the season. Jonathan Isaac scored 12 points in the first quarter and finished with 18 in the game.
Orlando (40-40) moved up to sixth with its victory, and are back to .500 for the first time since December 4. If the Magic win their final two games, they would make the playoffs for the first time in six years -- the longest playoff drought in franchise history.
Orlando plays at Boston on Sunday before finishing up the regular season in Charlotte on Wednesday.
Trae Young had 22 points for the Hawks, and John Collins scored 20. Atlanta (29-51) has the fifth-worst record in the NBA.
Miami Heat 109 -111 Minnesota Timberwolves
Dario Saric and Gorgui Dieng scored 19 points each to lead the host Minnesota Timberwolves to a 111-109 win over the Miami Heat.
The loss was the third in a row for the Heat (38-41), who lost ground in their desperate fight to earn one of the eight spots in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Minnesota (36-43) are out of playoff contention but played spoiler. Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota's star seven-foot center, struggled with 11 turnovers, including four offensive fouls. He had an odd triple-double along with his 13 points and 12 rebounds.
Dwyane Wade led Miami with 24 points, including a steal at midcourt and a layup with 10 seconds left that cut the Heat deficit to 110-109.
After Keita Bates-Diop made one of two free throws to extend Minnesota's lead to two points, Miami called timeout with 4.7 seconds left. After the timeout, the in-bounds pass went to Wade at the top of the key. Wade pump-faked three times and also did a spin before missing a 3-pointer off the back of the rim, sealing Miami's loss.
Dion Waiters was another Heat high scorer with 22 points. Just three of Wade's 24 points came in the second half as most of Miami's shooters went cold. Heat point guard Goran Dragic had 15 points -- just one after halftime.
Detroit Pistons 110-123 Oklahoma City Thunder
Paul George scored 30 points, and Russell Westbrook sealed his third consecutive season averaging a triple-double as the Oklahoma City Thunder posted a 123-110 win over the Detroit Pistons.
The game was critical to both teams' playoff positioning, and it was the Thunder who came out ahead, winning for the second consecutive game and the fourth time in seven games.
The Thunder (46-33) remain in seventh place in the Western Conference, a half-game ahead of the San Antonio Spurs, who also won Friday.
The Pistons (39-40) lost for the third consecutive game and for the sixth time in their past eight. Detroit fell into a tie for seventh in the Eastern Conference with the Brooklyn Nets, just a game ahead of the ninth-place Miami Heat.
Westbrook finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and 15 assists a game after recording the second-ever 20-20-20 game in league history. Jerami Grant also scored 19 for Oklahoma City.
The Thunder won despite a monster game from Blake Griffin, who had missed the previous three contests due to knee soreness. Griffin finished with 45 points, making a career-high nine three-pointers in his home state.
It took just four Thunder possessions for Westbrook to pick up three assists and seal his triple-double season average. Westbrook is the only player to accomplish the feat in back-to-back seasons.
Sacramento Kings 98-119 Utah Jazz
Grayson Allen scored a career-best 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting as the Utah Jazz won their season-best seventh straight game with an easy 119-98 triumph over the Sacramento Kings.
Utah scored the game's first 13 points and never trailed. Donovan Mitchell recorded 23 points and nine assists as red-hot Utah won for the 12th time in 13 games. Rudy Gobert contributed 17 points, 11 rebounds, four blocked shots and three steals, and Joe Ingles added 17 points and seven assists for the Jazz.
Utah has won by 20 or more points on seven occasions during the 13-game stretch. The Jazz (49-30) are one win away from reaching the 50-victory mark for the second time in three seasons.
Buddy Hield scored 17 points for the Kings, and Marvin Bagley III added 13 points and 12 rebounds despite 4-of-16 shooting. Yogi Ferrell tallied 13 points, and Nemanja Bjelica and Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 10 points apiece.
The Kings (39-41) need to win their final two games to reach .500 and end a streak of 12 straight losing seasons. Sacramento hosts the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday and finishes the season by visiting the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.
Kings point guard De'Aaron Fox departed in the second quarter due to a right foot injury. Power forward Derrick Favors (back) and swingman Kyle Korver (knee) each remained sidelined for the Jazz. Point guard Ricky Rubio (hamstring) returned after a one-game absence but played just five first-quarter minutes before exiting with a quadriceps injury.
