NBA Wrap: Stephen Curry stars for Warriors, Hawks smash Kings, Nuggets continue Knicks misery

SHOOTING machine Stephen Curry was on fire for the Warriors again today. Check out the day’s action in the NBA Wrap.

CLEVELAND, OH - FEBRUARY 26: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors reacts after missing a shot during the second half against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena on February 26, 2015 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Warriors 110-99. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Jason Miller/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

SHOOTING machine Stephen Curry was on fire for the Warriors again today. Check out the day’s action in the NBA Wrap.

WARRIORS 98 — SUNS 80

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry.

Stephen Curry scored 25 of his 36 points in the second half and the Golden State Warriors beat the Phoenix Suns 98-80 on Monday night for their 50th victory of the season.

Klay Thompson added 25 for the Warriors, who at 50-12 have the NBA’s best record, a half-game better than Atlanta.

Curry made 7 of 13 3-pointers, 6 of 8 in the second half, in his 13th 30-point game of the season.

Aussie Andrew Bogut finished with two points, seven rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block.

Eric Bledsoe scored 19 for Phoenix. Brandon Knight had 13 before leaving the game with a sprained left ankle in the second quarter. Alex Len had 10 points and 11 rebounds.

The Warriors became the second NBA team to win 50 games this season. Atlanta did it with a victory over Sacramento a few hours earlier.

Sacramento Kings' Andre Miller reacts after officials called a foul on teammate Jason Thompson.

HAWKS 130 — KINGS 105

Kyle Korver and DeMarre Carroll each scored 20 points as the Atlanta Hawks bounced back from a rare loss by becoming the first NBA team to 50 wins, scoring a season high in routing the Sacramento Kings 130-105 Monday night.

Resting three starters, the East-leading Hawks (50-13) were beaten by the lowly 76ers over the weekend to snap a six-game winning streak. Korver didn’t even make the trip to Philadelphia, the Hawks hoping the rest would help snap him out of a shooting slump since the All-Star break.

Boy, did it ever. Korver went 6 of 8 from 3-point range. The Hawks set a franchise record by going 20 of 36 beyond the arc, breaking the mark of 19 set against Dallas on Dec. 17, 1996.

The Hawks led 76-54 at the break — their most prolific half of the season. They finished with 42 assists, best in the NBA this season. Jeff Teague led the way with 13.

Rudy Gay scored 23 points as the Kings lost their fourth in a row.

PELICANS 114 — BUCKS 103

New Orleans Pelicans' Tyreke Evans drives against Milwaukee Bucks.

Anthony Davis scored 43 points, tying a career high and helping New Orleans pull away to beat Milwaukee.

Eric Gordon added 16 and Tyreke Evans had 13 before leaving the game in the third quarter with an ankle injury. The Pelicans shot 59 per cent for the game and 60 per cent from 3-point range.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had a career-high 29 points for the Bucks, who have lost seven of nine. Michael Carter-Williams tallied 25, his highest-scoring game for Milwaukee since being acquired last month in a trade-deadline deal, and Khris Middleton scored 17.

Milwaukee took a 101-100 lead with 3:35 remaining on a runner by Antetokounmpo. Davis, who recorded his third career 40-point game, then scored eight consecutive points as New Orleans closed the game on a 14-2 run.

CLIPPERS 89 — TIMBERWOLVES 76

Los Angeles Clippers guard Nate Robinson drives past Minnesota Timberwolves center Gorgui Dieng.

J.J. Redick scored 26 points, DeAndre Jordan had 20 points and 17 rebounds, and the injury-depleted Los Angeles Clippers snapped a two-game skid with an 89-76 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night.

Austin Rivers scored 13 points as the Clippers, despite the absences of Blake Griffin and Jamal Crawford, bounced back one day after a road loss to Pacific Division-leading Golden State.

Chris Paul also managed just two points and 15 assists while playing 29 minutes on a bruised knee.

