NBA roundup: Steph Curry lifts Warriors past Lakers in return

Stephen Curry scored 31 points in his return from a three-game absence and Klay Thompson added 26 points as the visiting Golden State Warriors earned a 128-121 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday.

Jonathan Kuminga scored 23 points, Andrew Wiggins had 16 and Draymond Green added six points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds to help the Warriors (35-31) pull a percentage point ahead of the Lakers (36-32). Both teams are in the final two spots for the play-in tournament in the Western Conference.

Golden State entered with three losses in its previous four games and went 1-2 while Curry was out with a right ankle sprain.

LeBron James scored 13 of his 40 points in the fourth quarter and D’Angelo Russell added 23 points and 13 assists for the Lakers. Anthony Davis did not play after the first quarter because of a left eye contusion. His eye was brushed by the arm of Warriors forward Trayce Jackson-Davis on a drive to the basket.

Knicks 98, Kings 91

Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks provided all the scoring during a critical fourth-quarter run and New York’s defense was stellar once again in a win over host Sacramento.

Jalen Brunson had a game-high 42 points for the Knicks (40-27), who won for the fourth time in their past five games, a stretch in which they haven’t allowed more than 93 points in any game.

Domantas Sabonis had 21 points and 14 rebounds for the Kings (38-28), who led 79-75 after two free throws by De’Aaron Fox with 9:48 remaining.

Pacers 121, Nets 100

Pascal Siakam totaled 28 points and 11 rebounds as host Indiana pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat Brooklyn.

Siakam’s double-double helped the Pacers (38-30) improve to 8-5 in their past 13 and moved to within 1 1/2 games of the fifth-place Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference.

The Nets (26-41) dropped to 1-4 on a six-game road that ends Sunday against the San Antonio Spurs and fell 3 1/2 games behind the 10th-place Atlanta Hawks for the final play-in spot in the East.

Timberwolves 119, Jazz 100

Mike Conley scored 25 points in his Salt Lake City return and Anthony Edwards scored 31 to lead Minnesota to a win over Utah.

The night began with a video tribute for Conley, who played three-plus seasons in Utah before being traded to Minnesota in February 2023. Edwards topped all scorers and added 10 rebounds, five assists, three steals and three blocks for Minnesota (46-21).

Collin Sexton, coming off the bench, led the Jazz (29-38) with 22 points and 10 assists. Utah played without its top three veterans: Lauri Markkanen (quadriceps), Jordan Clarkson (groin) and John Collins (rest).

Rockets 117, Cavaliers 103

Jalen Green and Fred VanVleet posted double-doubles as host Houston extended its winning streak to five games with a victory over Cleveland.

Green posted game-highs of 26 points and 11 rebounds and VanVleet added 13 points and 16 assists to guide the Rockets to their seventh victory in eight games. After a back-and-forth first quarter, the Rockets (32-35) seized control behind a balanced scoring attack in the second quarter.

All five starters also scored in double figures for the Cavaliers (42-25) but the squad was led by Caris LeVert and his 21 points off the bench. Georges Niang scored 14 points while Donovan Mitchell tallied 13 points and Darius Garland 12 for Cleveland. Mitchell and Garland shot a combined 9 for 26.

76ers 109, Hornets 98

Tyrese Maxey scored 30 points, Kelly Oubre Jr. added 22 and host Philadelphia defeated Charlotte.

Buddy Hield contributed 14 points, Paul Reed had 11 and Cameron Payne chipped in 10 for the Sixers (37-30), who snapped a two-game losing streak.

Tre Mann led the Hornets (17-51) with 21 points, while Davis Bertans added 16. Miles Bridges and Grant Williams scored 14 points apiece, and Nick Richards had 11 points and 11 rebounds. Vasilije Micic also scored 11 points.

Pelicans 126, Trail Blazers 107

CJ McCollum scored 30 points, Zion Williamson had 26 points and 10 rebounds and host New Orleans pulled away from Portland.

Brandon Ingram had 22 points, Trey Murphy III added 20 points and Naji Marshall scored 11 for the Pelicans (41-26), who won for the sixth time in seven games.

Dalano Banton scored 28 points, Anfernee Simons added 25, Deandre Ayton scored 20, Toumani Camara and Scoot Henderson had 11 each and Jabari Walker added 10 for the Blazers (19-48), who played without second-leading scorer Jerami Grant (hamstring).

Thunder 118, Grizzlies 112

Jalen Williams scored 23 points to lead visiting Oklahoma City over Memphis.

The Thunder (47-20) have won back-to-back games and five of its past six to move into a tie with the Denver Nuggets for the top spot in the Western Conference.

Desmond Bane played for the first time since Jan. 12, and he led the Grizzlies (23-45) with 22 points and seven assists. Bane had been dealing with an ankle injury.

Bulls 127, Wizards 98

Ayo Dosunmu scored a career-high 34 points and handed out nine assists as Chicago dominated the first half and never looked back in a win over visiting Washington.

Nikola Vucevic had 29 points and 13 rebounds for Chicago (33-35), which matched its largest margin of victory this season. Alex Caruso had 16 points, Andre Drummond had 13 points and nine rebounds and DeMar DeRozan chipped in 13 points.

Corey Kispert led Washington (11-56) with 16 points while Bilal Coulibaly scored 15. Jordan Poole added 13 points and eight assists and Kyle Kuzma had 11 for the Wizards, who have lost three straight and 19 of their last 21.

–Field Level Media/Reuters