Curry, Thompson help short-handed Warriors rout Bulls
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Stephen Curry put on a thrilling display with 33 points to lead the Golden State Warriors over the Chicago Bulls 143-94 on a night Kevin Durant and Draymond Green were out.
Curry and Klay Thompson came to play Friday night with their fellow All-Stars out. Durant was sidelined the second time in three games with a sprained left ankle, while Green didn't play for rest.
Curry found his stroke from way back and breezed past a 7-footer in the paint with authority. The two-time MVP notched his seventh career 30-point half and 21st 20-point quarter, when he scored 26 in the second as the Warriors matched their biggest half of the season with a 74-53 lead at intermission.
Steph was feeling it, all right, following up a deep 3 in the second quarter with a high-step shuffle and chest pat before waving his hands in the air for the crowd to join the fun. And with Green's muscle flexing absent on this night, Curry drove left and over 7-foot Robin Lopez for a layup late in the second and was fouled. On the floor beneath the basket, he flexed his biceps in celebration.
He shot 10 for 18 with four 3-pointers, while Thompson added 29 points on 12-of-17 shooting with five 3s. Big man Zaza Pachulia had a season-best 11 points and career-high six assists.
Jerian Grant scored 21 points for the Bulls.
CELTICS 118, MAGIC 103
BOSTON (AP) - Kyrie Irving scored 17 of his 30 points in a blistering first half and Boston routed Orlando.
One game after ending their streak of 16 consecutive victories, the Celtics scored 40 points in the first quarter and 73 by halftime - both season highs - to send the Magic to their seventh straight loss. Aron Baynes finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds, and Al Horford had 10 assists.
Still wearing a mask after breaking a bone in his face on Nov. 10, Irving was 9 for 15 from the floor and sank all 10 of his free throw attempts, many with the sold-out crowd chanting ''M-V-P!''
Rozier had a career-high 23 points for Boston, which also topped its season high for points.
Jonathon Simmons scored 14 points for Orlando.
CAVALIERS 100, HORNETS 99
CLEVELAND (AP) - LeBron James had 27 points, 16 rebounds and 13 assists, J.R. Smith made the tiebreaking free throw with 48 seconds left, and Cleveland extended its winning streak to seven with a victory over Charlotte.
James had season highs in rebounds and assists in his 57th career triple-double. He's 41-6 in the regular season against Charlotte and the Cavaliers have won 12 of 13, including eight straight against the Hornets.
Dwight Howard had 20 points and 13 rebounds for Charlotte. The Hornets are 1-8 on the road.
PISTONS 99, THUNDER 98
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Andre Drummond had 17 points and 14 rebounds and Detroit overcame a 15-point deficit to beat Oklahoma City.
Russell Westbrook had his sixth triple-double of the season for Oklahoma City with 27 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds. He missed a long 3-point attempt on the final possession to finish 1 of 10 from 3-point range and 10 of 29 from the field.
Down 10 at the half, the Pistons took their first lead on Ish Smith's jumper in the fourth and expanded it to four on Luke Kennard's only basket of the night, a 3-pointer that made it 88-84.
Carmelo Anthony had 20 points for Oklahoma City, and Paul George had 16.
HEAT 109, TIMBERWOLVES 97
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) - Wayne Ellington scored 21 points and made six 3-pointers off the bench, Goran Dragic added 20 points and Miami had a season-best performance from behind the arc to beat Minnesota.
Dragic was 5 of 8 from 3 as Miami hit a season-high 19 3-pointers on a season-high 39 attempts. Dion Waiters added 17 points, including a 3-of-8 mark from deep.
Jimmy Butler, Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns each had 18 points for Minnesota.
HAWKS 116, KNICKS 104
ATLANTA (AP) - Dennis Schroder scored 26 points and Atlanta used a 30-point third quarter to snap a three-game losing streak and beat New York.
The Hawks, last in the Eastern Conference with a 4-15 record, won just their second home game by outhustling New York with a 24-5 advantage in second-chance points.
Kristaps Porzingis had 28 points, and Courtney Lee added 26 for the Knicks.
PELICANS 115, SUNS 91
PHOENIX (AP) - Anthony Davis had 23 points and nine rebounds, DeMarcus Cousins added 19 points and 10 boards and the New Orleans Pelicans routed the Phoenix Suns `115-91 on Friday night.
Davis and Cousins sat out the fourth quarter, watching from the bench long after the outcome had been decided in the Pelicans' most one-sided victory of the season.
New Orleans, coming off consecutive home victories over Oklahoma City and San Antonio, won its third straight with ease. T.J. Warren had 18 points, and Tyler Ulis 17 for Phoenix.
NUGGETS 104, GRIZZLIES 92
DENVER (AP) - Nikolo Jokic scored 14 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter and had 13 rebounds and eight assists to help Denver beat Memphis.
Gary Harris and Jamal Murray added 15 points apiece. The Nuggets won their fifth straight at home.
JaMychal Green had 21 points for the Grizzlies in their seventh loss in a row. It's the longest losing streak for the Grizzlies since a seven-game skid from Nov. 1-11, 2009.
PACERS 107, RAPTORS 104
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Victor Oladipo scored 21 points, Bojan Bogdonavic added 19 and Indiana beat Toronto.
Lance Stephenson had 13 of his 18 points in the final five minutes and shot 7 for 9 from the field, including 4 for 4 from 3-point range.
Kyle Lowry scored 12 of his 24 points in the second quarter for Toronto.
TRAIL BLAZERS 127, NETS 125
NEW YORK (AP) - Damian Lillard scored 34 points, Jusuf Nurkic had 29 and Portland overcame a late six-point deficit to beat Brooklyn.
CJ McCollum added 26 for the Trail Blazers. Spencer Dinwiddie had 23 for the Nets.
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