Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors drives to the basket against the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans on Saturday.

DPA/Los Angeles

Stephen Curry is still playing like an MVP, and the Golden State Warriors still own the New Orleans Pelicans.  
Curry scored 28 of his 53 league season-high points in a blistering third quarter Saturday night as the visiting Warriors handled the winless Pelicans for the second time this season, 134-120.  
Curry outscored New Orleans by himself 28-26 in the third quarter, when defending champion Golden State (3-0) broke open the game.  Overall, Curry made 17 of 27 shots, including 8 of 14 three-pointers, and 11 of 11 free throws.  
“I come out with the same mentality every game    just try to be creative, make plays,” said Curry, who also had nine assists and four steals. “I have big confidence right now.”
“He just didn’t feel us,” said Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry, an assistant with Golden State last season. “If you allow him to play that loose, then the end result is going to be that. We have to get into him a lot more.”   
The reigning NBA Most Valuable Player, Curry has been picking on the Pelicans (0-3) for some time now. He averaged 33.8 points in a first-round sweep of New Orleans in last season’s playoffs.
On Tuesday, the Warriors received their championship rings and raised a title banner to the rafters before Curry torched the Pelicans for 24 points in the first quarter and 40 overall.
This time, Curry fell one point shy of his career high set February 27, 2013 at New York, missing his last two shots.
“Our team, we’re playing well,” said Curry, who is averaging 39.3 points through three games. “There’s no championship hangover and I want to be a part of it.”  
Curry scored 15 points in the first half but sat out the final 2.5 minutes after picking up his third foul. The Pelicans held a 65-64 halftime lead behind 11 points from Jrue Holiday.
But Curry was back in the third quarter, and there was no stopping him. He began by whipping a no-look pass over his head to set up a three-point play by Harrison Barnes, then scored 11 points in 92 seconds, giving the Warriors a 78-72 lead.  
“He actually made some tough shots, but we let him off the hook also by letting him get over the top of screens,” Gentry said. “We weren’t supposed to do that.”   
Late in the period, Curry spun around helpless defender Luke Babbitt with a behind-the-back move for a layup. He added a driving layup before draining a three-pointer while being fouled by Toney Douglas.
“In that third quarter, I was getting some good looks,” said Curry, who made 10-of-13 shots in the period. “I forced a couple that went in and then you just find a rhythm, being aggressive. Everything clicked in that quarter. It was nice to open up the game and help us get a win.”
New Orleans closed to 124-115 with 2:34 left on three free throws by Anthony Davis, who had 26 points and 15 rebounds. Curry settled matters with a three-pointer and two free throws.
Draymond Green scored 21 points and Klay Thompson added 19 for the Warriors, who made 17 of 30 from the arc. Holiday scored 22 points and Ryan Anderson added 19 for the Pelicans, who are allowing 119 points per game.
“There’s just a lot of work that we have to do,” Gentry said.   
Los Angeles Clippers 114, Sacramento Kings 109: Blake Griffin scored 14 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter as the host Clippers (3-0) held off the Kings for the second time this season. Rajon Rondo scored 21 points for Sacramento.
New York Knicks 117, Washington Wizards 110: Carmelo Anthony ended a brief slump with 37 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 1:35 remaining, to lead the Knicks. Bradley Beal scored 26 points and John Wall added 25 for the Wizards, who dropped their home opener.
Utah Jazz 97, Indiana Pacers 76: Derrick Favors scored 16 of his 18 points after halftime and France’s Rudy Gobert swept 17 boards for the Jazz, who won at Indiana for the first time since February 25, 2011. George Hill scored 17 points for the winless Pacers.
Memphis Grizzlies 101, Brooklyn Nets 91: Mike Conley had 22 points and eight assists for the host Grizzlies. Croatia’s Bojan Bogdanovic scored 19 points for the winless Nets.  
Phoenix Suns 101, Portland Trail Blazers 90: Eric Bledsoe scored 33 points and Brandon Knight added 27 as the visiting Suns swept the home-and-home series. Damian Lillard had 23 points and eight assists for the Trail Blazers.