SAN FRANCISCO (AP).- Stephen Curry recovered after a difficult first half and scored 18 of his 26 points after the break; Jimmy Butler added 21 points, and The Golden State Warriors held off the Orlando Magic in the second half to win 120-97 on Monday night.
Curry played with tenderness in his left ankle and missed his first six 3-point attempts – going 3 of 13 from the field – before finally connecting from behind with 8m20 left in the third quarter to bring the Warriors within 71-69. That was all it took for Golden State to start with a 14-4 run.
The two-time MVP shot 10 of 23 overall, making 4 of 13 three-pointers. He had six assists and two of his team’s eight steals.
Paolo Banchero He scored 21 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and handed out seven assists, and Desmond Bane scored 20 points for Orlando on the first night of a back-to-back road game.
Stephen Curry shoots against opposition from Paolo Banchero – Credits: @Justine Willard
Moses Moody scored 20 points for the Warriors, while Brandin Podziemski came off the bench to finish with 16 points, five assists and four rebounds. Draymond Green had nine points and seven rebounds in 18 minutes per game after being ejected early in the second quarter Saturday against Phoenix.
Golden State guard Buddy Hield had his streak of 199 consecutive regular-season games snapped in Saturday’s 119-116 win over the Suns, but he hit a late 3-pointer on Monday. Jonathan Kuminga did not play again after missing the last game due to illness.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr expects center Al Horford to return Thursday after a seven-game absence due to right sciatic nerve irritation.
Jalen Duren scored 26 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to help The Detroit Pistons beat the Portland Trail Blazers 110-102after blowing a 21-point lead. Ausar Thompson added 18 points and 12 rebounds for the Pistons (23-6), Eastern Conference leaders. Duncan Robinson scored 15 and Cade Cunningham added 14 before fouling out early in the fourth quarter.
Shaedon Sharpe led the Trail Blazers (12-17) with 25 points on 11-of-21 shooting, but also committed eight turnovers. Deni Avdija added 18 points, nine assists and eight rebounds.
Donovan Clingan and Jalen Duren fight in the air – Credits: @Molly J. Smith
Donovan Clingan scored 17 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and made three blocks for Portland. Sidy Cissoko scored 16 off the bench.
Trailing by 21 points at the end of the third quarter, Portland was still down nine points when Cunningham fouled out with 8:32 seconds remaining. But the Blazers outscored the Pistons 12-2 over the next 4:20 to take a one-point lead. Detroit then closed with an 11-2 run to put the game away.
