LOS ANGELES (AFP) — Golden State star Stephen Curry drained the winning layup with two-tenths of a second remaining Friday as the Warriors opened the National Basketball Association’s new in-season tournament with an explosive, controversial 141-139 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In a game featuring 23 lead changes, it was tied at 139-139 when Curry drove to the basket and rose to bank in a shot. But teammate Draymond Green, whose hand was near the rim, was called for offensive goaltending — only for the call to be overturned to allow the Warriors to celebrate the win.
Curry finished with a game-high 30 points, connecting on five of 10 three-pointers and nine of 15 overall.
Green scored 15 points with five rebounds and Chris Paul handed out 13 assists.
Lu Dort scored 29 points and Chet Holmgren added 24 for Oklahoma City, which was without leading scorer Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, sidelined by a knee injury.
Even without him, the Thunder weren’t about to go quietly. The Warriors led by two at halftime, but Dort scored 11 points early in the third to put Oklahoma City up by five before the Warriors battled back, knotting the score at 106-106 heading into the fourth.
“They took it to us the whole game,” said Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who admitted he feared the worst when officials reviewed the interference call on Green.
From courtside, Kerr said, Curry’s shot looked good.
“When I saw the replay on the scoreboard, it looked like Draymond touched the rim,” Kerr said. “And I guess it’s just a determination of did it affect the shot.”
“I was sort of expecting them to overturn (Curry’s basket), but obviously they allowed it and we escaped.”
It was among the most dramatic moments on the first night of the new Cup-style tournament that commissioner Adam Silver hopes will fire players’ competitive instincts and give added interest to games early in the season.
All games in the new tournament count in the regular season standings except for the final on 9 December in Las Vegas.
The 30 clubs were drawn into six groups of five, and each team will play a total of four tournament games this month to decide six group winners and two wildcard qualifiers for the quarter-finals.
The first win of the new competition went to the Indiana Pacers, who were fueled by 27 points from Myles Turner in a 121-116 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Tyrese Haliburton added 18 points and 13 assists for the Pacers, who led by as many as 18 but had to claw back after the Cavs, led by 38 points and nine assists from Donovan Mitchell, grabbed a four-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.
