Stephen Curry returned from a two-month absence with 29 points, but Alperen Sengun capped a 24-point performance with a go-ahead interior hoop with 11.1 seconds remaining, lifting the Houston Rockets to a 117-116 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Sunday night in San Francisco.
In his first return to San Francisco as a member of the Rockets, Kevin Durant poured in a game-high 31 points for Houston (49-29), which moved within one game of the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets in their three-team
duel for third place in the Western Conference.
Brandin Podziemski backed Curry with 18 points for the Warriors (36-42), who virtually assured themselves of the 10th seed in the Western play-in tournament.
Curry, who had missed 27 straight games since a Jan. 30 injury against Detroit, played 26 minutes, during which he hit 11 of his 21 shots. The Warriors had gone 9-18 in his 27 absences as he recovered from a sore right knee.
Gui Santos finished with 15 points and Payton 14 for the Warriors, who saw Kristaps Porzingis foul out with just nine points and a team-high eight rebounds after 23 minutes. Draymond Green collected a game-high 12 assists to go with seven points.
Celtics 115, Raptors 101
Jaylen Brown tossed in a game-high 26 points and Jayson Tatum added 23 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists to lead Boston to a victory over visiting Toronto.
The Celtics received 18 points and seven rebounds from Neemias Queta, 17 points from Payton Pritchard and 10 from Derrick White. Boston's Nikola Vucevic played in a game for the first time since he fractured his right ring finger March 6 and had four points and four rebounds.
Boston has won its last nine home games against Toronto. The Raptors haven't won in Boston since 2021. Boston has won 21 of its last 24 regular-season games against Toronto overall. Ja'Kobe Walter led Toronto with 16 points. Brandon Ingram and RJ Barrett each scored 15.
Mavericks 134, Lakers 128
Cooper Flagg followed a historic 51-point performance with another sensational outing, going for 45 points, nine assists and eight rebounds to lead host Dallas over short-handed Los Angeles.
Dallas built a lead as large as 22 points behind P.J. Washington's 15 points, Naji Marshall and Brandon Williams each scoring 13 and Klay Thompson knocking down three 3-pointers on the way to 11 points to support Flagg.
LeBron James (30 points, 15 assists and nine rebounds) did what he could to pick up the slack as Los Angeles was without its top two scorers in Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, who will both miss at least the remainder of the regular season. Luke Kennard notched his first career triple-double with 15 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists.
Suns 120, Bulls 110
Devin Booker scored 30 points, Jalen Green added 25 and Dillon Brooks sank a pair of clutch baskets down the stretch to help Phoenix get past host Chicago.
All five Phoenix starters scored in double figures, as Mark Williams shot 6-of-8 from the floor on the way to 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds, while Jordan Goodwin added 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting and seven boards.
Tre Jones scored 29 points on 12-of-20 shooting from the floor to lead Chicago. Collin Sexton posted a double-double, scoring 18 points and nine rebounds. Leonard Miller had a game-high 10 rebounds and shot 7-of-14 from the field on the way to 17 points.
Cavaliers 117, Pacers 108
Donovan Mitchell scored 38 points and James Harden had 28 points and seven assists as playoff-bound Cleveland overcame a slow start in a victory over visiting Indiana.
Thomas Bryant posted 14 points and 10 rebounds for Cleveland, which did not lead in the first half before rallying for its eighth win in the last 10 games. The Cavaliers are on the verge of locking up fourth place in the Eastern Conference, which would give them home-court advantage in the first round.
Micah Potter and Obi Toppin scored 21 points apiece for Indiana, which only dressed nine players and has the second-worst record in the league. Jalen Slawson scored a career-high 19 points, and Quenton Jackson had 15 points.
Hornets 122, Timberwolves 108
LaMelo Ball scored 35 points on 13-for-22 shooting and Charlotte pulled away for a win over Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Miles Bridges added 25 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for Charlotte), which won its fourth game in a row. Coby White contributed 17 points off the bench.
Julius Randle scored 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead Minnesota. Bones Hyland finished with 18 points off the bench, and Rudy Gobert registered a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Anthony Edwards (right knee inflammation) and Jaden McDaniels (left knee soreness) missed the game.
Magic 112, Pelicans 108
Desmond Bane scored 27 points as Orlando overturned a 15-point third-quarter deficit to defeat host New Orleans.
Paolo Banchero paired 23 points with 16 rebounds for the Magic, who seized control after edging in front midway through the fourth quarter to win their third game in the last four.
Saddiq Bey had 32 for the Pelicans, who succumbed to their eighth straight defeat. Jeremiah Fears added 19 points, Yves Missi posted 18 and Zion Williamson contributed 17 for New Orleans.
Clippers 138 Kings 109
Kawhi Leonard scored 26 points and John Collins added 25 as Los Angeles moved into eighth place in the Western Conference standings with a road victory over Sacramento.
Darius Garland and Kobe Sanders each scored 17 points, while Kris Dunn and Jordan Miller added 13 each as the Clippers ended a two-game skid. Los Angeles has the same record as the Portland Trail Blazers but now owns the eighth spot in the standings via tiebreaker by winning two of the three games between the teams.
Devin Carter scored 21 points and Nique Clifford added 18 as the Kings saw a two-game winning streak come to an end. Maxime Raynaud scored 11 points with 15 rebounds for Sacramento, which has struggled with injury issues this season but has managed to go 7-8 since March 8.
Bucks 131, Grizzlies 115
Ryan Rollins scored 24 points, Cormac Ryan added 21 and Myles Turner finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds to lead Milwaukee to a victory over visiting Memphis.
The Bucks also got 19 points from Taurean Prince, who was 7-of-8 shooting, including 5-of-5 from long range. The team shot 60.2% from the field and 50% from 3-point range, never trailing in the second half, although the Grizzlies did cut the deficit to one point twice early in the fourth quarter.
Rayan Rupert posted a 30-point triple-double for the Grizzlies, only the third in franchise history, finishing with 33 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Walter Clayton Jr. added 20 points for the Grizzlies, who lost their fourth straight and for the 17th time in 19 games.
Nets 121, Wizards 115
Rookie Nolan Traore scored a career-high 23 points and added a game-high seven assists as Brooklyn held off visiting Washington in an Eastern Conference basement battle in New York.
Jalen Wilson added 19 points and five rebounds, while Josh Minott and E.J. Liddell each had 15 points as the Nets won for just the second time in their past 14 games. They also won the season series with Washington 3-1.
Will Riley shot 9 for 16 from the field and led the Wizards with 30 points. The rookie has led the Wizards in scoring in five of the past six games, averaging 22.5 points per game over that stretch. Julian Reese added 17 points and 16 rebounds for Washington.
--Field Level Media
