Curry gets hot with 12 3-pointers

SAN FRANCISCO — Stephen Curry scored 52 points, and Draymond Green added a triple-double, as the Golden State Warriors clinched a crucial 134-125 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday.

Curry, the NBA's all-time leader in three-point shooting, once again demonstrated his long-range prowess, draining 12 of 20 attempts from outside the arc at Memphis' FedEx-Forum.

The 37-year-old's dazzling shooting performance helped the Warriors leapfrog the Grizzlies into fifth place in the Western Conference standings, edging them closer to an automatic playoff berth.

The Warriors improved to 44-31, while the Grizzlies dropped to sixth place with a 44-32 record. The top six finishers in the West qualify automatically for the postseason.

Curry's masterpiece — his second 50-point game of the season and the 15th of his career — was backed by a triple from defensive linchpin Green and 27 points from Jimmy Butler.

Green finished with 13 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr lavished praise on Curry's virtuoso display that has put Golden State firmly on course for the playoffs.

"The guy's 37 years old, it's incredible," Kerr said. "Fifty-two points with people draped all over him all game long. The conditioning, the skill, the audacity, the belief — it's incredible to watch Steph at work.

"I can't believe he's still doing this at this age. But, he's put the work in and he's still got it."

'Sight to behold'

Grizzlies interim coach Tuomas Iisalo, who took over the team last week following the shock dismissal of Taylor Jenkins, was similarly effusive of Curry's performance.

"It's a sight to behold how he operates," Iisalo said, revealing that the team had been helpless to stop a first-quarter onslaught from Curry that included 19 points.

"In the first quarter, we had a specific strategy — we did not want him to get three-point shots — and he found a way to get going anyway. It's very hard to stop a player of that caliber.

"Once he gets into that zone, it's very difficult to get him. I mean, we're talking about the best movement shooter of all time."

Memphis, who trailed by as many as 17 points in the first quarter, was left ruing its inability to sustain a second-half rally that saw it open up a four-point lead with just under four minutes remaining.

Ja Morant led the Grizzlies' scoring with 36 points, while Jaren Jackson Jr added 22.

"Everybody's hurting in that locker room right now," Iisalo said. "It really hurts when you put everything on the line and you come up a little short. But, that's life, that's sports."

Golden State ends its six-game road trip in Los Angeles against the Lakers on Thursday. The Grizzlies also start a three-game road trip on Thursday against Eastern Conference opponents, traveling to Miami.

Wolves top Nuggets

In Denver, Nickeil Alexander-Walker hit two of three free throws with 0.1 seconds remaining, and the Minnesota Timberwolves overcame a career-best 61-point performance from Nikola Jokic to outlast the Denver Nuggets 140-139 in double overtime on Tuesday night.

The final play concluded a wild sequence as Russell Westbrook stole the ball on one end in the closing seconds, missed a layup and then fouled Alexander-Walker in the corner. The Timberwolves guard made two, and missed the third one on purpose.

Anthony Edwards led Minnesota with 34 points.

Jokic's 61 points were the most by a player in the NBA this season. He also had 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the third 60-point triple double in NBA history. He played 52 minutes, 38 seconds and didn't leave the floor after halftime.

Jokic hit two free throws with 13.9 seconds remaining to tie it at 112 in regulation. He knocked in a floater with 7.3 seconds left to knot it up at 125 in the first overtime.

The game had a playoff intensity, and featured 21 lead changes. The Timberwolves have now won six straight over the Nuggets, including playoffs.

The Timberwolves were without Naz Reid and Donte DiVincenzo, who were suspended for one game by the league for their part in an on-court altercation with the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.

Denver didn't have Jamal Murray (hamstring) or Michael Porter Jr (personal reasons).

Elsewhere, Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 37 points, as the Milwaukee Bucks snapped a four-game losing streak with a 133-123 victory over the Phoenix Suns.

Devin Booker scored 39 points for Phoenix, but it was not enough to prevent the Suns from falling to a fourth consecutive defeat — a late-season mini-slump that threatens to derail its playoff hopes.

The Suns are now in 11th place in the West with a 35-41 record, trailing the 10th-placed Sacramento Kings (36-39). Teams ranked seventh to 10th in the conference standings advance to a four-team play-in tournament that determines the final two playoff tickets.

Agencies