OAKLAND, California (AP) Klay Thompson hit his first seven shots and scored 18 of his 20 points in the opening period as the Golden State Warriors cruised past the undermanned Dallas Mavericks 116-95 in the NBA on Wednesday night.
”I feel it’s coming every game, honestly,” Thompson said. ”I won’t let missed shots dictate how hard I play. As long as I play hard, I know I’ll be successful. It’s that simple.”
Kevin Durant led Golden State with 28 points, Stephen Curry added 24 and Draymond Green had 16 points and 10 rebounds as the Warriors used their outside shooting to build a 19-point lead in the first quarter and never looked back.
Harrison Barnes scored 25 points to lead Dallas in his first game against the Warriors since leaving as a free agent last summer. But he didn’t get nearly enough help.
”The first half it was kind of like a deer in headlights,” he said. ”It was kind of like the scouting report went out the window and we were just out there playing. Once guys settled in we did a much better job.”
DeMar DeRozan won a shootout with Russell Westbrook, scoring 37 points to lead the Toronto Raptors to a 112-102 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
DeRozan, the NBA’s leading scorer with a 34.1 average heading into the game, made 13 of 22 field goals and 11 of 15 free throws.
”You know, sometimes you’ve got to tip your hat, and good offense can beat great defense,” Thunder coach Billy Donovan said. ”He had that happen several times where he made some very, very difficult shots.”
Westbrook had 36 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, but he made just 9 of 26 shots and committed eight turnovers.
”I thought everybody that guarded him did a decent job, but it was a five-man job,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. ”Not one guy is going to stop him, and I say that all the time. It’s on the team.”
James Harden had a triple-double with 24 points, 15 assists and 12 rebounds as Houston made two late defensive stands to hold off San Antonio 101-99.
”It was important for us,” Harden said. ”The only way we’re going to get to where we want to go is on the defensive end. The game wasn’t pretty at all, but defensively we got stops.”
Kawhi Leonard scored 34 points for the Spurs but missed his final two shots, either of which could have tied the game. After Leonard missed a layup in the final seconds, LaMarcus Aldridge missed a tip-in attempt at the buzzer.
”It was a good play called,” Leonard said of his last shot. ”I got to the paint, got a shot off, just didn’t fall. (Aldridge) had a good chance, it just fell short, but we’ll take that again.”
Blake Griffin had 22 points and 13 rebounds and Chris Paul added 19 points as the Los Angeles Clippers rolled past the Portland Trail Blazers 111-80.
”When you play defense the way we have been, it’s a lot of fun,” Griffin said. ”We enjoy getting stops and look forward to getting stops. Guys are just flying around, and even if someone makes a mistake, there’s another guy to cover up for them. When you are playing basketball like that, it’s a blast.”
The Clippers stunned Portland from the opening tip, shooting 59 percent in the first quarter. They built a 32-point lead in the first half, when Griffin had 17 points. Los Angeles’ bench opened the second quarter on a 14-2 run to go up 50-18 before extending the lead to 61-32 at halftime.
”We got our (rear ends) whupped,” Blazers guard Damian Lillard said. ”They had a lot of energy and they wanted it more than we did. They hurt us on the glass and we didn’t take anything away from them.”
Paul George scored seven of Indiana’s 13 points in overtime as the Indiana Pacers beat the winless Philadelphia 76ers 122-115 while Carmelo Anthony scored 14 of his 22 points in the third quarter in New York’s 110-96 victory over the Brooklyn Nets.
Eric Bledsoe had 21 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists to help the Phoenix Suns rally to beat the Detroit Pistons 107-100 while Otto Porter scored a career-high 34 points as the Washington Wizards defeated the Boston Celtics 118-93.
The Atlanta Hawks beat the Chicago Bulls 115-107, the Minnesota Timberwolves defeated Orlando Magic 123-107 and the Charlotte Hornets overcame the Utah Jazz 104-98.
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