Butler, Curry, Moody give Warriors three scorers with 20 or more points in 126-113 win over Knicks

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Jimmy Butler had 32 points and eight rebounds, Stephen Curry warmed up in the second half to finish with 27 points and seven assists, and the Golden State Warriors beat the New York Knicks 126-113 on Thursday night.

Moses Moody scored 21 points with seven 3-pointers for the Warriors, while Brandin Podziemski had 19 points.

Deuce McBride and OG Anunoby each scored 25 points and Mikal Bridges had 21 as New York lost for the seventh time in nine games. The Knicks were without Jalen Brunson because of a sprained right ankle suffered in a 112-101 loss at Sacramento a night earlier.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 17 points and a season-best 20 rebounds for New York. This has been a two-day reunion tour for Knicks first-year coach Mike Brown, fired by the Kings last season and also a former Warriors top assistant.

Curry missed his first four 3-point tries before connecting from deep with 9:44 left in the third quarter. It marked only the third time this season he didn't have a 3 in the first half and first since going 0 for 6 in the initial two quarters Dec. 22 against Orlando.

He scored five straight points midway through the fourth to give Golden State a 107-94 lead.

Moody shot 7 for 9 from deep for his sixth 20-point performance of the season, while Butler notched his second 30-point game in the last three and fifth overall. The Warriors had three scorers with 20 or more for the eighth time.

Draymond Green was issued a Flagrant 1 foul upon replay review with 11:01 left in the game for his trip of Towns from the floor.

Warriors reserve forward Gui Santos was helped off the court with 2:21 left in the first quarter after a collision with Josh Hart. Santos sprained his left ankle, with coach Steve Kerr and the medical staff rushing out to check on him at midcourt. Santos then limped to the locker room and didn't return.

Knicks: Host the Suns on Saturday night.

Warriors: Host the Hornets on Saturday night.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

New York Knicks head coach Mike Brown gestures toward an official during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) is fouled by Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green, rear, during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

New York Knicks guard Jordan Clarkson reacts after scoring and drawing a foul during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Golden State Warriors guard Moses Moody (4) reacts after making a 3-point basket in front of New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Referee James Williams, left, reacts as Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) hugs New York Knicks head coach Mike Brown during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) dribbles the ball as forward Draymond Green (23) screens New York Knicks guard Miles McBride, middle, during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

AUCKLAND, New Zealand (AP) — Eighth-ranked Ben Shelton was knocked out of the ATP 250 tournament in Auckland, New Zealand on Friday in a quarterfinal spread over two days because of rain.

The top-seeded Shelton lost 7-5, 6-3 to Sebastian Baez of Argentina, who is unseeded and ranked 39th.

Shelton led 1-0 in the second set on Thursday night when torrential rain caused the match to be suspended. When it resumed Friday, Baez served to level the match, then broke the American to lead 2-1.

Baez went on to beat American Marcos Giron 6-1, 6-4 in a semifinal later Friday. Three quarterfinals and both semifinals were played on the same day because of the rain disruptions.

Baez will play third-seeded Jakub Menšík, who reached Saturday's final when he beat Fabian Marozsan 7-6 (9), 4-6, 6-1. Marozsan had beaten defending champion Gael Monfils in the first round and second-seeded Casper Ruud in the second.

Baez swept through the first set against Giron in 27 minutes but faced a much tougher contest in the second set. He had an early break but Giron broke back to level the set at 4-4. Baez then gained the crucial break in the ninth game in which there were six deuces and four break points.

“This is a good preparation for Australia, for sure,” Baez said. “In that case I'm happy to take both matches today.”

The 23-year-old Shelton, the top-ranked American on tour ahead of No. 9 Taylor Fritz, now heads to the Australian Open in which he will play Ugo Humbert of France in the first round.

At a news conference in Auckland, Shelton said he believes there are young players capable of bridging the gap to Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, who have won the last eight Grand Slam singles titles between them.

He hopes to be one of them.

“They’ve certainly been ahead of the pack the last couple years,” Shelton said. “But in my mind there’s definitely guys who can come up there and challenge, young guys who are playing great, better and better every year.

Alcaraz is 22 and Sinner 24.

“To be doing what Alcaraz and Sinner are doing at such a young age is not normal but there’s so many young guys who haven’t fully developed or we haven’t seen their best tennis yet.”

Shelton said the 2025 season “was a great stepping stone for me . . . there’s so many things I improved on in 2025 versus 2024."

“And, for me, it’s not all about the results. It’s more what I find in my game, the things that I figure out,” Shelton added. "So there is a lot to be able to build off of this year.”

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

FILE - Ben Shelton of the U.S. plays a forehand return to Jannik Sinner of Italy during their semifinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Jan. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File)