LaMelo triumphs over Lonzo in battle of the Ball brothers

LaMelo Ball emerged with bragging rights against older brother Lonzo as the Charlotte Hornets won 118-110 at the New Orleans Pelicans in the NBA on Friday.

The Hornets were down by double-digits at the halfway mark before they managed to claw back for a crucial road victory despite a dominant physical performance from the Pelicans’ Zion Williamson, who scored 26 points.

Charlotte’s LaMelo fell just short of a triple-double – the rookie had 12 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists – but there will be questions over his accuracy as he shot just four-for-11 from the field.

He still had the better day in his first NBA meeting with his brother, with Lonzo taking five points, two rebounds and three assists.

Steph Curry led the way with 38 points as his Golden State Warriors came from behind to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers 115-105.

The Warriors were down by 21 points late in the third quarter but 19 points in that period from Curry left them trailing by just six entering the fourth.

Golden State then hammered the stunned Clippers 34-18 in the final 12 minutes to snap a four-game losing streak against their California rivals.

Paul George led the Clippers with 25 points while Kawhi Leonard had 24.

Lebron James finished with 28 points, seven rebounds and seven assists to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a thrilling 117-115 win over the visiting Chicago Bulls.

With Montrezl Harrell scoring 17 points and making 14 rebounds, the Lakers held off the Bulls in the second half despite missing injured starters Anthony Davis and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

Zach LaVine scored 38 points for Chicago but missed a jump shot with 4.7 seconds left that would have put his side in the lead.

In other games, the Detroit Pistons beat the Phoenix Suns 110-105 in overtime, the Utah Jazz gave the Milwaukee Bucks their first home loss of the season in a 131-118 result while the Toronto Raptors won 144-123 at the Sacramento Kings.

Elsewhere, the Memphis Grizzlies beat the visiting Brooklyn Nets 115-110, the Boston Celtics won 116-107 at home to the Washington Wizards, the Oklahoma City Thunder won 101-89 at the New York Knicks, and the Houston Rockets beat the visiting Orlando Magic 132-90.