The Golden State Warriors and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday gave the NBA exactly what it wanted out of the inaugural In-Season Tournament — playoff-caliber intensity early in the season.
Stephen Curry scored 30 points, including the winning layup with 0.2 seconds left, to help the Warriors defeat the Thunder 141-139.
Initially, Curry’s final shot was ruled no good because of offensive goaltending against Draymond Green. The call was overturned and the Warriors held on.
Photo: AP
Green said the call was overturned because he touched the rim and not the ball.
Thunder coach Mark Daigneault also said that was the explanation he was given.
Green said the NBA has created something good.
Photo: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY
“You just saw two teams competing,” he said. “We talk about this in the season tournament, and — it’s a playoff game. It was a fun game to play and intensity level is there. So job well done to the NBA having his type of excitement in November because there be some dark days in November, but games like this? You can appreciate them.”
The crowd was loud throughout, especially when foul calls involved Green.
“You know, this crowd tends to go at me quite a bit, but we usually win, so it’s all right,” he said. “But this is a great crowd. Honestly, I love coming to play here. Crowd brings it every time. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a game here and the crowd wasn’t in it. They bring it every single night. And so it’s always a fun place to come and play.”
Dario Saric scored 20 points, while Chris Paul had 13 assists and no turnovers for Golden State, who improved to 5-1.
The Warriors claimed their second straight last-second victory. On Wednesday, Klay Thompson scored with less than a second remaining to seal a win over the Sacramento Kings.
Lu Dort scored 29 points, Chet Holmgren scored 24 on seven for nine shooting and Josh Giddey scored 14 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter for the Thunder.
Golden State hit seven threes in the first quarter to take a 38-33 lead. Saric scored 11 points as a reserve in the period.
Curry threw a no-look lob from beyond the three-point line to Gary Payton II for a dunk that gave the Warriors a 50-44 lead. Golden State hit six three-pointers in the second quarter to lead 69-67 at halftime. Thompson’s leaning three-pointer at the buzzer that would have made it a five-point lead was called no good on the floor, and that ruling held up after review.
Dort scored 11 points in just over four minutes at the start of the third quarter to give the Thunder an 85-80 lead. The Warriors rallied, and the game was tied at 106 heading into the fourth quarter.
Oklahoma City’s Isaiah Joe hit a three-pointer and was fouled with 9 minutes, 15 seconds to go. He made the free throw to give the Thunder a 118-115 lead and the game remained close the rest of the way.
In Denver, Colorado, Nikola Jokic scored 33 points and went 14 of 16 from the field as the Nuggets held off the Dallas Mavericks 125-114 to open the In-Season Tournament.
“What I marvel at is just the consistency,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “I mean, the guy is just great every night... He’s just a great player. I just love how he impacts the game in every way, shape and form. It’s really the definition of greatness.”
It was the first In-Season Tournament game for each team.
The Nuggets and the Mavericks are in West Group B with the Los Angeles Clippers, the New Orleans Pelicans, the Mavericks and the Houston Rockets. The six group winners make the quarter-finals, along with a pair of wild-card teams — the two best second-place finishers from the groups.
The quarter-finals are scheduled for Dec. 4 and 5, while the semi-finals are set for Dec. 7 in Las Vegas and the title game on Dec. 9 in Las Vegas.
The five other games on Friday were also part of the new tournament.
Elsewhere on Friday, it was:
‧ Bucks 110, Knicks 105
‧ Bulls 107, Nets 109
‧ Heat 121, Wizards 114
‧ Pacers 121, Cavaliers 116
‧ Trail Blazers 115, Grizzlies 113
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
LONG TIME COMING: With the addition of Marcus Smart, the Washington Wizards finally held a team to under 100 points, the last team this season to do so The Detroit Pistons on Monday won their seventh straight game in the NBA with in-form Cade Cunningham making 32 points and grabbing nine rebounds in a 106-97 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. The Pistons, who are in the playoff position, moved to 32-26, their best record at this stage of a season for 17 years. It was an all-round effort from Detroit with Tobias Harris adding 20 points and Jalen Duren making 19 rebounds along with his 12 points. It was a tight contest until Detroit pulled away late in the third quarter to tie their longest winning streak since the 2014-2015
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