CALIFORNIA – Golden State Warriors leaned on clutch hits by Jonathan Kuminga to escape from the Charlotte Hornets, 110-105, in the 2022-2023 NBA Season on Tuesday night (Wednesday in the Philippines) at the Chase Center in San Francisco.
After seeing their double-digit lead wiped out by the Hornets, Kuminga broke the 101-101 deadlock for the Warriors with a dunk and a floater followed by another hit by Jordan Poole for a 107-101 advantage.
LaMelo Ball cut the deficit for the Hornets with a two-pointer but another basket from Kuminga followed by a split free throw by Klay Thompson sealed the win for the Warriors.
Kuminga finished the game with 14 points, on perfect 6-of-6 shooting, to go with six rebounds and two assists as the defending champions Warriors scored back-to-back wins for a 17-18 slate.
Thompson chipped in 29 markers, including five three-pointers, Poole contributed 24 markers as Kevon Looney ended with 11 points and nine rebounds for the Warriors.
Ball ended with double-double 21 points and 10 assists, Terry Rozier added 19 markers, while PJ Washington and Gordon Hayward had 14 each as the Hornets dropped to 9-26.
Meanwhile, Luka Doncic had a historic triple-double of 60 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists as the Dallas Mavericks cruised to a 126-121 over New York Knicks.
Down by as much as nine points with 33 seconds in the fourth quarter, the Mavericks went on huge run, including a game-tying three-pointer by Doncic off his intentionally missed free throw to force overtime at 115-all.
Doncic went on to score 10 more points in the extension period to become the first player in Dallas franchise to score 60 points and also become the first-ever NBA player to tally a 60-20-10 game in NBA history.
The Mavericks moved three games over .500 with 19-16 win-loss slate following its fourth consecutive victory while the Knicks slumped to its second straight defeat for an 18-17 record.
BOX SCORE:
GOLDEN STATE 110 — Thompson 29, Poole 24, Kuminga 14, Looney 11, D. Green 9, Wiseman 8, Lamb 6, Jerome 5, Moody 4, DiVincenzo 0.
CHARLOTTE 105 — Ball 21, Rozier 19, Washington 14, Hayward 14, McDaniels 12, Plumlee 7, Thor 7, Williams 6, Maledon 5.
Quarterscores: 37-26, 65-52, 89-78, 110-105./PN
