STEPHEN Curry scored an NBA season-high 50 points with nine 3-pointers, 10 assists and seven rebounds, almost single-handedly leading the Golden State Warriors past the Atlanta Hawks 127-113 on Nov. 9 (PH time).
Only Hall of Famers Wilt Chamberlain and Rick Barry had registered a game with 50 points and 10 assists in Warriors franchise history.
Curry notched his 10th career 50-point game and already had 24 points on 7-for-12 shooting by halftime with five 3-pointers.
He wound up 14 for 28 from the floor and made all 13 of his free throws as the Warriors won their fifth straight. They are holding opponents to 95.8 points during the unbeaten stretch.
Trae Young had 28 points and nine assists in Atlanta’s fourth straight loss and sixth in seven.
NUGGETS 113, HEAT 96
Nikola Jokic had 25 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists before the NBA MVP was ejected for violently slamming his shoulder into Markieff Morris, and Denver beat Miami.
Will Barton scored 25 points and Jeff Green, who started in place of an injured Michael Porter Jr., added 13 points for the Nuggets, who held the opposition to under 100 points for the seventh time this season.
Jimmy Butler had 31 points to lead the Heat, and Duncan Robinson had 13.
With 2:39 remaining, Morris elbowed Jokic in the midsection at half court. Jokic retaliated with a hard shove from behind with his upper arm/shoulder that knocked Morris to the floor. Morris rolled in pain as teammates pushed Jokic away. Medical personnel brought a stretcher onto the floor but Morris was able to get up and walk off the floor on his own.
LAKERS 126, HORNETS 123, OT
Anthony Davis scored 32 points, Russell Westbrook had his first triple-double with the Lakers and Carmelo Anthony had a season-high 29 points off the bench as Los Angeles defeated Charlotte.
Westbrook notched his 185th career triple-double. Finishing with 17 points and 14 assists, six of his 12 rebounds came in the fourth quarter and overtime.
Davis, who also grabbed 12 rebounds, had six points in overtime, including a pair of free throws that gave Los Angeles a three-point lead with under a minute remaining.
Terry Rozier had a season-high 29 points for Charlotte, while Gordon Hayward added 21 and Miles Bridges had 19. The Hornets’ fifth straight loss put a damper on LaMelo Ball’s second career triple-double, as the Chino Hills, California, native had 25 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists.
KNICKS 103, 76ERS 96
Julius Randle scored 31 points, including eight straight during a key fourth-quarter stretch, to lead New York over short-handed Philadelphia.
Philadelphia was without four-time All-Star Joel Embiid and three others due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, which are for players who have tested positive for Covid-19 or been in close contact with someone who’s tested positive.
RJ Barrett added 15 points for the Knicks, who won their second in the last five. Randle also had 12 rebounds.
Andre Drummond started in place of Embiid, and had 14 points and 25 rebounds. Furkan Korkmaz added 19 points for Philadelphia.
BULLS 118, NETS 95
DeMar DeRozan scored 28 points, Zach LaVine added 24 and Chicago used a 42-point fourth quarter to pull away from Brooklyn.
Rookie Ayo Dosumnu had 15 points and played a key role in the late rally as Chicago snapped a two-game losing streak.
Kevin Durant, who entered as the NBA’s leading scorer with a 28.6 average, had 38 points but Brooklyn had its five-game winning streak snapped. LaMarcus Aldridge added 19.
The Nets had played Sunday in Toronto and appeared to run out of gas late.
GRIZZLIES 125, TIMBERWOLVES 118, OT
Ja Morant scored 33 points and Brandon Clarke had 20 points and nine rebounds as Memphis put together a furious fourth-quarter rally before defeating Minnesota in overtime.
Memphis trailed by as many as 16 with 7:30 left in regulation but a 21-4 rally erased Minnesota’s advantage. The Timberwolves forced OT with a 39-foot 3-pointer banked in by Karl-Anthony Towns as regulation expired.
But Memphis pulled away in the extra period. De’Anthony Melton had 19 points for the Grizzlies, Jaren Jackson Jr. had 14 and Kyle Anderson and Desmond Bane added 12 each.
It was Minnesota’s sixth straight loss. D’Angelo Russell, who missed the previous two games with a sprained right ankle, led the Timberwolves with 30 points. Towns had 25 points and 13 rebounds. Anthony Edwards, who entered the game shooting 30 percent from 3-point range, connected on 4 of 9 from outside the arc and ended up with 27 points.
SUNS 109, KINGS 104
Cameron Payne scored a season-high 24 points in 22 minutes off the bench and Phoenix got help from an overturned call to win its fifth straight game, beating Sacramento.
Devin Booker had 18 points, nine rebounds and six assists for Phoenix. Chris Paul and Mikal Bridges scored 16 apiece.
The Suns led by 21 early in the fourth quarter but the Kings made a late push over the final five minutes.
Harrison Barnes had 26 points and De’Aaron Fox scored 24 for Sacramento.
MAVERICKS 108, PELICANS 92
Luka Doncic scored 25 points, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Jalen Brunson added 17 apiece and Dallas overcame a sluggish start to beat New Orleans.
Still without Zion Williamson because of a broken right foot, the Pelicans went up 11 in the first quarter but didn’t lead again after the first few minutes of the second quarter in a seventh consecutive loss that dropped them to 1-10.
With Doncic watching to start the fourth, Brunson and Hardaway led a 12-0 run that gave the Mavericks a 93-71 lead. Hardaway was 4 of 5 on 3-pointers as the Mavericks shot better than 50% for a second straight game after starting 2 of 12.
Jonas Valanciunas had 22 points and 11 rebounds and Josh Hart scored a season-high 22 for the Pelicans, who were coming off a 41-point loss to Golden State. New Orleans lost by double figures each time on a four-game trip that matched its longest of the season. (AP)