Warriors 115, Bucks 110

OAKLAND, Calif. — Guards Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined for 60 points, including 22 in a tense fourth quarter, leading the Golden State Warriors to a hard-fought, 115-110 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday night.

In winning for the eighth time in 10 games, the Warriors led just 89-87 with 8:24 to play before their backcourt mates went to work.

Curry and Thompson each hit 3-pointers in an 8-3 burst that reopened a seven-point advantage, and Curry added a spectacular three-point play with 3:59 remaining to increase the advantage to 104-94.

Led by their own high-scoring guards, Brandon Knight and Ramon Sessions, the Bucks still had a chance at 108-105 after a three-point play by forward Ersan Ilyasova with 56.2 seconds left.

Thompson then struck from long distance again, burying a critical 3-pointer with 38.3 seconds to go, doubling the margin and giving the Warriors the breathing room they would need to hold off the league’s losingest team.

Curry had 31 points and Thompson 29 for the Warriors (44-26), who improved to 18 games over .500 for the first time since 1994. Power forward David Lee contributed 22 points and 12 rebounds in the win.

Thanks to two 3-pointers by reserve guard Jordan Crawford bridging the third and fourth quarters, the Warriors went up 87-77 in the second minute of the final period. Golden State was just 3-for-20 on 3s before Crawford’s pair.

However, the Bucks, coming off an overtime loss at Portland to begin a four-game Western swing, would not go away. Reserve center John Henson scored six consecutive Milwaukee points, and Sessions nailed a jumper, pulling the visitors within 89-87 with still 8:24 to play.

Curry countered with a 3, and Golden State, completing its first season-series sweep of the Bucks since 2008, managed to keep the Bucks at arm’s length the rest of the way.

Knight had 27 points and Sessions 18 for the Bucks, who lost starting guard Nate Wolters to a broken left hand in the second quarter.

Henson chipped in with 13 points as seven Bucks scored in double figures.

Despite missing seven of their first eight shots and falling behind almost immediately by eight points, the Bucks (13-56) hung within 53-51 through two periods thanks to a 27-8 advantage in bench points.

Backup forward Jeff Adrien had seven of the 27 in a 12-minute stint that was interrupted by a trip to the trainer’s room for three stitches over his left eye.

Sessions (six) and backup forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (four) combined to hit 10 consecutive free throws, helping the visitors to a 15-4 advantage at the line in the half.

Curry led all scorers in the half with 14.

NOTES: Warriors C Andrew Bogut was a game-time decision because of a sore left ankle, and he declared himself healthy in time to start against his former team. He finished with eight points and 12 rebounds…. Bogut averaged 12.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 6 1/2 seasons as a Buck, but only 6.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in his first two games against them. … Admitting before the game that “the worst thing you can do right now is have a setback,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson explained the decision to play Bogut by noting, “You have to trust what the guys are saying.” … The Bucks fell to 2-25 against Western Conference teams. One of those wins came on their only previous visit to California — a 94-79 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on New Year’s Eve. … The Bucks lost for the 11th consecutive time when giving up 100 or more points, while the Warriors won for the 11th time in a row when scoring in triple digits.