Curry scores 50, but Suns soar to win over Warriors
PHOENIX — Cameron Payne scored a career-high 29 points and Devin Booker 27 as Phoenix easily overcame Stephen Curry’s 50-point night to beat Golden State 130-119 on Wednesday.
The Suns (9-5) controlled most of the game despite Curry’s scoring. The eighttime All-star made 17 of 28 shots, going 7-for-11 from 3-point range.
Curry got little help. Klay Thompson scored 19 points on 6-for-17 shooting for the defending NBA champion Warriors (6-9), who fell to 0-8 on the road.
Payne had one of his best games. Starting in place of injured Chris Paul, the 6-foot-3-inch guard made 9 of 17 shots, including 6 of 10 from beyond the arc, as Phoenix moved to 7-1 at home.
The Suns led 103-89 after three quarters. Golden State quickly cut into that margin but didn’t get closer than eight points. Damion Lee hit back-to-back 3-pointers against his former team to keep Phoenix comfortably ahead.
Mikal Bridges hit 5 of 8 3-point tries and totaled 23 points for the Suns, who shot 21-for-40 (52.5 percent) from beyond the arc.
Curry had 31 points by intermission, when Phoenix led 72-65.
■ Knicks 106, Nuggets 103: At
Denver, Julius Randle hit a go-ahead free throw with 50.6 seconds left and totaled a season-high 34 points for New York, which won in Denver for the first time in 16 years. The Nuggets (9-5), who were the last NBA team to be unbeaten at home, were without two-time reigning league MVP Nikola Jokic (COVID-19 protocol). The Knicks handed a team its first home loss for a second straight night after winning Tuesday at Utah.
■ Bucks 113, Cavaliers 98: At Milwaukee, Brook Lopez hit 7 of 9 3-point tries and totaled 29 points for Milwaukee, which held a 45-20 edge in scoring by reserves and handed Cleveland its fifth straight loss. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 16 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists for the Bucks. Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland each scored 23 points for the Cavs.
■ Rockets 101, Mavericks 92: At Dallas, Kevin Porter Jr. had 17 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists for Houston, which blocked 19 shots and held Dallas to 30 percent shooting. UNLV product Christian Wood scored 26 for the Mavs in his first game against his ex-team. Luka Doncic (rest) didn’t play for Dallas.
■ Celtics 126, Hawks 101: At Atlanta, Jaylen Brown had 22 points to lead seven double-figure scorers for Boston, which hit 21 3-pointers and shot 54.5 percent in its eighth straight win. Trae Young scored 27 points for Atlanta, which shot 41.6 percent while missing 25 of 32 3-point tries.
■ Thunder 121, Wizards 120: At Washington, Shai Gilgeous-alexander scored 30 of his 42 points in the second half for Oklahoma City, including a goahead 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left. Kristaps Porzingis had 27 points and Bradley Beal 25 for Washington, which had won four straight.
■ Timberwolves 126, Magic 108: At Orlando, Fla., Anthony Edwards scored 35 points and Karl-anthony Towns 30 for Minnesota, which shot 52.3 percent in its most decisive win this season. Bol Bol had 26 points and 12 rebounds for Orlando, which trailed by 27 in the first half.
■ Pacers 125, Hornets 113: At Charlotte, N.C., Tyrese Haliburton had 22 points and 11 assists while leading three 20-point scorers for Indiana in its sixth win in eight games. Lamelo Ball scored 26 points for Charlotte before exiting with a left ankle injury with 1:34 left.
■ Raptors 112, Heat 104: At Toronto, O.G. Anunoby had 32 points on 13-for-18 shooting and 10 rebounds for Toronto, which took control with a 21-0 thirdquarter run and halted Miami’s threegame win streak. The Raptors won their fourth straight home game.
■ Pelicans 124, Bulls 110: At New Orleans, C.J. Mccollum scored 23 points and Jonas Valanciunas 22 for New
Orleans, which hit 17 3-pointers while winning its third straight and dealing Chicago its third loss in a row. Demar Derozan had 28 points for the Bulls.