Stephen Curry made his return to the court after missing two months due to injury, putting up 29 points in his comeback performance, but Alperen Sengun delivered the decisive blow for Houston with a clutch inside basket in the final 11.1 seconds, securing a 117-116 victory for the Rockets over the Golden State Warriors on Sunday evening in San Francisco.
Former Warriors star Kevin Durant, making his first appearance in San Francisco as a member of the Rockets, led all scorers with 31 points for Houston (49-29). The victory puts the Rockets just one game behind both the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets in the tight race for the Western Conference’s third seed.
The Warriors (36-42) received solid support for Curry from Brandin Podziemski, who contributed 18 points. With this loss, Golden State has essentially locked themselves into the 10th position for the Western Conference play-in tournament.
The superstar guard had been sidelined for 27 consecutive games following a knee injury sustained on January 30 against Detroit. During his 26 minutes of action, Curry connected on 11 of 21 field goal attempts. The Warriors struggled without their leader, posting a disappointing 9-18 record while he rehabilitated his sore right knee.
Golden State also got contributions from Gui Santos with 15 points and Payton with 14. However, the Warriors suffered a setback when Kristaps Porzingis fouled out after just 23 minutes, managing only nine points despite grabbing a team-leading eight rebounds. Draymond Green facilitated the offense with a game-high 12 assists while adding seven points.
Celtics 115, Raptors 101
Jaylen Brown led the scoring attack with 26 points while Jayson Tatum recorded 23 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists as Boston defeated Toronto at home.
The Celtics received valuable contributions from Neemias Queta (18 points, seven rebounds), Payton Pritchard (17 points) and Derrick White (10 points). Nikola Vucevic made his return after fracturing his right ring finger on March 6, contributing four points and four rebounds in his first game back.
Boston extended their home dominance over Toronto to nine straight victories. The Raptors haven’t tasted victory in Boston since 2021, and the Celtics have now won 21 of their past 24 regular-season matchups against Toronto. Ja’Kobe Walter paced Toronto with 16 points, while Brandon Ingram and RJ Barrett each added 15.
Mavericks 134, Lakers 128
Cooper Flagg followed up his remarkable 51-point showing with another spectacular performance, recording 45 points, nine assists and eight rebounds to power Dallas past a depleted Los Angeles squad at home.
The Mavericks built their advantage to as many as 22 points with help from P.J. Washington’s 15 points, 13 each from Naji Marshall and Brandon Williams, and Klay Thompson’s three three-pointers en route to 11 points supporting Flagg’s effort.
LeBron James nearly recorded a triple-double with 30 points, 15 assists and nine rebounds as he tried to compensate for Los Angeles being without their leading scorers Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, both sidelined for the remainder of the regular season. Luke Kennard achieved his first career triple-double with 15 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists.
Suns 120, Bulls 110
Devin Booker tallied 30 points, Jalen Green contributed 25 and Dillon Brooks connected on crucial shots in the closing moments as Phoenix defeated Chicago on the road.
Phoenix’s starting five all reached double figures, with Mark Williams shooting efficiently at 6-of-8 for 14 points and eight rebounds, while Jordan Goodwin added 12 points on perfect 5-of-5 shooting along with seven rebounds.
Tre Jones paced Chicago with 29 points on 12-of-20 shooting. Collin Sexton nearly achieved a double-double with 18 points and nine rebounds, while Leonard Miller grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds and scored 17 points on 7-of-14 shooting.
Cavaliers 117, Pacers 108
Donovan Mitchell exploded for 38 points and James Harden added 28 points with seven assists as playoff-bound Cleveland rallied from an early deficit to defeat Indiana at home.
Thomas Bryant recorded a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds for Cleveland, which trailed throughout the first half before mounting their comeback for their eighth victory in 10 games. The Cavaliers are close to securing fourth place in the Eastern Conference, which would provide home-court advantage in the opening playoff round.
Indiana, playing with only nine available players and holding the league’s second-worst record, got 21 points each from Micah Potter and Obi Toppin. Jalen Slawson achieved a career-best 19 points, and Quenton Jackson chipped in 15.
Hornets 122, Timberwolves 108
LaMelo Ball scored 35 points on efficient 13-for-22 shooting as Charlotte pulled away for a convincing road victory over Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Miles Bridges provided strong support with 25 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for Charlotte, which extended their winning streak to four games. Coby White added 17 points coming off the bench.
Julius Randle led Minnesota with 26 points and eight rebounds. Bones Hyland contributed 18 points as a reserve, and Rudy Gobert posted a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. The Timberwolves played without Anthony Edwards (right knee inflammation) and Jaden McDaniels (left knee soreness).
Magic 112, Pelicans 108
Desmond Bane scored 27 points as Orlando erased a 15-point third-quarter deficit to upset New Orleans on the road.
Paolo Banchero recorded 23 points and 16 rebounds for the Magic, who took control after gaining the lead midway through the final quarter to win their third contest in four tries.
Saddiq Bey led New Orleans with 32 points, but the Pelicans fell to their eighth consecutive defeat. Jeremiah Fears added 19 points, Yves Missi contributed 18 and Zion Williamson scored 17 for New Orleans.
Clippers 138, Kings 109
Kawhi Leonard scored 26 points and John Collins added 25 as Los Angeles climbed into eighth place in the Western Conference with a dominant road win over Sacramento.
Darius Garland and Kobe Sanders each contributed 17 points, while Kris Dunn and Jordan Miller added 13 apiece as the Clippers snapped a two-game losing streak. Los Angeles now holds the eighth seed via tiebreaker over Portland after winning two of three head-to-head meetings.
Devin Carter led Sacramento with 21 points and Nique Clifford added 18 as the Kings saw their two-game winning streak end. Maxime Raynaud recorded 11 points and 15 rebounds for Sacramento, which has battled injuries all season but managed a 7-8 record since March 8.
Bucks 131, Grizzlies 115
Ryan Rollins scored 24 points, Cormac Ryan contributed 21 and Myles Turner finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds as Milwaukee defeated Memphis at home.
Milwaukee also received 19 points from Taurean Prince, who shot 7-of-8 from the field including 5-of-5 from three-point range. The team shot 60.2% overall and 50% from beyond the arc, maintaining control throughout the second half despite Memphis cutting the deficit to one point twice early in the fourth quarter.
Rayan Rupert made history for Memphis with a 30-point triple-double, just the third in franchise history, finishing with 33 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Walter Clayton Jr. added 20 points for the Grizzlies, who dropped their fourth straight game and 17th in 19 contests.
Nets 121, Wizards 115
Rookie Nolan Traore established a career high with 23 points and dished out a game-high seven assists as Brooklyn held off Washington in a battle between Eastern Conference cellar dwellers in New York.
Jalen Wilson added 19 points and five rebounds, while Josh Minott and E.J. Liddell each scored 15 as the Nets captured just their second victory in 14 games. Brooklyn also claimed the season series against Washington 3-1.
Will Riley shot 9-for-16 from the field to pace Washington with 30 points. The rookie has led the Wizards in scoring in five of the last six games, averaging 22.5 points during that span. Julian Reese contributed 17 points and 16 rebounds for Washington.
