Warriors make some noise, bounce the Knicks
Ulis’ 3-point basket lifts Suns by Boston
NEW YORK — Stephen Curry’s shot still wasn’t falling, and that wasn’t the only strange thing.
Madison Square Garden’s decision to play no sound during warmups or stoppages in play in the first half Sunday created a silent setting that was more fitting for middle school than a nationally televised NBA game. “It was weird,” Curry said. Everything was back to normal by the end.
Curry broke out of a shooting slump with 31 points and moved into the top 10 on the NBA’s career 3-point list, and the Golden State Warriors bounced back from consecutive losses to beat the New York Knicks 112-105.
Klay Thompson added 29 points to help the Warriors end their first regular-season losing streak in nearly two years.
Curry scored 15 on 6-of-8 shooting in the third quarter, once the music came back. He noticed the lack of noise in the locker room before the game, saying the Warriors were trying to pump themselves up once they took the court.
“It felt like open gym, kind of,” Thompson said.
The Splash Brothers had dried up as Golden State dropped two in row following Kevin Durant’s knee injury, but they regained their touch Sunday. Curry hit five 3-pointers, passing Chauncey Billups for 10th place, and added eight rebounds and six assists.
Thompson had a 3-pointer and two other baskets during a late surge that allowed Golden State to pull away after leading by one midway through the fourth quarter.
“We knew we’d be fine, getting back to who we are,” Curry said.
SUNS 109, CELTICS 106: In Phoenix, rookie Tyler Ulis threw in a 3-pointer at the buzzer after a Boston turnover and the Suns came away with a wild victory over the Celtics.
The Suns’ Eric Bledsoe tied it at 106 with a reverse layup with four seconds to play.
Isaiah Thomas, who scored 35 points but missed a free throw with 11.9 seconds left, took the inbounds pass and the Suns’ Marquese Chriss knocked the ball away. Ulis grabbed it and tossed it up as the buzzer sounded.
Ulis scored a career-best 20 points. Bledsoe had 28 for the Suns, who have won three in a row for the first time this season
The Celtics were without usual starters Al Horford (right elbow sprain) and Avery Bradley (right hamstring strain).
PACERS 97, HAWKS 96: In Atlanta, Glenn Robinson III hit a 3-pointer with sixth-tenths of a second remaining, Paul George scored 34 points and Indiana rallied in the closing minutes.
Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer missed the game after getting suspended for bumping into a referee during Friday’s loss to Cleveland. Assistant Darvin Ham took his place.
JAZZ 110, KINGS 109 (OT): In Sacramento, Calif., Rudy Gobert tipped in George Hill’s missed jumper as time expired in overtime on a play that was initially ruled goaltending, and Utah beat the Kings.
After Willie Cauley-Stein made two free throws to give the Kings a 109-108 lead with 8.9 seconds remaining, Hill took an offbalance jumper from just outside of the key. Gobert, positioned underneath the hoop, reached up and tipped the ball in as the buzzer sounded. WIZARDS 115, MAGIC 114: In Washington, Bojan Bogdanovic scored 15 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter and made eight 3-pointers as the Wizards came back from 17 down to defeat Orlando. MAVERICKS 104, THUNDER
89: In Dallas, Seth Curry scored 22 points and Dirk Nowitzki had 18 points and 12 rebounds as the Mavericks beat Oklahoma City.
Russell Westbrook scored 29 for the Thunder after scoring more than 40 in each of his last four games. PELICANS 105, LAKERS 97: In Los Angeles, DeMarcus Cousins had 26 points and 15 rebounds, and New Orleans won for the first time with him in the lineup. The Lakers fell to 0-7 since the All-Star break.