Golden State star Stephen Curry found his groove Thursday, scoring 31 points and grabbing 11 rebounds to lead the Warriors to a 110-99 NBA victory over the New York Knicks.
Curry was red-hot going into the All-Star break but had shot just 31.5 percent in his last three games — including connecting on just 21.6 percent of his shots from three-point range.
After going 0-for-7 in the first half of the Warriors’ win over the lowly Washington Wizards on Tuesday, Curry burst out of the gates in this one, tallying 11 points with seven rebounds in the first quarter.
He opened the scoring at Madison Square Garden with the first of his eight three-pointers and had 17 points and 10 rebounds by halftime.
Jonathan Kuminga added 25 points for Golden State, who grabbed a quick 14-0 lead and never trailed.
Jalen Brunson scored 27 points to lead the Knicks, who had the deficit down to four midway through the fourth quarter but with key contributors Julius Randle and OG Anunoby sidelined could never gain the upper hand.
“I thought our whole team defended at a high level tonight,” said Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who singled out Moses Moody’s defense on Brunson. “We’re playing confidently right now, we got off to a great start and that set a really good tone.”
In other early games, two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 24 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for Milwaukee in the Bucks’ 111-99 victory over the Hornets in Charlotte.
Malik Beasley made five three-pointers on the way to 19 points for the Bucks, who pushed their winning streak to four games and completed a season sweep of the Hornets .
It wasn’t as lopsided as their other three victories over Charlotte this season — all by more than 30 points — but it was a convincing win nevertheless.
Milwaukee never trailed and led by as many as 25 over a Charlotte team led by Brandon Miller’s 21 points.
Antetokounmpo and the rest of Milwaukee’s starters sat out most of the fourth quarter.
“I thought overall our focus was really good,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. “What I like is we’re having defensive runs. We’ll be trading baskets and then we’ll get one, two, three, four, five stops in a row.”
Spurs silence Thunder
Another sparkling effort from rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama helped the San Antonio Spurs snap a five-game losing streak with a 132-118 victory over Western Conference contenders Oklahoma City.
French star Wembanyama scored 28 points with 13 rebounds and five blocked shots.
The fourth quarter featured four lead changes, but with three and a half minutes remaining Wembanyama produced a pair of three-pointers and a big block of a three-point attempt by Thunder rookie Chet Holmgren, and the Spurs pulled away for the win.
Wembanyama said 39 assists were testament to the Spurs’ chemistry.
“We’re just playing with heart. I think it’s one of the best ways to come back home after a month away,” Wembanyama said as the team returned home after a nine-game road trip.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points, Jalen Williams added 26 and Holmgren contributed 23 for the Thunder, who slipped a game behind the Minnesota Timberwolves for top spot in the Western Conference.
