Pau Gasol.0

Stephen Curry had an electrifying night, draining eight three pointers en route to a 45-point performance to help the Golden State Warriors crush Portland 116-105 on Thursday night.

Curry, who is bidding to win the league’s MVP award, broke his own NBA single-season record of 272 threes set two seasons ago. His reached the milestone on his fifth one from beyond the arc against the Blazers.

He scored 17 points over the final five minutes and also handed out nine assists to keep the Warriors from dropping three straight for the first time this season.

Klay Thompson added 26 points and Draymond Green tallied 11 and 14 rebounds for the winners.

LaMarcus Aldridge scored 27 points for the Blazers, who saw Arron Afflalo exit early with a sore shoulder.

Damian Lillard finished with 20 points, eight assists and six rebounds in the loss.

IN THE MEANTIME, Pau Gasol tallied 16 points and 15 rebounds as the Chicago Bulls snapped a two-game skid with a 89-78 win over the Miami Heat on Thursday night.

Chicago rallied from a 19-point halftime deficit, outscoring the Heat 33-8 in the third quarter before cruising to victory in the fourth.

Taj Gibson also posted a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds, while Derrick Rose, who was playing in just his second game since returning from knee surgery, added 12 points.

Dwyane Wade finished with just nine points on four-of-20 shooting, while Hassan Whiteside had 19 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Heat.

Miami fell 1 1/2 games behind the Nets for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Bulls already have a spot in the playoffs but are still jockeying for position in the Eastern Conference.

Chicago will host the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday and have now won two of three meetings with Miami this season.

Miami still holds the edge overall having won seven of their last 11 games against the Bulls. –  Agence France-Presse

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