Celtics beat Warriors, Curry leaves game early for foot injury

Tatum, Brown combine for 52 points as Boston Celtics beat Golden State Warriors 110-88 in San Francisco

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) – Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown scored 26 points each for the Boston Celtics as the visitors won against the Golden State Warriors 110-88 in a Wednesday NBA game.

Golden State superstar Stephen Curry had to go off in the second quarter as the 34-year-old point guard faced a left ankle injury after Celtics point guard Marcus Smart lunged for the ball on the loose at San Francisco's Chase Center.

One of the integral parts of the Warriors, Curry averaged 25.5 points, 6.3 assists, and 5.2 rebounds per game this season.

During the Warriors game, Boston's Tatum also grabbed 12 rebounds. In addition to Tatum and Brown, Smart tallied 20 points and eight assists.

Warriors guard Jordan Poole clocked up 29 points to be the game's top scorer. Klay Thompson added 18 points for the Golden State.

In the third quarter Boston had a 67-43 lead after Tatum hit a step-back three-pointer, which was the biggest margin in the game.

The Warriors narrowed the gap to 10 points by the end of the third quarter, 79-69. However the Celtics controlled the game in the fourth quarter to take a 110-88 win.

The Celtics are in the fourth position in the Eastern Conference standings.

They won 42 games but lost 28 others.

The Warriors have 47-23 win/loss record to come third in the Western Conference standings.

- Dinwiddie scores buzzer-beater, Dallas beat Brooklyn

The Dallas Mavericks beat the Brooklyn Nets 113-111 with a buzzer-beater three-point shot hit by ex-Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie.

Dinwiddie was fed by Dallas star Luka Doncic with only a second left in the fourth quarter at Barclays Center, Brooklyn.

The American point guard, who scored 22 points for the Mavericks, was the hero of the visitors for his game-winning shot.

Slovenian forward-guard Doncic tallied 37 points, nine rebounds and nine assists for the Mavericks.

Jalen Brunson added 18 points for the Dallas.

Brooklyn forward Kevin Durant posted a double-double with 23 points and 10 assists.

The Nets' playmaker guard Goran Dragic racked up 21 points.

Andre Drummond scored 14 points for the Nets but more importantly he took 17 rebounds.

The Nets superstar Kyrie Irving missed this game for New York City's coronavirus vaccine mandate.

In a previous game, point guard Irving was on fire, scoring a career-high 60 points against the Orlando Magic as the Nets hammered their opponents 150-108 on Tuesday.

This was Dallas' 43rd win this season. Fifth in the West standings, the Mavericks previously lost 26 games.

Meanwhile the Nets, who ranked eighth in the East, are going 36-34 in the regular season.

The top six teams of both conferences will directly qualify for the 2022 playoffs, where they will be joined by two each from both sides after a play-in tournament for those finishing seventh through 10th in the regular season.

The playoffs are scheduled to start on April 16, with 16 teams in the running for the 2021-22 NBA title.

- Results:

Charlotte Hornets - Atlanta Hawks: 116-106

Cleveland Cavaliers - Philadelphia 76ers: 114-118

Washington Wizards - Denver Nuggets: 109-127

Brooklyn Nets - Dallas Mavericks: 111-113

New York Knicks - Portland Trail Blazers: 128-98

Minnesota Timberwolves - Los Angeles Lakers: 124-104

Houston Rockets - Phoenix Suns: 112-129

San Antonio Spurs - Oklahoma City Thunder: 122-120

Utah Jazz - Chicago Bulls: 125-110

Golden State Warriors - Boston Celtics: 88-110