Warriors wake up late to thump Thunder

Nick Young capped a 14-point flurry with a pair of 3-pointers late in the third quarter Saturday night, helping the Golden State Warriors pull away from the Oklahoma City Thunder en route to a 112-80 romp in a nationally televised showcase game in Oakland, Calif.

The win was the Warriors' first in three tries against the Thunder this season. Oklahoma City was attempting to become the first team in the Steve Kerr coaching era to beat Golden State three straight times in the same season.

Kevin Durant had a game-high 28 points and Stephen Curry 21 for Golden State, which never led in a 125-105 home shellacking at the hands of the Thunder when the teams last met on Feb. 6.

A 3-pointer by Carmelo Anthony put the Thunder up by two early in the third quarter, and a Paul George 3-pointer gave the visitors a 59-56 advantage with 7:52 remaining in the period before the game turned in Golden State's favor.

The Warriors led 70-66 before their decisive 14-0 burst, which began with 3- and two-point hoops by Durant.

Andre Iguodala also buried a 3-pointer in the run, before Young blew the game open to 84-66 with his consecutive 3-pointers in the final 51.4 seconds of the quarter.

The Thunder, who were completing a three-day, two-game Northern California swing, never threatened in the fourth quarter. They finished with a season-low point total.

The feisty matchup produced four technical fouls -- one apiece on Durant, Anthony, George and Draymond Green.

Green's technical was his league-leading 15th of the season. His next in the regular season would result in a mandatory one-game suspension.

Green's night also featured his 2,000th career assist, making him the 11th Warrior ever to reach the milestone. He finished with a game-high eight assists to complement 10 points.

Durant's 28 points came on 10-for-20 shooting, including 4-for-6 from 3-point range.

Curry buried five 3-pointers to account for a majority of his 21 points. He also found time for a team-high nine rebounds.

Young (four 3-pointers, 16 points) and Klay Thompson (11 points) also scored in double figures for the Warriors, who improved their record to just 7-6 against Northwest Division competition. They are 39-8 against the rest of the league.

Russell Westbrook, who sat out the fourth quarter, led Oklahoma City with 15 points. He completed a double-double with a game-high 12 rebounds, and also led the Thunder in assists with seven.

Anthony and Steven Adams added 14 points apiece and Raymond Felton had 11 for the Thunder, who get another chance to clinch their first season-series win over the Warriors since 2014 when the clubs meet one final time at Oklahoma City on April 3.

The Thunder shot just 33.0 percent. George went just 1-for-14 and totaled only five points.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Lakers down undermanned Clippers

The Los Angeles Lakers took advantage of the Los Angeles Clippers' injury woes as they claimed a 111-102 victory over their neighbors in the final game of the NBA's 2016 Christmas Day schedule.

With Chris Paul and Blake Griffin out due to various injuries, the Lakers were able to snap an 11-game losing streak against the Clippers and improve to 12-22 in the season. The win also ended their four-game slide.

All five starters scored in double digits for the Lakers, with Nick Young and Timofey Mozgov each tallying 19 points. Luol Deng had a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds, while Julius Randle flashed his all-around game with 13 points, seven boards, and eight assists.

After trailing by three points, 55-58, at the half, the Lakers used an 11-0 run to open the third quarter to seize control of the game. They wound up outscoring the Clippers, 34-16, in the frame to take an 89-74 lead heading into the final quarter.

The Clippers opened the fourth frame with 11 unanswered points of their own to come to within four, 85-89, with nine minutes left to play, but free throws by Deng and Lou Williams, as well as lay-up by Jordan Clarkson afforded the Lakers some breathing room.

The Lakers restored a double-digit lead when Williams got inside the paint for a lay-up with 3:40 left to make it 103-92, and the Lakers cruised from there.

JJ Redick led the Clippers with 22 points, making four of his seven triples, but had to sit out the final frame due to a sore left hamstring. Jamal Crawford also had 22 points off the bench, while DeAndre Jordan had seven points, 10 rebounds, and six assists.

The Clippers now have a 27-5 win-loss record.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

NBA round-up: Young out for at least 2 weeks, Noel sent to D-League

Los Angeles Lakers guard Nick Young is expected to be out two to four weeks with a strained calf muscle in his right leg, the team announced Wednesday.

Young was injured in the first quarter of Tuesday night's 105-88 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center and did not return. He underwent an MRI exam in Chicago, where the Lakers were playing the Bulls on Wednesday.

The 31-year-old Young fell to the floor after trying to prevent a breakaway layup by Pelicans guard Tim Frazier.

Young, a 10-year veteran in his fourth season with the Lakers, started all 18 games in which he played this campaign, averaging 13.3 points and a career-high 41.8 percent on 3-pointers.


Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue called guard J.R. Smith's in-game hug Tuesday night with Milwaukee Bucks bench player Jason Terry an "embarrassing moment."

Lee said he met with Smith on Wednesday to address the mental lapse during the game and also criticized the veteran for wearing a ski mask-style hood covering his face during his interview with reporters.

