Stephen Curry came alight down the stretch with 22 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Golden State Warriors showed they are not a spent force beating the Milwaukee Bucks.
The Warriors won 125-116 in overtime after Draymond Green's three-point attempt in the final seconds of regulation rimmed out, before Golden State went on a 9-0 run led by Curry at the Chase Center on Saturday.
Curry shot poorly in the first three quarters but knocked down several crucial three-pointers in the latter periods, finishing with 13-of-27 shooting from the field including six-of-15 from beyond the arc in his first home game since returning from a leg injury.
The result meant the Warriors have won seven straight at home, while it ended the Bucks' nine-game road streak. Golden State are 11-1 in their last 12 games at the Chase Center.
NBA-leading Milwaukee were without Giannis Antetokounmpo (sore hand) but could have won it in regulation with Jrue Holiday driving to the basket with scores locked, only to be blocked by Curry with 1.9 seconds left.
That was Curry's 16th block of the season and came after the reigning NBA Finals MVP landed a tying three-pointer.
Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez top scored for the Bucks with 19 points, with the latter having seven rebounds and five blocks. Holiday scored 18 points with nine rebounds and eight assists.
Klay Thompson and Donte DiVincenzo supported Curry with 22 and 20 points respectively, with the latter adding 10 rebounds.
Kawhi shines as Clippers keep winning
Kawhi Leonard continued his resurgent form with 38 points as the Los Angeles Clippers downed the New York Knicks 106-95.
Leonard shot 14-of-22 from the field and is now averaging 31 points across his past seven games, including four 30-point games during that span.
Paul George contributed 22 points for the Clippers, who have won three in a row, while the Knicks have now lost three straight after a nine-game winning run.
Smart ejected as Celtics clip Hawks
Jayson Tatum led the way with 34 points and 15 rebounds after Marcus Smart was ejected for a tussle with Trae Young as the Boston Celtics won 134-125 over the Atlanta Hawks.
Tatum added 11 of his 34 points in the fourth quarter as the Hawks tried to launch a comeback, while Jaylen Brown had 24 points with five rebounds and seven assists.
Hawks guard Young scored a game-high 35 points with 13 assists, but had to be separated from Smart with 1:25 remaining, with the latter ejected for his part in their confrontation.
Giannis and 'grumpy' Bucks stifled by 'just outstanding' Nuggets defense
The Milwaukee Bucks were "grumpy" in Saturday's loss to the Denver Nuggets, but Michael Malone lauded his players for their work in frustrating Giannis Antetokounmpo and Co.
A battle between the top seeds in the Eastern and Western Conferences ended in a big 129-106 win for the Nuggets in Denver.
It was the second night of a back-to-back for the Bucks, having scored 144 in beating the Utah Jazz on Friday.
Although Antetokounmpo insisted he did not want to make excuses for the defeat, he acknowledged "legs were heavy" and "shots were short".
Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer added: "It was a night where we were grumpy. It happens.
"I've got to give credit to Denver. They played well, we weren't our best.
"You always want some things to be a little bit different, but it didn't happen. We'll take it and get ready for the next game."
Antetokounmpo still scored 31 points, but 24 came in the first half. His shooting went cold in the second half, as did Milwaukee's from three-point range, making three of 17 from deep across the third and fourth quarters.
Nuggets coach Malone felt his team – and two players in particular – deserved credit for that turnaround.
"You can't guard Giannis one-on-one, nobody can. He's a great player," Malone said.
"But I felt that Aaron Gordon did everything he could to stifle him – especially in that second half. Giannis was two-for-eight, seven points in the second half.
"Aaron took the challenge head on, but I felt the four guys around Aaron gave the necessary and appropriate help.
"Take Aaron out to start the fourth quarter, I felt Jeff Green picked up right where Aaron left off. Had some great possessions, you have to be into him [Giannis], you have to be physical, and when he drives and spins, you want to be there to clamp down on that drive.
"When we out-rebound our opponent, we win; when we value the ball, we usually win; it's a hell of a performance.
"The three-point line I was worried about most – they were nine-of-36, 25 per cent. So, I thought the defense overall was just outstanding."
