Kevin Durant on Friday scored 32 points as the Golden State Warriors halted their worst losing streak in more than five years with a 125-97 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.
“We made shots tonight. It brings energy into the building. I am glad we got a win finally,” Durant said. “We were pressing, forcing ourselves to win a game and we just relaxed tonight.”
Klay Thompson delivered 31 points and Durant also had eight assists, seven rebounds and shot 13-21 from the field for the Warriors, who had lost four straight games.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Thompson hit five of his first seven shots and grabbed a season-high eight boards for the Warriors, who were playing without star guard Stephen Curry.
Curry sat out because of a strained left groin and Draymond Green also remained sidelined because of a sore right toe.
Jusuf Nurkic had 22 points and eight rebounds, and CJ McCollum chipped in 19 points for Portland.
Elsewhere, Kawhi Leonard scored 27 points and flirted with a triple double as the NBA-leading Toronto Raptors set a franchise record for wins in the first 20 games of the season with a 125-107 victory over the Washington Wizards.
Leonard also added 10 rebounds and nine assists as the Raptors won their fourth straight contest to improve to 16-4 overall.
Kyle Lowry and OG Anunoby each scored 15 points and Fred VanVleet had 13 for the Raptors, who ended a two-game losing skid at home, but still have eight wins in their past 10 at Scotiabank Arena.
The Raptors were powered by their best three-point shooting night of the season, converting a season-high 17.
Danny Green, Anunoby and VanVleet each made three three-pointers as Toronto shot 43.6 percent from three-point range, their highest percentage of the season.
“When we get those games where we can shoot the ball well, it’s a big advantage,” Lowry said.
Beal scored 20 points and Otto Porter had 17 for the Wizards, who are 2-7 on the road.
Wizards guard John Wall shot just 5-13, going 1-7 from three-point range. Wall scored 11 points and had a game-high 11 assists.
Washington attempted a season-high 46 shots from long range, making just nine.
Wizards coach Scott Brooks was impressed with the Raptors’ style of play.
“They’re hard to beat,” Brooks said. “You’ve got to really be on-point defensively because they have so many good three-point shooters and ball-movers and smart basketball players.”
Also, Danilo Gallinari sank all nine of his free throws en route to a 20-point performance, as the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Memphis Grizzlies 112-107 in overtime.
The Grizzlies were up by eight points with two minutes to go and appeared to be headed to victory, but Gallinari drained three clutch free-throws with three seconds left in regulation to force the overtime.
“I don’t know if his blood pressure ever goes up or down,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. “He is one of the best, if not the best free-throw shooter in the league.”
Gallinari improved to 95.5 percent from the line on the season.
In Philadelphia, Jordan Clarkson scored 14 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter and Rodney Hood had 25 points, as the Cleveland Cavaliers stunned Philadelphia 121-112, ending the 76ers’ 20-game home winning streak.
Philadelphia entered as the NBA’s lone undefeated team at home, while the Cavaliers were 0-8 on the road with the worst overall record in the league at 2-14.
In Los Angeles, LeBron James seized control of an ugly game to finish 90-83 over the Utah Jazz in the Lakers’ seventh win in eight games.
Additional reporting by AP
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