Curry, Thompson help short-handed Warriors rout Bulls
OAKLAND: 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.
CELTICS 118, MAGIC 103
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.
CAVALIERS 100, HORNETS 99 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.
PISTONS 99, THUNDER 98 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.
HEAT 109, TIMBERWOLVES 97 Wayne Ellington scored 21 points and made six 3pointers 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.—AP