NBA roundup: Timberwolves upset Thunder, Warriors edge Rockets ahead of All-Star break

The undermanned Minnesota Timberwolves ended Oklahoma City's impressive seven-game winning streak in the NBA, securing a 116-101 victory over the Western Conference-leading Thunder on Thursday, just prior to the All-Star break.

This loss marks the first time this season that the Thunder trailed throughout the entire game, leaving them tied with the Cleveland Cavaliers for the best record in the league at 44-10 as they head into the break.

With Rudy Gobert out due to back spasms, center Naz Reid stepped up, contributing 27 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists, and one blocked shot to lead the Timberwolves.

Anthony Edwards added 23 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists, while Jaden McDaniels chipped in with 21 points, helping Minnesota recover from a narrow defeat to the Milwaukee Bucks the previous night.

"We were down a couple of guys," Reid said. "We had big Rudy out today, so everybody had to step up big, and we all did."

Oklahoma City's MVP contender, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, scored 24 points, ending his remarkable streak of 25-point games at 22. He also recorded nine assists, and although six Thunder players reached double figures in scoring, the team struggled to recover after allowing 37 points in the first quarter.

In another matchup, Golden State's Stephen Curry led the Warriors to a 105-98 victory over the Rockets in Houston, scoring 27 points. Curry, who is set to make his 10th All-Star start this weekend at the Warriors' Chase Center in San Francisco, made seven of his 17 field goal attempts, including five of the team's 11 three-pointers.

All five starters for Golden State scored in double digits, with newly acquired Jimmy Butler contributing 19 points and eight rebounds. Aaron Holiday led the injury-riddled Rockets with 25 points, as they managed to cut a 24-point deficit to just two points twice in the fourth quarter before the Warriors pulled away once more.

"We just wanted to go into the break with a win," Curry said of a Warriors team coming off a tough loss in Dallas on Wednesday.

"It's kind of like a mental battle to get ready for this game, quick turnaround, a tough game last night that we felt like we should have won.

"Obviously Houston came back and played amazing, but we played with focus down the stretch and executed on both ends."

In Dallas, the Mavericks followed up their hard-fought victory against Golden State with a 118-113 win over the Miami Heat.

Dante Exum contributed 27 points, while Max Christie added 19 for the Mavericks, who triumphed despite the absence of Kyrie Irving and Klay Thompson, both of whom joined an already lengthy injury list that included Anthony Davis.

The prominent big man sustained an adductor strain during his first game following the remarkable trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Mavericks managed to prevail in a closely contested match that saw 32 lead changes, overcoming a remarkable 40-point performance from Tyler Herro of Miami.

In New Orleans, the Pelicans ended their 10-game losing streak with a 140-133 overtime victory against the Sacramento Kings.

CJ McCollum was instrumental, scoring 27 of his 43 points in the second half and overtime, including 11 of the Pelicans' 13 points during the extra period.

Zach LaVine recorded 32 points and provided 10 assists for the Kings, who also benefited from Domantas Sabonis's contributions of 22 points and 28 rebounds.

The Los Angeles Clippers made a remarkable comeback from a 20-point deficit to defeat the Utah Jazz 120-116 in overtime.

Norman Powell was pivotal, scoring nine of his 41 points in the overtime period, while James Harden contributed 32 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists for the Clippers.

Lauri Markkanen and Kyle Filipowski each scored 20 points for the Jazz, who shot an impressive 62.9% in the first half but were unable to sustain that level of performance.