Australian NBA star Patty Mills enjoyed a sensational shooting night from beyond the arc, draining 6-of-12 three point attempts en route to 24 points for the Brooklyn Nets.
But it still wasn’t enough as the Nets – missing James Harden with a right hand complaint and still without Kevin Durant – fell to the Golden State Warriors 110-106 in a thrilling finale as Klay Thompson nailed a three-pointer with 12.5 seconds remaining.
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The Warriors blew out to an 11 point lead by the first break, but Kyrie Irving exploded for the Nets in the third quarter in a 20-4 run that reduced the deficit to just two points at the start of the final quarter.
A pair of Patty Mills free throws made it 103-104 with half a minute remaining, only for Klay Thompson to turn back the clock with a timely treble to extend the lead to four points with 12 seconds remaining. Irving replied with a three of his own, but the Warriors held on to the win courtesy of a handful of free throws.
“Splash Brothers” Thompson and Stephen Curry struggled early, combining for just seven points in the first half. But they scored the last 17 for Golden State to seal the win.
Thompson’s game-winning shot from deep continues his remarkable resurgence after two-and-a-half years ruled out with injuries.
“It felt amazing, it really did. I missed that feeling,” Thompson said. “It felt absolutely amazing.”
“It’s important for Klay to feel those big moments. It’s been two-and-a-half years,” coach Steve Kerr said.
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Thompson added: “I think I’m figuring out how to play well with these guys and vice versa. It’s hard to simulate that when you’re on the sideline watching.”
Thompson finished with 16 points, while Steph Curry added 19 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. But Curry once again struggled from deep, making 3 of 10 three point attempts.
After a hot-handed start to the season, Curry has dipped well below his usual record-breaking shooting from three-point range. His problems appeared to be finally over when he scored
6 for 10 deep attempts in a 124-115 victory over the Timberwolves on Thursday.
But his 3-of-10 against the Nets was far more akin to the two games before that Minnesota match-up. Curry was just 3 for 23 from deep through those two prior matches.
Kyrie Irving finished with 32 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for the Nets. Andrew Wiggins made 24 points and 8 rebounds for the Wariors after igniting in the first quarter.
The Warriors’ victory in San Francisco was just one close shave on a night that saw the Toronto Raptors edge the Eastern Conference-leading Miami Heat 124-120 in a triple-overtime thriller and the Philadelphia 76ers rally for a 103-101 victory over the Sacramento Kings.
In Miami, Fred VanVleet made two three-pointers in the third overtime and the Raptors held on against the weary Heat, who were playing the second night of a back-to-back.
VanVleet’s shot from beyond the arc made it 117-117 with 3:35 to play. He came up with a steal and drained another three to put Toronto up 122-117 with 2:17 remaining.
VanVleet finished with 19 points for Toronto, who were led by Gary Trent’s 33. Jimmy Butler had a triple-double of 37 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists for the Heat.
MAVS WIN IN CARLISLE RETURN
In Dallas, Luka Doncic scored 30 points and handed out 12 assists to lead the Mavericks in a 132-105 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
It was a rude welcome back to Texas for Indiana coach Rick Carlisle, who coached the Mavericks the previous 13 seasons and led the team to a title in 2011.
The Mavs played a video tribute to Carlisle before the game that had fans on their feet and the coach in tears.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” Carlisle said. “It was a wonderful gesture.”
There were a lot of hugs exchanged after the game, too, but the Mavericks showed no sentiment in their wire-to-wire victory.
Reggie Bullock added 23 points, hitting six of his seven three-point attempts. Maxi Kleber celebrated his 30th birthday with 15 points and 14 rebounds for Dallas.
The only down note for the Mavericks was Kristaps Porzingis’s second-quarter departure with a sore right knee, the same knee on which he had meniscus surgery in October 2020.
“We’ll see how he feels tomorrow,” said Mavs coach Jason Kidd, who had no details on the injury immediately after the game.
EMBIID GOES OFF AGAIN
The Philadelphia 76ers, fuelled by 36 points from Cameroonian big man Joel Embiid, notched a fourth straight win, but it was a battle against the Kings.
Tyrese Haliburton scored a career-high 38 points for Sacramento, and the Kings led by 17 in the third quarter before dropping their sixth straight.
Led by an aggressive Embiid, the Sixers had taken a 10-point lead with less than three minutes to play. The Kings fought back, with Haliburton’s off-balance three-pointer cutting Philadelphia’s lead to two with 11.1 seconds left.
But Harrison Barnes’s last-gasp three-point attempt for the Kings bounced off the rim.