Thunder reach 13 straight wins, Celtics taste victory over Knicks

The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Golden State Warriors 124-112 Tuesday night to complete their 13th straight win, becoming just the fourth team to start a season in the NBA with a 21-1 record.

Here are the standout moments from a six-game day in the North American basketball league.

The "other" Curry makes his debut

In San Francisco, the Thunder had their work cut out for them, overcoming a defiant Warriors team playing without its star, Stephen Curry.

The reigning champions, powered by 38 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, enjoyed a placid night at the Chase Center as they went into halftime with a 63-44 lead.

Opposing them was an opponent hampered by the loss of its best players. Curry missed his second straight game due to quadriceps problems and Jimmy Butler (6 points) withdrew after 15 minutes on the court due to knee discomfort.

Even so, the home team drew on pride a managed a 44-point explosion in the third quarter that briefly put them in front.

Contributing to the comeback was Seth Curry, Stephen's younger brother, recently signed by the Warriors.

The 35-year-old guard opened with 14 points in 18 minutes, missing just one of his seven shots from the field.

In the final quarter, the Thunder revived in the hands of Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren, who combined to score 16 points in the decisive moments.

The authoritative leader of the Western Conference, Oklahoma City is the fourth team in history to post 21 wins in its first 22 games of the campaign.

"Don't count us out"

In Boston, the Celtics beat their old rivals, the New York Knicks 123-117 and continue to get their hopes up in a season they started with low aspirations.

The 20,000 fans at the TD Garden vibrated with green pride on a night that did not get off to a promising start.

The visitors were eyeing their fifth straight win when they dominated by a comfortable 37-23 at the start of the second quarter.

Forward Mikal Bridges was as inspired as he's ever been this year, with 35 points, but New York quarterback Jalen Brunson struggled against tight scoring and was held to 15 points on 6-21 shooting from the field.

On offense, the Celtics relied as usual on Jaylen Brown, an absolute reference in the absence of Jayson Tatum, who finished with 42 points.

The forward was in charge of putting the locals ahead, who held off a final outburst from the Knicks based on three-pointers from Mikal Bridges, who finished with eight converted.

Pending confirmation of an eventual return of Tatum, still a long way off, the Celtics have won seven of their last nine games and sit in eighth place in the East.