Steve Kerr praised Stephen Curry's ability to "put on a great show every night" as he recorded 50 points despite the Golden State Warriors losing on the road again at the Los Angeles Clippers.
Kawhi Leonard top-scored for the hosts with 30, but had far more help from his teammates as they ran out 134-126 victors at the Crypto.com Arena.
Curry did his best as he sank 20 of 28 field-goal attempts and eight of 14 three-point shots, but no other Golden State player was able to score more than the 19 managed by Jordan Poole.
While disappointed with yet another road defeat, coach Kerr was left in awe at Curry's performance.
"It's like when a guy's throwing a no-hitter, just leave him alone," Kerr said after the loss. "Let him sit in the dugout in between innings and don't say anything to him.
"It was stunning watching that show. Watching some of the shot-making, the playmaking. We're so lucky on so many levels to coach Steph, to play with Steph.
"Our fans, being able to watch Steph, he puts on a great show every night. But this ranks right up there with some of the greatest individual performances that I've ever seen from him."
It meant that Curry became the first player in NBA history to score 50+ points, make eight or more threes and shoot 70 per cent from the field while being on the losing team in regulation.
Draymond Green, who scored eight points with eight rebounds and five assists, was left frustrated that he and his teammates could not provide Curry with more assistance.
The Warriors suffered their 27th defeat on the road out of 34 games for the season, the most by a defending champion in the league's history.
"It sucks," Green said. "You just sit and think about what more could I have done to help him?
"When you get a guy going off like that, you need to find a way to capitalise on it. We didn't do that.
"There is always frustration after a loss. Yeah, I think we did play better, but at the end of the day, you've got to come out with a win. You've got to figure out a way to win."
Golden State (36-34) are sixth in the Western Conference, one place behind the Clippers (37-33), who have won four games in a row.
Heat rally in fourth quarter to even NBA Finals at 1-1
Gabe Vincent scored 23 points and helped spark a fourth-quarter rally that propelled the Miami Heat to a 111-108 win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, evening the championship series at 1-1.
The Heat overcame an eight-point deficit to start the fourth quarter to snap the Nuggets' seven-game winning streak and send the series to Miami all tied. Game 3 will take place Wednesday.
Denver also was handed its first loss in 10 home games during this postseason despite another big effort from two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić, who poured in 41 points on 16-of-28 shooting along with 11 rebounds.
Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo each contributed 21 points for the Heat, while Duncan Robinson scored all 10 of his points during a pivotal 15-2 run to open the fourth quarter that sent Miami ahead to stay.
Jokic scored the final six points of the third quarter to give the Nuggets an 83-75 lead that turned out to be short-lived. Robinson had the first eight points of Miami's momentum-shifting surge, and Vincent later added a 3-pointer before hitting two free throws that put the Heat up 90-85 with nine minutes remaining.
Miami held a 107-95 advantage after Caleb Martin's 3-pointer with 3:39 left to play, but the Nuggets responded with a late charge to put the outcome back in doubt.
Aaron Gordon and Jamal Murray hit 3-pointers to ignite an 11-2 run Murray capped with another triple that pulled Denver within 109-106 entering the final minute.
After Jokic countered two Butler free throws with a short turnaround jumper with 35.6 seconds left, Butler missed a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession to give the Nuggets a chance to tie.
Murray misfired on a step-back 3-point try with 1.9 seconds left, however, and Martin grabbed the rebound as time expired.
Denver, which led by as many as 15 points in the first half, had been 11-0 this postseason when holding a double-digit lead.
Miami Heat rally late against Denver Nuggets to even NBA finals series
The Miami Heat produced a fourth-quarter comeback to win the second game of the NBA finals 111-108 and even up the seven-match series against the Denver Nuggets.
The Heat trailed by eight heading into the final period, having trailed by 15 earlier in the game in the wake of another massive performance from Nikola Jokic.
Jokic scored 41 points, scoring 16 of 28 shots from the floor including one with 36 seconds remaining which cut the Heat’s lead to three points.
But after Jimmy Butler missed on Miami’s next possession, Jamal Murray was unable to tie the scores with an effort on the buzzer.
The defeat was Denver’s first since May 7 and they had won all 11 play-off games in which they had opened a double-digit lead.
They had trailed 21-10 in the opening quarter before a barrage of three-point scores helped them to a 44-32 advantage which had been trimmed to six points at the break.
And Miami held on through the third quarter before the late surge that takes the series to Miami all square.
Gabe Vincent led the way for Miami with 23 points as Butler and Bam Adebayo each grabbed 21.
Milan 3-1 Hellas Verona: Leao double condemns visitors to Serie A relegation play-off
Milan signed off the Serie A season with a 3-1 victory as Rafael Leao's double condemned Hellas Verona to a relegation play-off with Spezia.
The Rossoneri wrapped up a frustrating campaign on a winning note at San Siro, with a late Leao brace enough to seal three points.
Milan had already secured Champions League football for another term but struggled at times against the visitors, who cancelled out Olivier Giroud's first-half penalty through Marco Faraoni's 72nd-minute strike.
Yet Leao struck in the 85th minute and again seven minutes later, leaving Verona to face a relegation decider with Spezia, who succumbed to a late 2-1 loss at Roma.
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