Adreian Payne had 16 points and 15 rebounds while starting in place of Kevin Garnett for the Timberwolves, who opened a four-game road trip with their fifth loss in six games.

Minnesota has lost 12 straight to the Clippers since February 2012.

Memphis Grizzlies' Marc Gasol against Chicago Bulls' Pau Gasol.

GRIZZLIES 101 — BULLS 91

Marc Gasol scored 23 points to lead Memphis past his brother Pau and Chicago.

Gasol was 10 of 16 from the field for the Grizzlies, who moved to two games ahead of idle Houston for the Southwest Division lead.

Jeff Green had 19 and Zach Randolph added 16 for the Grizzlies, who held the Bulls to 43.8 per cent shooting from the field and improved to 21-11 on the road.

Pau Gasol, Marc’s older brother, had 13 points and 11 rebounds for his 43rd double-double to match the career high he set during the 2010-11 season with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Marc Gasol started opposite his brother at last month’s NBA All-Star Game.

WIZARDS 95 — HORNETS 69

Washington Wizards guard Garrett Temple drives around Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.

Marcin Gortat scored 20 points and Washington rolled past Charlotte.

John Wall added 15 points and nine assists, Bradley Beal had 14 points and Kevin Seraphin scored 12 for the Wizards, who snapped a nine-game road losing streak.

Mo Williams scored 19 points for the Hornets, who shot just 32.5 per cent (25 of 77) and committed 16 turnovers to tie their lowest-scoring game this season and end a five-game winning streak.

Al Jefferson added 14 points and Lance Stephenson 12 for Charlotte, which led twice in the first 2 1/2 minutes, the last at 9-8 on Williams’ three-point play with 9:21 left.

CELTICS 100 — HEAT 90

Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade looks for an open teammate past Boston Celtics guard Evan Turner.

Isaiah Thomas scored 25 points in another strong game off the bench, Brandon Bass added 14 and Boston beat Miami.

Luigi Datome scored 13 for the Celtics, and Kelly Olynyk finished with 10.

Dwyane Wade scored 34 points for the Heat, who got 14 from Michael Beasley and 12 from Mario Chalmers. The Heat got a pregame lift from the return of Chris Bosh to the team’s bench for the first time since he was ruled out for the season last month because of blood clots on a lung.

But it wasn’t enough to keep Miami’s playoff hopes from taking another blow, and the Heat missed a chance to climb into seventh in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

NUGGETS 106 — KNICKS 78

Kenneth Faried had 19 points and 11 rebounds, and the Denver Nuggets routed the New York Knicks 106-78 on Monday night.

Wilson Chandler and Will Barton scored 17 points apiece for the Nuggets, who enjoyed their largest margin in a win this season.

The Knicks lost their fourth straight and fell to 12-50, the NBA’ first 50-loss team this season. Alexey Shved had 19 points for New York, which has just seven wins in 2015.

The lead grew to as much as 34 in the fourth. It was the largest lead of the season for the Nuggets, who tied a season low with eight turnovers. They didn’t have a turnover in the second or third quarter.

The matchup between two of the worst teams in the league was close late in the second quarter when the Nuggets went on a run to take control. Faried had a dunk and Randy Foye hit a jumper before Andrea Bargnani drained a 3-pointer to pull the Knicks within 43-40 with 3:13 left in the half.

Denver scored the next eight points to go up by 11 and then ended the half with four points in the last 2.1 seconds. Joffrey Lauvergne hit a layup and was fouled. He missed the free throw but Darrell Arthur tipped in the rebound to make it 55-40 at intermission.

The Nuggets quickly went ahead 65-45 on Ty Lawson’s 3-pointer early in the third. The margin stayed near 20 for most of the quarter until Denver scored the last 14 points of the third to lead 91-59.

Originally published as NBA Wrap: Stephen Curry stars for Warriors, Hawks smash Kings, Nuggets continue Knicks misery