Curry scores 36 as Warriors hold off Kings 125-123

Stephen Curry scored 36 points, hitting 10 3-pointers, and the Golden State Warriors survived a hectic finish to beat the Sacramento Kings 125-123 on Thursday night.

Kevin Durant added 28 points, nine rebounds and tied his career-high with seven blocks. DeMarcus Cousins had 17 points and 10 rebounds in his first game against his former team since signing with the Warriors this past offseason.

The Warriors led most of the fourth quarter behind Curry's 11 points. The two-time MVP shot 12 of 23 overall and was 10 of 16 beyond the arc.

Golden State Warriors' Stephen Curry, right, scores over Sacramento Kings' Harrison Barnes (40) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Feb. 21, 2019, in Oakland, Calif. (AP PhotoBen Margot)

Golden State still had to hold on to avoid back-to-back losses.

Sacramento trailed 123-117 with 25.5 seconds remaining but closed within 125-123 following back-to-back 3s by Buddy Hield.

After Andre Iguodala missed a pair of free throws, the Kings had a chance to tie but Hield shot an airball as time expired.

Sacramento Kings' Buddy Hield (24) drives against Golden State Warriors' DeMarcus Cousins, left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Feb. 21, 2019, in Oakland, Calif. (AP PhotoBen Margot)

Golden State won all four games against Sacramento this season.

Marvin Bagley III had 28 points and 14 rebounds for the Kings. Hield had 19 points and seven rebounds while De'Aaron Fox added 18 points and eight assists.

Sacramento got an early boost from Bagley and led by 11 early in the second quarter. The second overall pick in the draft, Bagley had 10 points and four rebounds in the first half and spent part of the time trying to defend Durant.

Golden State chipped away behind Curry and Durant, and Iguodala dunked off a lob pass from Green.

The Kings pulled away again before Durant made a pair of big plays to close out the third quarter. He drove around three Sacramento defenders for an emphatic one-handed dunk then made a deep 3 with two-tenths of a second remaining to pull Golden State within 91-89.

TIP-INS

Kings: Corey Brewer scored the team's first eight points in the fourth quarter in his first game with Sacramento. Brewer is on his second 10-day contract with the club. ... Harrison Barnes had 13 points and seven rebounds. Barnes was Golden State's first-round pick in 2012 and spent four seasons with the Warriiors.

Warriors: Five of Durant's blocks came against Bagley alone in the first half. ... Golden State is 10-0 when starting Curry, Thompson, Durant, Green and Cousins. ... Shaun Livingston left the team to be with his wife for the birth of their child.

UP NEXT

Kings: Visit the Thunder on Saturday night.

Warriors: Host the Rockets on Saturday night.

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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Paolo Banchero had 31 points and 14 rebounds, Jalen Suggs added 24 points and the Orlando Magic handed Cleveland the worst playoff loss in franchise history, winning 121-83 on Thursday night to cut the Cavaliers’ lead to 2-1 in their Eastern Conference first-round series.

Franz Wagner finished with 16 points and eight assists for the Magic, who led by 43 points in the fourth quarter on the way to the third-largest margin of victory in a playoff game. They earned their first playoff victory since 2019 and the first on their home floor since April 26, 2011.

They can even the series with a victory at home Sunday.

Jarrett Allen had 15 points and eight rebounds for the Cavaliers, who shot 39% from the field and 23.5% from 3-point range. Caris LeVert added 15 points and Donovan Mitchell had 13 points and seven assists.

76ERS 125, KNICKS 114

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid scored 50 points, making all four 3-point attempts and scoring 18 in a potential series-shifting third quarter to lead Philadelphia to a win over New York in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.

Embiid boldly stated “we’re going to win this series” after the 76ers dropped Game 2.

With one of the finest postseason efforts of his career, Embiid became the third player to ever score 50 points against the Knicks in the postseason and kept the hope of a Philadelphia series comeback very much alive.

The Knicks lead the series 2-1. Game 4 is Sunday in Philadelphia.

Embiid was 13 of 19 from the floor overall, made 19 of 21 free throws and hit five 3-pointers.

NUGGETS 112, LAKERS 105

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Aaron Gordon had 29 points and 15 rebounds, Nikola Jokic added 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists, and Denver moved to the brink of the second round with a victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of their first-round series..

Jamal Murray scored 22 points as the defending NBA champion Nuggets won their 11th consecutive meeting with LeBron James and the Lakers in dominating style.

Michael Porter Jr. added 20 points for Denver, which took control in the third quarter and cruised through the final minutes to its fifth straight road win over Los Angeles, starting with its sweep of last season’s Western Conference finals.

Game 4 is Saturday night in Los Angeles. No NBA team has ever rallied from an 0-3 playoff deficit.

Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) makes a shot as he gets past Cleveland Cavaliers guard Sam Merrill (5) during the second half of Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)