NBA wRap: Curry breaks Magic hearts with game-winner

MANILA, Philippines – The reigning NBA MVP Kevin Durant made his return on Wednesday, December 3, but his Oklahoma City Thunder fell to the New Orleans Pelicans, who leaned on the terrific performance of Anthony Davis. In Chicago, the Mavs and Bulls needed an extra 10 minutes to decide a winner, while Curry needed just a few seconds to break the hearts of the Orlando Magic.

All that and more in Wednesday’s NBA wRap:

 

Cleveland Cavaliers (9-7) 111 – 108 Milwaukee Bucks (10-9)

CLE: Kyrie Irving 28 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds

MIL: Brandon Knight 27 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds 

The trio of Irving, LeBron James, and Kevin Love each had at least 26 points as the Cavs won their fourth straight game, beating the Bucks. Rookie Jabari Parker played well, scoring 22 points and grabbing 8 rebounds. 

Highlight of the Game:

 

Atlanta Hawks (10-6) 109 – 105 Boston Celtics (4-11)

ATL: Kyle Korver 24 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists

BOS: Jared Sullinger 22 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist

Highlight of the Game:

 

Los Angeles Lakers (5-13) 106 – 96 Detroit Pistons (3-15)

LAL: Jordan Hill 22 points, 13 rebounds, 1 assist

DET: Josh Smith 18 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals

The Lakers won their second straight game – both against East opponents. Kobe Bryant, after his triple-double performance against Toronto, was racking up assists again on Wednesday with 13 dimes to go with his 12 points.

Highlight of the Game:

 

Brooklyn Nets (7-9) 98 – 93 New York Knicks (4-15)

BKN: Joe Johnson 22 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals

NYK: Jose Calderon 19 points, 7 assists, 2 steals

 

Dallas Mavericks (14-5) 132 – 129 Chicago Bulls (11-7)

DAL: Monta Ellis 38 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals

CHI: Pau Gasol 29 points, 14 rebounds, 2 assists

The game of the evening went to two overtimes with Ellis hitting a critical 3-pointer down the stretch to give his team the win. Dallas, however, would have won the game much earlier had it not been for this fantastic buzzer-beater by Derrick Rose:

 

New Orleans Pelicans (8-8) 112 – 104 Oklahoma City Thunder (5-13)

NOP: Anthony Davis 25 points, 10 rebounds, 6 steals, 4 blocks, 4 assists

OKC: Kevin Durant 27 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists

Durant’s returned on Wednesday, and nailed a 3-pointer for his first basket of the season.

The night, however, belonged to Davis and the Pelicans who improved to .500 with the win. OKC, who is eight games below .500, has a lot of catching up to do if they hope to make the playoffs.

 

Portland Trail Blazers (14-4) 105 – 103 Denver Nuggets (9-9)

POR: LaMarcus Aldridge 39 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks

DEN: Ty Lawson 24 points, 13 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals

The Trail Blazers won the game thanks to a greatly executed play off a time-out called by Head Coach Terry Slotts down the stretch:

Phoenix Suns (11-8) 116 – 99 Indiana Pacers (7-11)

PHX: Goran Dragic 34 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals

IND: Roy Hibbert 15 points, 10 rebounds, 2 steals

 

Toronto Raptors (14-4) 117 – 109 Sacramento Kings (9-9)

TOR: Kyle Lowry 27 points, 13 assists, 2 steals

SAC: Rudy Gay 20 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds

 

Highlight of the Day:

 

Golden State Warriors (15-2) 98 – 97 Orlando Magic (7-13)

GSW: Klay Thompson: 20 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists

ORL: Victor Oladipo: 27 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals

The Warriors were down six with under three minutes to go but caught up, and came away with the win thanks to this clutch 3-ball from Steph Curry:

Fantasy Line of the Day: Anthony Davis was superb against the Thunder. He had 25 points, 10 rebounds, 6 steals, 4 assists, and 4 blocks, and shot 8-of-15 from the floor and 9-of-16 from the foul line. He also only had 1 turnover.

– Rappler.com