Curry records 20 points, 11 assists
OAKLAND, Calif. — Now, everybody can sit back for a few months and envision the possibility of another scintillating NBA Finals between Cleveland and Golden State.
LeBron James vs. Stephen Curry for the third straight time, complete with the hard-nosed play of Draymond Green, dazzling dunks from Kevin Durant and sharp shooting from Kyrie Irving.
This regular-season round went to the Warriors, who dominated from the start on Monday — and it wasn’t even close. The defending champs were dismantled on the very floor where they captured the franchise’s first title last June.
Curry and his superstar supporting cast certainly looked ready to trade more postseason blows with Cleveland. The two-time reigning MVP hit five 3-pointers on the way to 20 points while matching his season best with 11 assists in Golden State’s 126-91 rout of the Cavaliers.
“This is high-quality basketball, at its highest level,” Curry said. “These are the kinds of atmospheres that you live for. Whether you win or lose, regular season, playoffs, whatever, that you can play in that kind of environment that’s always fun.”
Klay Thompson scored 26 points with five 3s, and Green produced his third triple-double of the season with 11 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists. He also equaled his career best with five blocks — and had another confrontation with King James in the process.
James had 20 points on 6-of-18 shooting and eight rebounds. But he and Green became the talk once more as their relationship again turned testy.
“I don’t think it’s a rivalry,” James reiterated. “It’s two great teams that have aspirations. I don’t believe I’ve ever had a rivalry in the NBA.”
Durant added 21 points, six rebounds, five assists and three blocks for the Warriors in a much-hyped matchup merely weeks after Golden State lost 109-108 in Cleveland on Christmas.
Irving scored 17 points on an uncharacteristic day for the Cavs when they committed 15 turnovers to 11 ROUNDUP assists.
■ Clippers 120, Thunder 98 — At Los Angeles, J.J. Redick scored 20 points, DeAndre Jordan had 19 points and 15 rebounds, and streaking Los Angeles overcame Chris Paul’s injury to tie a franchise record for best start to a calendar year (7-0).
■ Pacers 98, Pelicans 95 — At Indianapolis, Jeff Teague fell just short of the first triple double of his career, and Paul George scored 20 points to help Indiana win for the fifth time in six games. Teague finished with 16 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.
■ Wizards 120, Trail Blazers 101 — At Washington, Bradley Beal scored 25 points and John Wall had 24 as Washington took a page from the Portland playbook by hitting 13 3-pointers in a comfortable victory. The Wizards won their 12th straight at home.
■ Celtics 108, Hornets 98 — At Boston, Isaiah Thomas scored 17 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter, and surging Boston won for the ninth time in 11 games. It was Thomas’ 25th straight game with 20 or more points for the Celtics.
■ 76ers 113, Bucks 104 — At Milwaukee, Joel Embiid scored 12 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter and Philadelphia won for the fourth time in five games. Embiid had 12 rebounds and made four of nine shots and 13 of 18 free throws.
■ Hawks 108, Knicks 107 — At New York, Dennis Schroder scored 28 points, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 22 seconds left, to lead Atlanta to its ninth win in 10 games. Tim Hardaway Jr. added 20 points for the Hawks.
■ Jazz 106, Suns 101 — At Phoenix, Joe Johnson scored 10 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 49.8 seconds to play, and Utah made it seven in a row over Phoenix. The Jazz scored the final seven points.
■ Nuggets 125, Magic 112 — At Denver, Nikola Jokic scored a career-high 30 points, Emmanuel Mudiay dished out a career-best 13 assists and Denver followed up its “home” win in London with another at the Pepsi Center.