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NBA roundup: Warriors’ Curry scores 51

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Sports Editor
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OAKLAND, Calif. — Stephen Curry poured in 26 of his season-high 51 points in the third quarter Wednesday night as the Golden State Warriors took their first lead of the game before pulling away late for a 128-114 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.

The nationally televised matchup of the league’s two highest-scoring teams lived up to its must-see billing, with both clubs easily surpassing their season averages as NBA commissioner Adam Silver looked on from courtside.

The Warriors fell behind by 22 points in the first quarter, but the rest of the night belonged to Golden State. Shooting guard Klay Thompson sank four 3-pointers to account for a majority of his 18 points for the Warriors, who won for a third consecutive time after two-game losing streak. Golden State improved to 23-2 at home this season.

Small forward Chandler Parsons scored 24 points for the Mavericks, who got 21 points and 17 rebounds from center Tyson Chandler.

Pacers 114, Pistons 109

INDIANAPOLIS — Point guard George Hill and small forward C.J. Miles celebrated their returns to the first unit by combining for 16 of the Pacers’ final 18 points, and Indiana won a shootout against Detroit.

Hill finished with 20 points and six assists, making eight of 12 shots,. Miles scored 15, including consecutive 3-pointers late in the fourth quarter that gave Indiana the lead for good. Center Roy Hibbert had 16 points, 12 rebounds and three blocked shots for the Pacers, who set season highs in points, field-goal percentage (.597) and 3-point percentage (.571).

Center Andre Drummond led the Pistons with 18 points and 16 rebounds.

Celtics 104, Nuggets 100

BOSTON — The Celtics capped a day of Boston celebration with a victory over Denver. Hours after the city held its latest duck boat parade, this one for the NFL champion New England Patriots, the Celtics won for the second time in 24 hours, following a wire-to-wire win over the Knicks in New York with another strong effort.

With Patriots owner Robert Kraft and some of his players among a crowd that included all kinds of empty seats, the Celtics shot 9-for-13 from 3-point range in the first half and then survived after blowing a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter.

Forward Jared Sullinger snapped a 100-100 tie with two free throws with 22.8 seconds left. Forward Jae Crowder then stole the Denver inbounds pass after a timeout and guard Avery Bradley bagged two free throws with 18.3 to play. Bradley and guard Marcus Thornton each scored 17 for Boston. Nuggets guard Ty

Lawson scored 17 of his 23 points and had five of his eight assists in the second half.

Hawks 105, Wizards 96

ATLANTA — The Hawks, who had their 19-game winning streak snapped Monday in New Orleans, got back on the winning track at the expense of slumping Washington. Guard Jeff Teague scored 26 points and handed out eight assists, and forward Al Horford had 21 points and 13 rebounds for Atlanta.

It was the 11th consecutive victory at Philips Arena for the Hawks, who will host the Golden State Warriors on Friday in a matchup of the teams with the two best records in the NBA.

John Wall had 24 points and Bradley Beal scored 23 for the Wizards, who fell for the 13th time in their past 14 visits to Atlanta. Washington lost its fourth straight game overall.

Thunder 102, Pelicans 91

NEW ORLEANS — Guard Russell Westbrook exploded for a season-high-tying 45 points, including 25 in the first half, and keyed a 13-0 run late in the final 5:21 to lift the Oklahoma City past New Orleans.

The Pelicans led 91-89 with 5:39 left when forward Ryan Anderson canned a 3-pointer from the right baseline. However, in the final five minutes, Westbrook took over. He fed forward Serge Ibaka for a dunk to tie the score and then hit one of two free throws to put Oklahoma City up 92-91. Westbrook dribbled past Eric Gordon for a layup and added to the run with a 16-foot leaner, giving the Thunder a 100-91 lead.

The Pelicans were led by forward Anthony Davis with 23 points and eight rebounds. The Thunder were without All-Star forward Kevin Durant, who missed his second consecutive game with a toe injury.

Rockets 101, Bulls 90

HOUSTON — Bolstered by its bench, Houston held Chicago scoreless during the opening four-plus minutes of the fourth quarter en route to the win.

Houston opened the fourth quarter with a 13-0 run. The Rockets’ surge bumped the lead to 88-70 — a deficit too large for Chicago to overcome, even after a late push into single digits.

Butler finished with a game-high 27 points, and three Bulls posted double figures in rebounds: forwards Pau Gasol (16 points, 12 rebounds) and Taj Gibson (12 points, 10 rebounds) and center Joakim Noah (19 rebounds). Guard Derrick Rose added 23 points. Houston guard James Harden matched Butler for scoring honors with 27 points.

Timberwolves 102, Heat 101

MINNEAPOLIS — Kevin Martin scored 30 points, and Minnesota overcame a 10-point deficit with under 10 minutes to play to beat Miami.

The Heat had two chances to pull out the win in the final seconds, but guard Mario Chalmers missed on a drive to the net and guard Norris Cole came up short on a 25-foot shot at the final horn.

Minnesota overcame a monster night by Miami center Hassan Whiteside, who had 24 points and 20 rebounds, becoming the first Heat player to reach the 20-20 plateau since Shaquille O’Neal did it in 2004.

Grizzlies 100, Jazz 90

SALT LAKE CITY — Center Marc Gasol scored 23 points, and Memphis won for the eight straight time, beating Utah. Gasol hit nine of 18 shots from the field, scored 15 points in the second half, grabbed six rebounds and had four assists.

Power forward Zach Randolph contributed 18 points and 11 rebounds, and three other Grizzlies scored in double figures. The Grizzlies, who have won 12 of 13, have outscored opponents by an average of 13 points during the winning streak.

Point guard Trey Burke totaled 21 points, four assists and three rebounds off the bench for Utah.

Spurs 110, Magic 103

SAN ANTONIO — Forward Tim Duncan scored 26 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as San Antonio handed Orlando its 10th straight loss.

Forward Kawhi Leonard had 18 points, five assists and four steals for the Spurs. Guard Manu Ginobili made 10 assists.

Center Nikola Vucevic led Orlando with 25 points and 13 rebounds. Forward Tobias Harris had 23 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.

Bucks 113, Lakers 105

MILWAUKEE — Guard O.J. Mayo hit a 3-pointer with 0.5 seconds left to force overtime, and point guard Brandon Knight scored 12 of his 24 points in the extra session as Milwaukee extended its winning streak to five games

Knight struggled much of the game before hitting all three of his shots in overtime, including a pair of 3-pointers, while going 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.

His late surge complemented a career-high 25-point effort from forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, who hit 10 of 14 from the field and grabbed six rebounds. Bucks guards Kris Middleton and Mayo each added

Alan is an expert gambling writer who works as one of the chief editors for Basketball Insiders. He has been covering online gambling and sports betting for over 8 years, having written for the likes of Sportlens, Compare.bet, The Sports Daily, 90min, and TopRatedCasinos.co.uk. His particular specialisms include US online casinos and gambling regulations, and soccer and basketball betting. Based in London, Alan holds an MA in English Literature and is a passionate supporter of Chelsea FC.

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