Klay Thompson scored 26 points and DeMarcus Cousins had 24 points and 11 rebounds as the visiting Golden State Warriors beat the Charlotte Hornets 121-110 on Monday night.
The Warriors never trailed in the final three quarters and led by as many as 17 in the final six minutes before the Hornets went on a 10-0 run to cut the lead to seven, 115-108, with 3:24 to go.
Ultimately, Steph Curry's 3-pointer with 58.5 seconds left settled it, accounting for the game's final points.
The Warriors have now won 16 of their last 18 road games as they embark on a four-game East Coast road trip. They were coming off a home loss to Houston on Saturday night and had lost two of their previous three.
Cousins might have had his best game since returning from an Achilles injury 14 games ago. He was 9 of 15 from the field and was on the court for most of the Warriors' runs.
The Warriors also got 20 points from Kevin Durant, 16 points from Curry, and 14 points and 10 assists from Draymond Green. Curry, in his annual return to his hometown, was just 5 of 18 from the field and 4 of 14 from 3-point range.
He had averaged 30.4 points per game at the Spectrum Center over his career coming into Monday night.
Cody Zeller scored a career-high 28 points to lead the Hornets, hitting 13 of 14 from the field. The Hornets also got 23 points from Kemba Walker, 16 from Jeremy Lamb, 14 from Nic Batum and 11 from Marvin Williams.
Walker, like Curry, struggled from long distance, going 9 of 24 from the field and 3 of 12 from 3-point range.
Golden State led 34-30 after one quarter and 68-60 at halftime, after leading by as many as 14 in the first half. The Warriors then led 98-88 going into the fourth quarter.
The closest the Hornets ever got in the last three quarters was three points, at 89-86 late in the third.
The Warriors came into the game with the best record in the Western Conference, but with only a one-game lead over second-seeded Denver.
The Hornets came into the game eighth in the Eastern Conference, trailing No. 7 Detroit by one-half game and leading No. 9 Orlando by one game.
The Warriors' trip will continue at Miami on Wednesday and then will go on to Orlando and Philadelphia. The Hornets were playing the third game of a four-game homestand. They will host Houston on Wednesday.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
