Davis outhustles Durant; Pelicans outlast Warriors
OAKLAND, Calif. — Anthony Davis outdueled Kevin Durant down the stretch on the way to 34 points, and the New Orleans Pelicans snapped a 10-game losing streak to Golden State with a 126120 win over the Warriors on Saturday night.
Durant scored 19 of his 41 points in the third quarter to go with 10 rebounds and five assists. He made big 3-pointers with 6:39 remaining and at the 4:52 mark that got Golden State to 112-111, but the Pelicans kept answering.
The NBA Finals MVP made things more difficult after halftime on Davis, who also had 12 rebounds for the Pelicans while having his way with the Warriors' defense from the start.
The Pelicans beat the Warriors for the first time since April 7, 2015, in New Orleans, and at Oracle Arena for the first time since April 24, 2012.
Durant also committed a costly late turnover that led to E'Twaun Moore's jumper with 23.5 seconds left. KD lost the ball for another key steal less than a minute earlier but immediately got a rebound on the other end that led to Andre Iguodala's dunk on the other end to get Golden State to 121-119 with 1:01 left.
Quinn Cook, who has been an admirable fill-in for the injured Stephen Curry after his promotion from the G League, added 21 points with five 3pointers in the Warriors' final regular-season home game. SPURS 116, BLAZERS 105
LaMarcus Aldridge scored 28 points to help San Antonio beat Damian Lillard and visiting Portland.
San Antonio snapped a two-game losing streak, and is tied with Oklahoma City and New Orleans for fifth in the Western Conference, a half-game back of idle Utah.
San Antonio can clinch a playoff spot with a victory over visiting Sacramento on Monday.
Portland (48-32) missed out on an opportunity to clinch home-court advantage in the first round. Lillard had 33 points for Portland, and Evan Turner finished with 18. NUGGETS 134, CLIPPERS 115
Will Barton scored 31 points and Nikola Jokic added 23 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, and Denver earned its fifth consecutive victory with a win at Los Angeles.
Denver pulled into a tie with the Minnesota Timberwolves for eighth place in the Western Conference with two games to play. Both teams are 45-35.
Denver finish up the regular season at home against Portland on Monday night before playing the Timberwolves in Minneapolis on Wednesday night. NETS 124 BULLS 96
Quincy Acy helped Brooklyn set a franchise record with 24 3-pointers in a victory at Chicago.
Brooklyn finished one 3-pointer shy of the NBA record set last season by Cleveland. Acy had career highs with six 3pointers and 21 points, and Allen Crabbe added five from behind the arc and 20 points. BUCKS 115, KNICKS 102
Eric Bledsoe had 22 points and 10 assists, and Milwaukee moved into a tie for sixth place in the Eastern Conference with a victory at New York.
Khris Middleton also scored 22 points for the Bucks, who joined Miami with a 43-37 record. The Heat were blown out by the Knicks at Madison Square Garden a night earlier, but the Bucks avoided the same fate.
From wire reports