Stephen Curry scores 29 on his 29th birthday
OAKLAND, California: Stephen Curry scored 29 points on his 29th birthday and the Golden State Warriors used a frenetic fourth-quarter rally to end a three-game skid with a 106-104 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night.
Dario Saric intentionally missed his second free throw with 2.6 seconds remaining to try to give the Sixers one last shot, but Curry secured the ball.
Curry struggled to knock down open 3-pointers again but came through from deep with 5:38 left and again with a key baseline 3 at 3:42. Matt Barnes hit one a minute later from the opposite corner for a 104-99 lead.
Curry’s jumper with 9:55 to play pulled the Warriors within 90-86 after Golden State trailed 90-78 to begin the final quarter. Draymond Green’s 3 at 8:04 made it a onepoint game, and Shaun Livingston gave Golden State the lead the next time down.
Klay Thompson scored 28 and Green 20 points, eight assists, eight rebounds and six blocks for the Warriors, who trailed by as many as 16 in the third. CAVALIERS 128, PISTONS 96: LeBron James got his 52nd career triple-double, Kyrie Irving scored 26 points and Cleveland used a blazing start to overpower Detroit.
James picked up his 10th tripledouble of the season and third in the last four games at the 3:45 mark of the third quarter. In only 28 minutes, the four-time MVP finished with 16 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists.
Cleveland had lost four of five, but James helped them cruise in this one. He even overpowered a teammate at one point, flattening Irving while grabbing a rebound in the third quarter. James helped Irving to his feet then dribbled the ball up the floor.
122, NETS 104: Russell Westbrook had 25 points, 19 assists and 12 rebounds in his 33rd triple-double of the season, and Oklahoma City beat Brooklyn.
Westbrook shot just 6 of 18 from the field after scoring 40 or more points in five of his previous eight games, but as usual he was the dominant player on the floor even when his shot did not fall.
He was loudly cheered throughout the night by what appeared a full and lively crowd despite a winter storm that pounded New York on Tuesday, and the fans roared when he grabbed his 10th rebound with just under-five minutes to play for the 70th tripledouble of his career.
Victor Oladipo added 21 points for the Thunder, who won their third straight game. Enes Kanter had 17 points and Brooklyn native Taj Gibson finished with 17 points and eight rebounds. KNICKS 87, PACERS 81: Carmelo Anthony scored 15 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, Derrick Rose added 16 points and New York overcame a 13-point third-quarter deficit to beat Indiana.
Knicks forward Kristaps Porzingis exited in the third quarter with a left leg injury. Rookie Willy Hernangomez replaced him and had 13 points and 16 rebounds.
New York had lost its last three games. Anthony also had 13 rebounds. PELICANS 100, TRAIL BLAZERS 77: DeMarcus Cousins scored 22 points, Anthony Davis had 15 points and 15 rebounds and New Orleans beat Portland.