WASHINGTON • Stephen Curry scored 51 points, including a National Basketball Association (NBA) season-high 11 three-pointers, to power the Golden State Warriors past the Washington Wizards 134-121 on Wednesday.
The reigning NBA Most Valuable Player scored 25 points in the first quarter, as the Warriors improved to a 45-4 win-loss record with their eighth consecutive victory.
Curry went 11-of-16 from beyond the arc, finishing one three-pointer shy of matching the one-game NBA record of 12 three-pointers shared by Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant and former NBA player Donyell Marshall.
"I missed one too many," Curry joked. "At the end of the game, I knew I was within reach. I was kind of searching, but not trying to force with where the game was.
"You can't mess around with the basketball gods trying to chase a record if the game doesn't call for it."
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Warriors guard Stephen Curry hit a season-high 11 three-pointers, one short of the NBA record.
Curry went 13-for-14 from the floor in the first half, making eight three-pointers in producing 36 points to give the champions a 74-60 lead. The Wizards rallied to 79-81 before Curry helped the Warriors put down the threat.
NBA All-Star guard John Wall led Washington with a season-high 41 points and added 10 assists, but the Wizards fell to 21-26 with their seventh loss in nine games.
"He made some unbelievable shots," Wall said of Curry.
Curry, who finished 19 of 28 from the field, made his first six shots, including five three-pointers, inside the opening seven minutes.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr compared the attention Curry gets to that received by his former NBA team-mate Michael Jordan during their time together with the 1990s NBA champion Chicago Bulls.
"There are a lot of similarities, I think," he said. "I think today things are bigger in a lot of ways with social media and so many different media outlets. And Steph is getting a lot of notoriety, obviously, and drawing fans and media everywhere we go."
Warriors forward Draymond Green had 12 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds, setting a Warriors single-season record with his 10th triple-double, while guard Klay Thompson added 24 points.
The Warriors and the Wizards - as well as the Los Angeles Lakers - have been heavily linked with All-Star forward Kevin Durant, who will become a free agent in the off-season. The Warriors are "significant front runners" to sign the four-time scoring champion, according to Yahoo Sports NBA columnist Adrian Wojnarowski.
Durant, however, provided a timely reminder that his loyalty for now remains with the Oklahoma City Thunder. He sunk a final-second three-point shot for a total 37 points that lifted them to a 117-114 win over Orlando Magic on Wednesday.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
