Warriors deal Spurs second straight defeat

Oakland, California: The Golden State Warriors burnished their NBA-leading record on Friday, roughing up defending champions San Antonio 110-99.

Stephen Curry, fresh from winning the three-point contest during the league`s All-Star weekend last Saturday, scored 25 points and handed out 11 assists to lead the Warriors.

Golden State looked fresh in their first game since the All-Star break, a welcome sight for coach Steve Kerr who thought all that winning prior to the All-Star Game had left his team in need of a rest.

Klay Thompson scored 20 points and Harrison Barnes contributed 16 to help the Warriors open the second half of the season on a strong note.

The Spurs, meanwhile, weren`t looking as if the All-Star break did them much good.

A day after they were sluggish in the second half of a loss to the Clippers in Los Angeles, their starting back court of Tony Parker and Danny Green managed just six combined points on 1-of-8 shooting.

Aron Baynes and Kawhi Leonard scored 12 points apiece for the Spurs and Boris Diaw chipped in 11 but San Antonio never led by more than three in a back-and-forth battle that saw 16 lead changes in the first half.

After Tim Duncan`s hook shot gave the visitors a 53-52 advantage late in the second quarter, Curry took over.

After Barnes hit a three-pointer and Thompson split a brace of free throws, Curry scored six straight points in less than a minute with a layup and four free throws.

Leading 62-55 at halftime, the Warriors opened the third quarter on a 7-0 scoring run to stretch their advantage and they closed the frame on an 11-0 scoring run.

The Warriors twice led by as many as 22 in the fourth, when Spurs coach Gregg Popovich rested his starters.

It was a morale-building win for the Warriors against a Western Conference power. The Spurs had won five straight against Golden State and 22 of their last 24 regular-season clashes.

"It`s a little hump we`ve just got to get over," Golden State`s Andre Iguodala said. "I think it`ll be smart for us to just use the regular season as that hurdle and get over it and by the time the playoffs get here we`re at full swing."