Curry pours in 51 as Warriors whip Mavericks

OAKLAND, Calif. — NBA commissioner Adam Silver kept a low profile at the Dallas Mavericks-Golden State Warriors game Wednesday night, waving off pregame interview requests, asking that his name not be mentioned on the public-address system, even sitting in an elevated seat rather than at courtside.

Silver just wanted to enjoy watching his league’s two highest-scoring teams play an entertaining brand of basketball. And that they did.

Stephen Curry became the second Golden State guard to top 50 points in the past 12 days, pouring in a season-high 51 in the Warriors’ come-from-behind, 128-114 victory over the Mavericks in a nationally televised game.

“I take pride in finding different kinds of ways to impact the game, especially if we’re in a hole like we were tonight,” Curry said after the Warriors’ third consecutive win. “It’s not just me making shots. Everyone has to be in attack mode.”

Less than two weeks after backcourt mate Klay Thompson used a record-breaking, 37-point quarter as the foundation for a 52-point night, Curry exploded for 26 of his 51 points in the third quarter as Golden State, down by as many as 22 in the first period, took its first lead of the game before pulling away late.

“Sometimes Stephen plays his best when we’re down big,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “He just senses that he has to put the Superman cape on.”

The Warriors (39-8) found themselves down 40-18 in the 11th minute of the game before dominating the rest of the night en route to their second win over the Mavericks this season and fifth straight against Dallas overall. Golden State earned its third win this season after trailing by as many as 15.

Curry was the catalyst of the comeback after the Golden State bench helped the home team rally within striking distance in the second quarter.

The All-Star bombed in six 3-pointers in the third period alone, including three in a 2:16 stretch at mid-quarter during which the Warriors went up by as many as six. They never trailed again.

“Huge win for us being resilient,” Curry said. “We are a team that never thinks we are out of the game, and everyone on that roster did something to impact the game tonight.”

Despite Curry’s flurry, Golden State led just 101-98 to start the fourth quarter before Warriors reserve guard Leandro Barbosa dropped in a pair of hoops, including a 3-pointer, in a 7-0 burst that extended the margin to 10.

The Mavericks weren’t done. They rallied behind center Tyson Chandler to within 112-107 with 6:25 to go before missing five consecutive shots, after which Warriors reserve swingman Andre Iguodala turned a steal into a dunk that re-established a seven-point cushion.

“I thought Andre made the play of the game,” Kerr said.

Dallas got back within five on three separate occasions, but Curry kept the visitors at arm’s length with 10 late points, including his 10th 3-pointer of the night in the final minute.

“He was making ridiculous shots,” Kerr said. “There’s no defense for that. He took it upon himself to go nuts.”

Curry’s 51-point total was 11 higher than his previous season high, and it marked the first time in his career he went over 40 points in a home game. He connected on 16 of 26 shots in all.

Thompson sank four 3-pointers to account for a majority of his 18 points. Golden State improved to 23-2 at home this season.

With Curry and Thompson combining to go 14-for-26 from long range, the Warriors hit half of their 38 3-point attempts in the game.

“I’ve never seen anybody in this league hit shots like that from that distance,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said of Curry. “He’s one of the very rare guys that we’ve ever had in this league, and we just didn’t do a good enough job on him.”

Reserves Barbosa and center Marreese Speights added 14 points apiece for the Warriors, who ran their streak of 100-point games to 19, tops in the league.

Small forward Chandler Parsons scored a team-high 24 points for the Mavericks, who had won three in a row, including their last two on the road. Dallas shot 41.8 percent from the floor overall despite scoring the nets at a 65.4 percent clip in the first period.

“It’s a four-quarter league,” Carlisle said. “We lost the second, third and fourth quarters decisively, and so over a 48-minute game, it just didn’t hold up.”

Chandler had a 21-point, 17-rebound double-double, and power forward Dirk Nowitzki contributed 15 points for Dallas, which completes a two-day, two-game trip Thursday at Sacramento.

The Mavericks (33-18) needed a little less than 11 minutes to build a 22-point advantage. The Warriors then took 19 minutes to erase the gap as the clubs battled to a 68-all tie in the third minute of the third quarter.

Power forward Draymond Green’s interior hoop at the 9:42 mark of the third period got the Warriors even for the first time since 0-0. When Thompson buried a 3-pointer 30 seconds later, Golden State had its first lead of the night, 71-70.

NOTES: Warriors PG Stephen Curry recorded career-highs for points in a quarter (26) and in a half (36) en route to his 51-point total. … The 51 points were three shy of Curry’s career high. … The Warriors’ 19 3-pointers tied an NBA season high, matching the Cleveland Cavaliers’ output against the Atlanta Hawks on Nov. 15. … Warriors C Andrew Bogut’s fifth of eight rebounds was the 5,000th of his career. … Having played 14 of their last 19 games at home, the Warriors embark on a stretch with 10 of 11 on the road, starting Friday night at Atlanta. … The Mavericks played their second consecutive game without starting PG Rajon Rondo, who is expected to be out through the All-Star break with a left orbital fracture.