Jokic wins battle of the MVP candidates against Giannis, Hawks and Pelicans strengthen playoff chances
In a highly anticipated clash between winners of the past four MVPs it was Nikola Jokic's Denver Nuggets comfortably handling Giannis Antetokounmpo's Milwaukee Bucks 129-106.
Played in Denver, the reigning back-to-back MVP winner put on a show for his home fans with 31 points (10-of-20 shooting), 11 assists and six rebounds.
Jokic was supported in style by Jamal Murray, who chipped in 26 points (nine-of-19), nine assists and six rebounds, and kick-started the Nuggets with four triples in the first quarter.
Antetokounmpo, winner of the 2019 and 2020 MVP trophies, was far from the reason his side went down, posting a strong 31 points (13-of-22), nine rebounds, four assists and four steals. He led Milwaukee to a 66-63 half-time lead, before they put up just 40 points as a team in the second half.
After a mini-slump with four losses from of five games, the Nuggets have now rattled off three wins in a row, improving their home record to 31-6 in the process, which trails only the Memphis Grizzlies (32-5) for the league's best mark.
Despite the loss, Milwaukee (53-21) are still two games clear in the race for the league's best record, while the Nuggets are 3.5 games clear atop the West.
Hawks prevail despite Trae ejection
Atlanta Hawks franchise player Trae Young was ejected for throwing the ball at an official, but his side still came away with a 143-130 home win against the visiting Indiana Pacers.
Young was kicked out in the second quarter after the incident, but eight Hawks players ended up scoring double-figures to pick up the slack.
John Collins led the way with 21 points (nine-of-12 shooting), Dejounte Murray added 20 points (eight-of-20) and 12 assists, and Clint Capela snatched down 17 rebounds to go with his 17 points (five-of-five).
The win pulled the Hawks' record even at 37-37, now a game clear of the ninth-seeded Toronto Raptors (36-38) as they battle for play-in tournament positioning.
Pelicans muddy the waters in the West
The New Orleans Pelicans kept their season alive with a 131-110 road win over the Los Angeles Clippers, creating a logjam in the Western Conference's play-in placings.
Second-year Pelicans wing Trey Murphy was spectacular as he hit 10-of-12 three-pointers for an equal team-high 32 points. He was joined on 32 points by Brandon Ingram, and after Ingram's first career triple-double on Thursday, he followed it with a career-high 13 assists against the Clippers.
The win means the Pelicans are in a three-way tie for the seventh-best record in the West, joining the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Los Angeles Lakers at 37-37 with eight games to play.
March Madness: Florida Atlantic continue dream run into the Final Four, UConn pummel Gonzaga
The unlikely March Madness run from the Florida Atlantic Owls continued on Saturday as they defeated the Kansas State Wildcats 79-76 to punch their ticket to the first Final Four in school history.
It is not just the first Final Four the Owls have ever reached, as they had never won a game in the NCAA Tournament prior to this season, with their only previous appearance being a first-round exit in 2002.
After knocking out eight-seed Memphis, 16-seed Fairleigh Dickinson and four-seed Tennessee, Florida Atlantic won the East region and cut down the nets by eliminating the third-seed Wildcats.
The Owls had to deal with another spectacular performance from Kansas State talisman Markquis Nowell as the five-foot-eight point guard put up 30 points (eight-of-21 shooting), 12 assists and five steals.
But while the Wildcats leaned on their star, Florida Atlantic spread it around, with four players scoring at least 13 points, led by Bryan Greenlee's 16 on four-of-seven shooting. Seven-foot-one Russian center Vladislav Goldin controlled the interior with 14 points (six-of-11), 13 rebounds and two blocks.
The win means Florida Atlantic will play the winner between Creighton and San Diego State for a spot in the National Championship game.
It was far smoother sailing on the other side of the bracket as the four-seed Connecticut Huskies pummelled the three-seed Gonzaga Bulldogs 82-54 in a statement-making effort.
UConn's top draft prospect Jordan Hawkins drained six triples for his 20 points and six rebounds, while do-it-all wing Andre Jackson Jr flirted with a triple-double, finishing with 10 assists, nine rebounds and eight points.
It is the first time in NCAA Tournament history a team seeded fourth or lower won four consecutive games by double digits.
With it, Connecticut earned their sixth Final Four trip in program history, and first since 2014. They will meet the winner between five-seed Miami and two-seed Texas for a spot in the final game of the season.
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