NEW ORLEANS — Stephen Curry wasn’t about to say that shooting over Anthony Davis was easy.
The Warriors’ prolific scorer was just crafty enough to make it look that way sometimes.
Equally devastating from long range and on drives to the hoop, Curry scored 39 points, and the Golden State Warriors took a 109-98 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night, completing a sweep of their first-round playoff series.
“I knew he was crafty, I mean, a great shooter,” Davis said of Curry, who averaged 33.8 points in the series. “There’s nothing you can do. You try to pressure him and run him off the (3-point) line and he’ll hit incredible shots in the lane. You back off so he won’t drive, he’s going to hit a 3. So you’ve got to pick your poison and he’s a tough player to guard. That’s why he’s (a candidate) for MVP.”
Klay Thompson added 25 points for the Warriors, the NBA’s top overall seed, who will wait to host Game 1 of their second-round series against the winner of the Portland-Memphis matchup.
“I’m proud of the way we played, the way we competed,” Curry said. “Four in a row is a good feeling. We’re going to rest up.”
BUCKS 92, BULLS 90
MILWAUKEE — Jerryd Bayless made a layup at the buzzer off an inbounds pass to draw Milwaukee within 3-1 in the Eastern Conference playoff series.
With 1.3 seconds left, Jared Dudley threw a high-arcing pass toward the basket from side court. Bayless caught the ball and quickly threw up the layup for the game-winning basket.
Bulls guard Derrick Rose walked away in frustration after trying to guard Bayless. The Bucks won their first playoff game in five years.
Chicago had a chance to win with the game tied at 90. But Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton tipped a dribble away from Rose to force a steal. Bucks coach Jason Kidd called a timeout to set up the final play.
Game 5 is Monday in Chicago.
Jimmy Butler had a playoff career-high 33 points for the Bulls. Rose finished with 14 points, while Pau Gasol had 16 points and 10 rebounds.
NETS 91, HAWKS 83
NEW YORK — Brook Lopez had 22 points and 13 rebounds and Thaddeus Young added 18 points and 11 rebounds as Brooklyn cut Atlanta’s lead to 2-1 in the Eastern Conference series.
The Nets seized control with an 18-0 run spanning the third and fourth quarters after the Hawks grabbed their first lead since the opening basket, then went on to beat the No. 1 seed for the first time in seven meetings this season.
Bojan Bogdanovic added 19 points for the eighth-seeded Nets, who can tie the series with another victory here Monday night in Game 4.
DeMarre Carroll scored a playoff career-high 22 points for the Hawks, who were denied what would have been their second 3-0 lead since moving to Atlanta in 1968. Paul Millsap added 18 points and 17 rebounds.
Grizzlies 115, Trail Blazers 109
PORTLAND, Ore. — Marc Gasol had 25 points and the Memphis Grizzlies took a 3-0 lead in their playoff series over the Trail Blazers by withstanding a late Portland rally for a victory on Saturday night.
Courtney Lee had 20 points and Mike Conley added 14 before leaving the game late in the third quarter with a facial injury. Memphis was already thin at point guard with reserve Beno Udrih sidelined with a sprained right ankle.
The Grizzlies led by as many as 14 points but Portland closed within 90-82 with 7:28 after three free throws from Nicolas Batum. Gasol responded with two jumpers to end the threat.
Batum finished with 27 points for the Blazers, who have dropped seven straight games, including four to wrap up the regular season. CJ McCollum added 26.
Zach Randolph added 16 points and the Grizzlies won their seventh straight against Portland, including a sweep of the four-game regular season series.