"It was embarrassing moment," Lue said Wednesday of the play. "Me and J.R. talked about it. We're just going to move forward. We had a discussion about it, he felt embarrassed about it. It was an embarrassing play. We talked about it. We're moving on."

Smith greeted Terry on the baseline while the Bucks were readying to inbound the ball late in the second half of the Cavs' 118-101 loss in Milwaukee.

When Smith removed himself from the play, Bucks guard Matthew Dellavedova fired a pass to Tony Snell, who was wide open for a dunk.

--

The Philadelphia 76ers assigned forward/center Nerlens Noel to the Delaware 87ers of the NBA Development League on Wednesday as part of the ongoing rehabilitation program for his left knee.

The 6-foot-11, 228-pound Noel has yet to appear in a game this season after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery last month.

Noel, 22, said Monday he is likely "a couple of weeks" away from returning to the Sixers' active roster.

Last season, Noel averaged 11.1 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 67 games.

--

The Golden State Warriors reassigned center Damian Jones to Santa Cruz of the NBA Development League.

Jones' return to the NBA was short-lived after the 7-foot, 245-pound rookie was recalled Monday but was inactive for the Warriors' 105-100 win over the Atlanta Hawks.

Jones, selected 30th overall by the Warriors in the 2016 NBA Draft, underwent surgery on June 14 to repair a torn right pectoral muscle and has not appeared in a game with Golden State this season.

(Editing by Larry Fine)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Kobe stakes Lakers to victory over misfiring Pistons

Forward Kobe Bryant compiled 17 points, nine assists and eight rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers snapped a four-game losing skid with a 97-85 victory over the Detroit Pistons at Staples Center on Sunday.

Guard Jordan Clarkson also had 17 points for Los Angeles (2-8) as Bryant made just 6-of-19 shots from the floor but was effective in involving his team mates.

Guard Nick Young came off the bench to score 13 points for the Lakers, whose only other victory was over the Brooklyn Nets. Center Roy Hibbert chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds.


 Despite suffering a woeful start to the new season, the Lakers defeated the Pistons for the seventh consecutive time and the 10th time in the past 11 meetings.

Reserve guard Spencer Dinwiddie scored 17 points for the Pistons (5-5). Center Andre Drummond extended his streak of double-doubles to 10 in a row with 17 points and 17 rebounds, but he and the Pistons saw their losing streak reach four games.

Los Angeles was clinging to a 78-74 lead after a dunk by Drummond on an alley-oop pass from Reggie Jackson with 7:28 remaining but the Lakers scored seven consecutive points, starting with a three-pointer by Bryant with 3:44 left.

That sealed the outcome as Detroit got no closer than eight the rest of the way.

The Lakers led by as many as 11 in the first half before taking a 48-44 lead at the break. They held the Pistons to 39.6 percent shooting while making 43.2 percent of their shots.

The Lakers also had the edge in free throws, making 12-of-18 (66.7 percent) attempts to only two of three for the Pistons.

The teams entered the final period tied at 66-66.

Overall, Los Angeles converted 41.3 percent of its shots compared to only 36.5 percent for Detroit. Both teams struggled from behind the three-point stripe. The Lakers made just six of 19 (31.6 percent) to 25.9 percent (seven of 27) for the Pistons.

The Lakers prevailed despite committing 16 turnovers to 12 for the Pistons. (Editing by John O'Brien)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Lakers beat Hawks as Bryant hits career milestone

ATLANTA -- Kobe Bryant scored 28 points and passed the 32,000-point mark for his NBA career Tuesday to spark the Los Angeles Lakers over the host Atlanta Hawks 114-109.

The Lakers, who snapped a four-game losing streak, recorded their first road triumph of the season and only their second triumph in 11 starts while the Hawks fell to 5-5 in the young campaign with their first loss in five home games.

NBA scoring leader Bryant made 10-of-18 shots and added four rebounds, three assists and a steal for the Lakers, finishing on 32,001 points with a 3-point play off his final jump shot.

The total puts Bryant 291 points behind Michael Jordan for third on the all-time NBA scoring list.

The Lakers welcomed back Nick Young, who had been sidelined so far this season with a torn right thumb ligament. Young scored 17 points off the bench while Carlos Boozer added 20 points and 10 rebounds and Jeremy Lin contributed 15 points and a game-high 10 assists for the Lakers.

Paul Millsap scored 29 points to lead the Hawks, who also had 23 points from Jeff Teague and 15 points from Al Horford.

The Lakers led 67-52 at half-time but Atlanta scored the first 13 points of the second half only to falter and never move ahead of Los Angeles the rest of the way.

A left-handed running shot fell for Bryant to put the Lakers ahead 105-100 with 2:25 to play and after two Kyle Korver free throws for Atlanta, Bryant made the key 3-point play.

The Lakers, who had been the only Western Conference club without a road victory, opened a three-game road swing that includes visits to Houston and Dallas.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com