Warriors beat Hornets at home to stay hot

Reuters/Los Angeles

The Golden State Warriors staved off a late fourth-quarter challenge to beat New Orleans Hornets 103-96 for a successful home return on Tuesday.

David Lee had 26 points and nine rebounds while Klay Thompson added 19 points as the Warriors triumphed in their first game at Oracle Arena since a recent seven-game road trip that saw them finish 6-1.

Despite the Golden State controlling the Hornets for most of the night, New Orleans made a furious run in the fourth to tie the game 92-92 with about four minutes remaining.

Jarrett Jack responded with six free throws during a game-deciding 9-2 stretch to help Golden State (17-8) continue their sparkling start to the season. “We had a lot of confidence tonight, a lot more confidence than in the past,” Lee told reporters after The Warriors were off to their best start since the 1991-1992 season when they started 21-8.

“It’s no fun when a team’s catching up on you like that, but I think we had confidence we could make plays down the stretch.” One of the younger teams in the league, few expected the Warriors to open the campaign this successfully and they are now just 1 ½ games behind the Pacific Division lead.

The Hornets (5-19) have lost eight straight, despite getting 28 points off the bench from Ryan Anderson in their latest defeat. Also a youthful group, New Orleans have endured a tough start and have now dropped 18 of their last 20 games. Number one overall draft pick Anthony Davis recorded 15 points and 16 rebounds in his fifth game back since missing extensive time with a ankle injury. Greivis Vasquez added 20 and 11 assists.

Golden State grabbed a 10-point lead after the first quarter and were up 90-78 midway through the fourth before the visitors fought back by outscoring the Warriors 14-2 over a three-minute stint.

“It’s just a tough loss for us, especially when you tie it up, you have a chance to win,” said Hornets coach Monty Williams. “We just haven’t found that closing mentality.”

The Miami Heat got beaten up on the boards but used the long ball to stand tall. Dwyane Wade scored 24 points, LeBron James had 22 and 11 assists as the Heat overcame a whopping rebound disparity of 52-24 to shoot down the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves 103-92.

“I don’ know how many times you get doubled up in rebounds and still escape with a win,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said of the lopsided board differential. “That’s a dynamic rebounding team, but there are a lot of other factors.”

James said: “I haven’t seen a deficit like that. We were getting killed on the glass. We just had to keep fighting.”

Chris Bosh scored 15 points while Mario Chalmers hit four threes en route to 12 for the defending NBA Champion Heat (16-6), who have won five straight in the series. Russian Andrei Kirilenko scored 22 points, Montenegin Nikola Pekovic had 18 and 12 rebounds for the Timberwolves (12-11), who have dropped two in a row following four straight wins.

Minnesota’s Kevin Love finished with 11 points and 18 rebounds but Spanish guard Ricky Rubio was held out of back-to-back games for precautionary reasons after making his season-debut Saturday following knee surgery nine months ago.

Despite being pummeled on the glass, the Heat led 52-49 at halftime and 80-72 after three before starting the fourth quarter on game-breaking 17-6 burst. Shane Battier buried a trio of three-pointers, Ray Allen added another while James made an old-fashioned three-point play and dunk to open up a 97-78 cushion with seven minutes 11 seconds left to play.

The Timberwolves went on a 10-1 run and drew to within 100-92 with one minute 47 seconds left. But the Heat’s Norris Cole raced in for a fast-break layup and free throw following a steal with 68 seconds left to seal the win. “We just didn’t play tough enough for all 48 minutes,” Pekovic said. “The fourth quarter was too much to make up.”

Lakers 101, Bobcats 100

Kobe Bryant scored 30 points, including the eventual game-winning 19-foot jumper with 52 seconds left as the Lakers stormed from 18 down in the third quarter to hand the visiting Bobcats their 12th straight loss.

Dwight Howard had 16 points and 18 rebounds for the Lakers’ third straight win. Spaniard Pau Gasol finished with 10 points, nine rebounds and five assists in 30 minutes after missing eight games with tendinitis in both knees. Kemba Walker had 28 points, Ramon Sessions added 20 for the Bobcats, who missed four potential game-winning shots on the final possession.

Hawks 100, Wizards 95

DeShawn Stevenson drained the go-ahead three-pointer with just over two minutes left in overtime as the visiting Hawks beat the league-worst Wizards (3-18) for the 17th time in 18 meetings despite Jordan Crawford’s second career triple double of 27 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.

Jazz 92, Nets 90

Mo Williams scored 19 points, Al Jefferson had 16 with 10 rebounds and the visiting Jazz survived the Nets, when Gerald Wallace banged a potential game-winning three-pointer off the rim in the closing seconds and Reggie Evans missed a jumper at the buzzer.

Mavericks 107, 76ers 100

OJ Mayo scored 26 points, Chris Kaman added 20 and the Mavericks snapped a three-game skid while handing the visiting Sixers their fourth straight loss. Dorell Wright paced the Sixers with seven threes en route to a season-high 25 points.

Raptors 113, Cavaliers 99

Spaniard Jose Calderon scored 23 points to pace six teammates in double figures as the visiting Raptors snapped an 11-game road slide while handing the Cavaliers their ninth loss in 10 games overall despite 23 by Kyrie Irving.

Nuggets 112, Spurs 106

Italy’s Danilo Gallinari scored 28 points, while Kenneth Faried had 19 with 11 boards, and the Nuggets edged the visiting Spurs for their third straight win. Tim Duncan had 31 points and 18 rebounds while Argentine Manu Ginobili scored 16 for the Spurs, losers of four straight road games.

Bulls 100, Celtics 89

Carlos Boozer and Luol Deng scored 21 points apiece, Joakim Noah posted his second career triple-double with 11 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists and the Bulls sent the visiting Celtics to their third straight loss despite 26 points from Rajon Rondo.

Bucks 98, Pacers 93

Brandon Jennings poured in 13 of his 34 points in the final quarter, and the Bucks held off the visiting Pacers.