76ers beat Hornets despite Walker’s 60 points

LOS ANGELES: Philadelphia’s Jimmy Butler delivered the overtime dagger as the 76ers withstood 60 points from Kemba Walker (pic) in a 122119 NBA victory over the Charlotte Hornets.

Another nail-biter saw the two-time defending championS Golden State Warriors drop a 112-109 decision to the Mavericks in Dallas.

Slovenian rookie Luka Doncic scored 24 points, including the jump shot that put Dallas ahead for good with 1:10 remaining.

The Warriors, missing injured starters Stephen Curry and Draymond Green – and still smarting from the dust-up between Green and teammate Kevin Durant earlier this week -- led by eight in the second half before Dallas rallied to beat the Warriors for just the second time in their last 19 meetings.

The champions have now lost four of their last six, and have lost two in a row for the first time this season.

Durant scored 32 points, but only three in the fourth quarter. Klay Thompson added 22 for Golden State, but the Warriors had multiple shots in the final minute to tie or take the lead and came up empty.

In Charlotte, Walker’s career night ended in disappointment as Butler, acquired this week in a blockbuster trade with Minnesota, blocked a Walker shot to keep it tied at 119-119 with 15.7 seconds left in overtime then drained a 27-foot jump shot with three-tenths of a second remaining to secure the win.

Walker, the first player in Hornets history to score 60 points in a game, connected on 21 of 34 shots from the field and made all 12 of his free throw attempts. He also pulled down seven rebounds, handed out four assists and came up with four steals.

“I’m still proud of – that’s an unbelievable thing to do,” a frustrated Walker said. — AFP