NBA roundup: Warriors hang 157 on Blazers, glide into playoffs

Stephen Curry poured in 26 points in 22 minutes and the Golden State Warriors produced a record-setting first quarter as they clinched a Western Conference playoff spot with a 157-101 shellacking of the host Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday afternoon.

All 13 players who suited up scored for the Warriors, who wound up in sixth place in the West. The Los Angeles Clippers won at Phoenix to finish tied with Golden State, but Los Angeles held the tiebreaker to earn the fifth seed. The Warriors draw the third-seeded Kings in the first round of the playoffs.

Needing a win to assure themselves a playoff spot, the Warriors wasted no time leaving the Trail Blazers in the dust. They set an NBA record for first-quarter points with 55, making 20 of 29 shots overall and 12 of 18 from 3-point range en route to a 28-point lead. In wrapping up the regular season on an 8-2 roll, the Warriors shot 60.4 per cent overall and 55.1 per cent (27 of 49) from deep. The 27 treys tied a franchise record.

All five Trail Blazers starters scored in double figures, led by Skylar Mays with 21 points. Mays also handed out a game-high 12 assists. Shaedon Sharpe added 18 points to go with a team-high seven rebounds, while Jeenathan Williams had 17 points for Portland.

Clippers 119, Suns 114

Norman Powell scored 29 points off the bench, Kawhi Leonard and Russell Westbrook added 25 apiece and visiting Los Angeles secured the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference playoffs with a win over Phoenix.

Leonard scored the last eight points for the Clippers and finished with a season-high 15 rebounds plus six assists. Bones Hyland scored 11 points and Ivica Zubac had 10 points and eight rebounds for the Clippers, who won despite shooting 5 of 23 (21.7 per cent) from 3-point