(The Sports Xchange) – Highlights of Monday’s National Basketball Association games:
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Warriors 122, Kings 103
Shooting guard Klay Thompson scored eight of his team-high 29 points early in the third quarter as the Golden State Warriors outlasted Californian rivals the Sacramento Kings 122-103 en route to their 15th consecutive home win this season.
Point guard Stephen Curry, held scoreless for the game’s first 20 minutes, contributed a 23-point, 14-rebound, 10-assist triple-double to Golden State’s 11th straight win over the Kings, three of which have come this season.
The Warriors (29-1) completed a 5-0 homestand and earned their 33rd win in a row at home dating back to last season. Golden State finished the 2015 calendar year 42-1 at home.
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Hornets 108, Lakers 98
Kemba Walker matched his season high with 38 points and Charlotte upstaged Kobe Bryant’s ‘Farewell Tour’ with a 108-98 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday. Walker scored 18 of his points in the fourth quarter when the Hornets finally were able to pull away in a game that earlier saw 13 ties and 21 lead changes.
Walker was 14-of-25 from the field with a trio of three-pointers. He also finished with six rebounds and five assists.
Bryant, making his final appearance in Charlotte, drew thunderous applause from a sellout crowd of 19,632 throughout the game and finished with 20 points.
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Magic 104, Pelicans 89
Nikola Vucevic had a season-high 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to lead the Orlando to the victory. Evan Fournier had 20 points and hit three of his four shots from three-point range. Tobias Harris had 14 points and nine rebounds.
Anthony Davis led the Pelicans with 20 points and eight rebounds.
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Pacers 93, Hawks 87
Monta Ellis scored a season-best 26 points as Indiana snapped Atlanta’s six-game winning streak.
Ian Mahinmi, who scored 13 points, tipped in a missed Ellis shot with 16.3 seconds remaining to give Indiana a 92-87 lead. Solomon Hill and Chase Budinger each added 10 for Indiana.
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Clippers 108, Wizards 91
Chris Paul scored 23 points and Jamal Crawford had 21 as Los Angeles dominated Washington.
The Clippers never trailed and were never threatened in forward Paul Pierce’s return to Washington.
Crawford scored 15 points in the second half and his jumper gave the Clippers their largest lead at 106-80.
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Mavericks 103, Bucks 93
Dallas extended its winning streak to three games with a victory over Milwaukee.
Wesley Matthews delivered in Dallas’ time of need as he scored nine of his team-high 22 points in the fourth quarter.Jerryd Bayless scored eight of his 19 points in the fourth quarter for Milwaukee.
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Cavaliers 101, Suns 97
Kyrie Irving scored 22 points in 24 minutes and hit his team’s 17th three-pointer just before the shot-clock buzzer with 21 seconds left and Cleveland beat a fading Phoenix team.
J.R. Smith scored 17 points including five three-pointers for the Cavaliers, who avoided their first three-game losing streak of the season after back-to-back road losses to Golden State and Portland.
Kevin Love had 16 points and seven rebounds and LeBron James added 16 points and seven assists for Cleveland, who made 17-of-41 three-pointers in the game.
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Jazz 95, 76ers 91
Gordon Hayward scored 24 points and hit a game-winning three-pointer to lead shorthanded Utah past Philadelphia. The Jazz seemed to be on their way to an easy win after hitting their first seven shots, scoring 37 points in the first quarter and taking a 21-point lead in the first half. But the Sixers stormed back thanks to big games from recently acquired Ish Smith (22 points), Nerlens Noel (18) and Richaun Holmes (18).
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Nets 111, Heat 105
The Brooklyn Nets, who have the third-worst record in the NBA, knocked off the Miami Heat 111-105.
Brooklyn overcame a 16-point third-quarter deficit, scoring 67 points in the second half, the most Miami has allowed after the break this season.
Brook Lopez and reserve Wayne Ellington keyed the Nets victory. Lopez had 26 points and 12 rebounds.
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Bulls 104, Raptors 97
Tony Snell scored 16 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, and the Chicago Bulls pulled away for a 104-97 win over the Toronto Raptors.
Bulls forward Pau Gasol scored 22 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Guard Derrick Rose contributed 20 points and four assists for Chicago (17-12).
Raptors guard Kyle Lowry led all scorers with 28 points on nine-for-15 shooting. Guard DeMar DeRozan added 19 points, eight rebounds and eight assists for Toronto (19-13).
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Spurs 101, Timberwolves 95
Rookie reserve Boban Marjanovic scored nine of his 17 points in a crucial four-and-a-half-minute stretch of the third quarter as the San Antonio Spurs shrugged off a ragged start to beat Minnesota. The Timberwolves got within 98-94 in the final minute on two free throws by reserve Zach LaVine and a running jumper by Andrew Wiggins, but failed to convert another chance after a steal with 35 seconds remaining.
