Golden State hitting their stride, Lakers' Ball makes history
JaVale McGee of the Golden State Warriors goes to the basket against the Philadelphia 76ers during their NBA game at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California, on November 11, 2017. The Warriors won 135-114.
The Golden State Warriors delivered a message on Saturday that the defending National Basketball Association champions are back on form with a dominating 135-114 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.
Philadelphia had won five of its last six, but found itself hopelessly outgunned in the second half against the Warriors, who extended their winning streak to six games.
All six wins have been by 17 or more points, the longest such streak in franchise history.
Forward Kevin Durant returned from a one-game absence to lead all scorers with 29 points. Klay Thompson had 23 and Stephen Curry 22 for the Warriors, who shot 58.5 percent from the field. Durant sat out Wednesday's game against Minnesota with a sore left thigh.
JJ Redick finished with 17 points, French guard Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot came off the bench to score 15 and forward Dario Saric added 14 for the 76ers.
The 76ers have now lost nine straight against Golden State.
They had a chance to take a lead at the end of the second quarter, but Kevon Looney blocked Ben Simmons underneath the rim. Looney got the ball which led to a 3-pointer from Thompson to put Golden State up 65-64 at the half.
The Warriors had a scare in the first 24 minutes when they lost Curry for a few minutes after Simmons' knee banged into his right thigh.
Curry headed to the locker room after a few seconds but was only gone a brief time. Once back, he wasted no time getting on the scoresheet again.
In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, rookie Lonzo Ball became the youngest player in NBA history to record a triple-double but it was in vain as the Los Angeles Lakers lost 90-98 to the Bucks.
Los Angeles Lakers' Lonzo Ball goes to the basket against the Milwaukee Bucks en route to becoming the youngest player to record a triple-double, at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on November 11, 2017.
Ball, who is 20 years, 15 days old, finished with 19 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds as the struggling Lakers lost their third straight game.
Ball completed the triple-double by getting his 10th rebound early in the fourth quarter. He had 13 points and 11 assists at the time.
He surpassed the mark set by LeBron James, who was 20 years, 20 days old when he recorded a triple-double on January 2005 for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
"I really don't care," Ball said. "We took a loss. It don't really mean nothing. I just wanted to win tonight. I thought we were in good position to get it but it didn't happen."
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 33 points to lead the Bucks, who also got 16 off the bench from Malcolm Brogdon at the Bradley Center arena. Khris Middleton added 13 points while Eric Bledsoe contributed 11 in his home debut for Milwaukee.
Kyle Kuzma led Los Angeles with 21 points and Julius Randle added 17.
Elsewhere in the NBA on Saturday, it was: Rockets 111, Grizzlies 96; Pelicans 111, Clippers 103; Spurs 133, Bulls 94; Cavaliers 111, Mavericks 104; Nuggets 125, Magic 107; Knicks 118, Kings 91; Suns 118, Timberwolves 110; Wizards 113, Hawks 94; and Jazz 114, Nets 106.
