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Five

Golden State is scary good. (USATSI)

GAME OF THE NIGHT -- 16 AND COUNTING: The Warriors needed overtime to put away New Orleans, but they got it done and are now owners of a 16-game winning streak. The Pelicans' offense went bonkers in the third quarter -- they scored 38 points in the period without Anthony Davis, who has a chest contusion -- and they really needed to close it out. New Orleans couldn't do that, and Golden State dominated the extra frame to win 128-122. While it's going to be tough for the Warriors to beat the Grizzlies and Thunder this week, they've passed just about every test so far this season.


LINE OF THE NIGHT (THREE-WAY TIE) -- TYREKE EVANS, STEPHEN CURRY, JRUE HOLIDAY: Evans had 34 points on 13-for-25 shooting, plus eight rebounds, five assists, two steals, two blocks and five turnovers in 41 minutes. He would've played three more minutes if he hadn't fouled out in overtime. Curry also finished with 34 points, and he added seven rebounds, seven assists, a steal and six turnovers. He shot 11-for-21 from the field, 6-for-10 from long range and 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Eight of Curry's points came in overtime. Holiday dropped 30 points for the second time in the past week, with nine assists, three rebounds, five steals, a block and three turnovers in 45 minutes. He made 12 of his 23 field goal attempts.


DRAY AND DRE: Draymond Green continues to do everything for Golden State. His line tells part of the story: 11 points, 13 rebounds, five assists, four blocks, one steal. He managed to play 48 minutes and was instrumental in overtime, converting a key 3-point play and blocking Evans at the basket. Andre Iguodala, also, is a luxury for the Warriors. He had 20 points on 7-for-12 shooting, plus five rebounds and his typical brand of defense. A month and a half into the season, I still can't believe he comes of the bench.


Iguodala had a strong dunk over Luke Babbitt, by the way:


HISTORY: If you somehow missed it, Kobe Bryant passed Michael Jordan for third place on the all-time scoring list. The Wolves stopped the game to honor him.


Bryant had a team-high 26 points, Carlos Boozer had 20 off the bench and the Lakers won 100-94, their third victory in a row. They have the Indiana Pacers on Monday, so it's conceivable that they'll actually have a four-game streak in what's been a nightmare of a season.


PHOTO OF THE NIGHT: Kobe with the game ball.



ZACH ATTACK: Wolves rookie Zach LaVine is learning the point guard position, but no one has to teach him a thing about finishing alley-oops. He can flyyyy.


SHABAM: LaVine isn't the only young Wolves player who likes to get up. Shabazz Muhammad has been going strong to the basket routinely lately, and he was fantastic against the Lakers. He finished with an impressive 28 points and nine rebounds, and his best/loudest moment came on the fast break.


PEANUT BUTTER JELLY TIME: The Bulls throttled the Heat 93-75 in Miami, but this Banana Man had a great time:


QUOTE OF THE NIGHT: Chicago had a 14-point first quarter, and Miami had a 14-point second quarter. Mike Dunleavy (who had a game-high 22 points on just 11 shots) said this:


Dunleavy on the game's slow start: 'It was your typical Sunday in Miami. It seemed like everybody had a big Saturday night.'


- Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) December 15, 2014

PLAYOFF IMPLICATIONS, SHMLAYOFF IMPLICATIONS: The Suns could really have used a win over the Thunder, who entered Sunday 1.5 games behind Phoenix for eighth place in the West. Instead, with Goran Dragic sitting out because of a lower back strain, they allowed Oklahoma City to put up 41 points in the first quarter. It was a blowout by halftime, with the Thunder winning 112-88 in the end. Russell Westbrook's never looked better than he has lately, and he wound up with a 28-8-8 line in only 27 minutes.


WESTBROOK IS INSANE: Here's a point guard winning a jump ball against 7-foot-1 center Alex Len:


(HT: @gifdsports)


THE WIZARDS AND JAZZ ARE GOING DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS: Washington and Utah went back and forth for two-and-a-half quarters, and then the better team took control. Rudy Gobert made the first start of his career in place of Derrick Favors in the 93-84 loss, and the Jazz just couldn't score consistently. The Wizards have won seven of their last eight; Utah has lost 11 of its last 12.


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