San Antonio Spurs 129-112 Washington Wizards
LaMarcus Aldridge led eight San Antonio players in double figures with 24 points, and the visiting Spurs routed the Washington Wizards 129-112.
Rudy Gay had 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting, and Bryn Forbes and Patty Mills scored 17 points each for the Spurs (46-34). San Antonio remained in eighth place in the Western Conference, a half-game behind the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Bradley Beal scored 25 points in 31 minutes for the Wizards (32-48), who have lost two straight games. Thomas Bryant had 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting, and Bobby Portis finished with 16 points and nine rebounds.
San Antonio, coming off a 28-point loss at Denver, shot 56 percent from the field for the game and outrebounded Washington 42-34.
Beal's layup early in the third quarter pulled the Wizards within 15 points, but Gay's three-pointer with 6:42 left in the third made it 89-68. A three by Beal cut the Spurs' lead to 98-84 late in the quarter, but San Antonio iced it with an 8-0 run early in the fourth quarter that included a four-point play by Forbes.
Los Angeles Lakers 122-117 Los Angeles Clippers
Alex Caruso scored 32 points and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 25 as the undermanned Los Angeles Lakers pulled off a 122-117 victory over the playoff-bound Los Angeles Clippers.
Caruso, who is on a two-way contract with the Lakers and did not make his first start for them until Thursday, shot 5 of 7 from three-point range. He had career highs in points and rebounds (10) while adding five assists.
Danilo Gallinari scored 27 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 20 as the Clippers lost their second consecutive game after a stretch when they had won eight of nine.
The Clippers remain in the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference, but they are just a half-game ahead of the seventh-place Oklahoma City Thunder with two games to play.
The Clippers led by as many as 12 points in the third quarter and appeared to be on their way toward an easy victory when the Lakers made their charge, making eight of their 12 three-point attempts in the final period.
Rajon Rondo, who wound up with 15 points and 12 assists, hit three fourth-quarter three-pointers as the Lakers managed to win for the fifth time in their past eight games playing with a limited roster that did not include LeBron James (out for season, rest), Lonzo Ball (ankle), Kyle Kuzma (foot) and Brandon Ingram (shoulder).
Memphis Grizzlies 122-112 Dallas Mavericks
Delon Wright recorded a triple-double as the Memphis Grizzlies went on the road to defeat the Dallas Mavericks 122-112.
Wright, who came into the game averaging 8.2 points per game, connected on 10 of 19 shots from the field and finished with 26 points to go along with 10 rebounds and 14 assists.
Justin Holiday added 20 points for the Grizzlies, who snapped a two-game losing streak without floor general Mike Conley, who was ruled out with left ankle soreness, and Wright started in his place.
The game was significant in the fact the two teams came into play on Friday with identical 31-47 records. With just three games left, the loss gives the Mavericks the inside track for a higher draft pick.
The Mavericks lost their second straight game and were led by Courtney Lee's 21 points and seven assists. Justin Jackson added 19 points. Dirk Nowitzki, who most likely will be retiring at the end of the season, went 5-for-12 from the field and finished with 12 points.
The Mavericks held out rookie Luka Doncic with a right thigh contusion.
New Orleans Pelicans 126-133 Phoenix Suns (OT)
Josh Jackson scored 35 points, including eight in overtime, as the Phoenix Suns held off the New Orleans Pelicans for a 133-126 victory.
Jamal Crawford added 28 points, Ray Spalding had a career-high 21 points and 13 rebounds, Troy Daniels scored 14, and Dragan Bender had 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Suns, who went 2-3 on a five-game homestand.
Phoenix were without five key players, including guard Devin Booker, who suffered a season-ending ankle injury in a home loss to Utah on Wednesday.
Julius Randle had 31 points and 14 rebounds, Ian Clark scored a season-high 24 points and Christian Wood scored 17 to lead the Pelicans. Elfrid Payton had 14 points and 12 assists, Cheick Diallo had 12 points and 11 rebounds and Jahlil Okafor added 11 points as New Orleans lost for the 12th time in 14 games.
Phoenix scored the first four points of overtime and took command when Jackson's second three-pointer of the period gave them a 129-121 lead with 1:23 left.