The Golden State Warriors ended the Phoenix Suns’ 18-game winning streak and reclaimed the top spot in the Western Conference on Friday night, riding a long-range barrage led by Stephen Curry to a 118-96 victory in San Francisco.
Curry finished with a game-high-tying 23 points, a majority coming on six of the Warriors’ 19 3-pointers, as Golden State avenged a 104-96 loss at Phoenix on Tuesday by handing the Suns their first loss since Oct. 27.
The win was the Warriors’ 11th straight at home, all of which have come by at least 10 points.
Deandre Ayton matched Curry’s 23 points to pace the Suns, whose 18-game winning streak was a franchise record and equaled the 11th-longest run in NBA history. Phoenix played a second consecutive game without leading scorer Devin Booker (hamstring).
76ers 98, Hawks 96
Joel Embiid hit a jumper with 42.8 seconds remaining to cap a game-ending 7-0 run as Philadelphia defeated host Atlanta.
Embiid had 28 points and 12 rebounds and Seth Curry added 18 points. Georges Niang contributed 13, Tyrese Maxey had 11 and Danny Green chipped in 10.
Trae Young led the Hawks with 25 points and 10 assists, while John Collins and Danilo Gallinari added 18 points each. Gallinari missed a 3-pointer as time expired, as the hosts finished with only nine points in the fourth quarter.
Rockets 118, Magic 116
Eric Gordon scored with 1.6 seconds left and Houston extended its winning streak to five games with a win over visiting Orlando.
Gordon tallied 24 points and Christian Wood scored 16 of his 20 points in the third quarter while adding 14 rebounds for Houston. Cole Anthony, who paired 26 points with seven assists, missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer for Orlando, which suffered its eighth loss in nine games.
The Rockets played the second half without guard Kevin Porter Jr., who posted eight points and six assists before aggravating a bothersome left thigh contusion late in the second quarter.
Clippers 119, Lakers 115
Marcus Morris Sr. had a season-high 21 points and Paul George added 19 as the visiting Clippers held on for a victory over the Lakers in the first meeting of the season between the intracity rivals.
Luke Kennard also had 19 points for the Clippers, including two late 3-pointers, while Reggie Jackson added 16 as the Clippers ended a three-game losing streak by winning a “road” game for the first time since Nov. 5.
Anthony Davis scored 27 points with 10 rebounds for the Lakers, while LeBron James had 23 points with 11 rebounds after missing Tuesday’s contest at Sacramento while in COVID-19 protocol. The Lakers saw their brief two-game winning streak come to an end.
Nets 110, Timberwolves 105
Kevin Durant scored 30 points as Brooklyn withstood a foul-plagued game and held off visiting Minnesota at New York.
Durant shot 9 of 18 from the field and made 12 of 13 free throws. He also grabbed 10 rebounds and handed out six assists in a game that featured 26 lead changes. Durant’s biggest shot of the night also provided the final margin.
D’Angelo Russell paced the Timberwolves with 21 points and 11 assists, but he shot 6 of 22 from the field. Anthony Edwards and Naz Reid added 19 apiece.
Jazz 137, Celtics 130
Donovan Mitchell put up a team-leading 34 points and Mike Conley added 29 points and seven assists as Utah outlasted visiting Boston in Salt Lake City.
Rudy Gobert totaled 18 points and 12 rebounds and Bojan Bogdanovic had 16 points for Utah, which earned a third straight win and has won seven of nine overall.
Jayson Tatum led all scorers with 37 points for the Celtics. Dennis Schroder scored 26, Al Horford had 21 with nine assists and Marcus Smart chipped in 15 points for Boston, which had won its previous two games.
Heat 113, Pacers 104
Kyle Lowry scored 26 points and dished out nine assists and Duncan Robinson broke out of his shooting slump as visiting Miami rolled to a win over Indiana at Indianapolis.
Indiana, which has lost four consecutive games, was led by Caris LeVert, who had 27 points. Pacers center Myles Turner had 20 points and three blocks, and teammate Domantas Sabonis had a game-high 16 rebounds to go with 14 points.
Miami, which had lost three of its previous four games, also got 18 points from Tyler Herro. Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo did not play for the Heat.
Cavaliers 116, Wizards 101
Darius Garland recorded a season-high 32 points and added 10 assists with a career-best eight rebounds to fuel visiting Cleveland to the victory over Washington.
Garland shot 11 of 17 from the floor and 5 of 6 from 3-point range to send Cleveland to its season-high-tying fourth straight win. Jarrett Allen notched his sixth straight double-double by registering 28 points and 13 rebounds for Cleveland, which outrebounded the Wizards 54-33.
Deni Avdija scored 16 points off the bench and Bradley Beal added 14 in a losing effort for the Wizards.
Pelicans 107, Mavericks 91
Brandon Ingram had 24 points and 12 assists and two teammates added double-doubles as visiting New Orleans defeated Dallas.
Jonas Valanciunas added 14 points and 11 rebounds, Willy Hernangomez had 12 points and 14 rebounds and Herbert Jones and Devonte’ Graham scored 13 each as the Pelicans bounced back from a 139-107 loss to the Mavericks two nights earlier.
Luka Doncic had 21 points and 10 rebounds, Jalen Brunson scored 16, Maxi Kleber had 13 and Tim Hardaway Jr. 12 for Dallas, which shot 40.5 percent from the floor after shooting a franchise-record 68.7 percent Wednesday.
–Field Level Media
