OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Everybody expected Stephen Curry to make the 3 from way out with the clock winding down, just as he always does.
Instead, this time Curry missed a long 3-pointer to tie it with 5.3 seconds left and the Golden State Warriors suffered their first home defeat in more than 14 months, losing 109-106 to the Boston Celtics on Friday night to snap an NBA-record 54-game winning streak in the regular season at Oracle Arena.
"Every one of them I think is going down. But it didn't," Curry said. "All things considered, it was a pretty good look at it. ... We've gotten away with some games that we probably shouldn't have won with some shots like that. And tonight it wasn't our night."
That unbeaten run in Oakland included 36 straight home wins to start this season. Golden State hadn't lost at home since a 113-111 overtime defeat to the Bulls on Jan. 27, 2015.
Now, the Warriors (68-8) must win five of their final six games to break the 1995-96 Bulls' record of 72 wins.
Isaiah Thomas made a driving layup with 8.3 seconds left on the way to 22 points for Boston. He scored 18 of his points in the third quarter, when Curry got hot from 3-point land, making all six of his attempts.
Shaun Livingston hit two free throws with 46.9 seconds left to get Golden State within two at 105-103, then Draymond Green wrestled the ball away from Amir Johnson moments later for his sixth steal and Golden State called timeout. But Green lost the ball with 23.9 seconds left.
"I kind of started observing the floor before I really grabbed the ball and saw the exact situation that we wanted and left the ball behind," Green said. "I guess you need those lessons sometimes, but it never feels good."
Evan Turner made a pair of free throws with 18.1 seconds to go before Harrison Barnes' baseline 3 on a dish from Curry.
But Curry's final look from long range fell short on a night he had been spectacular from beyond the arc. Barnes grabbed the offensive rebound and missed on a long desperation heave with 0.2 seconds left.
Curry went coast to coast and behind his back for a layup to make it 103-101 with 1:29 to go. Boston answered once more, this time on Turner's jumper.
Curry shimmied and swiveled his hips, celebrating as 3-pointers kept finding the net — he made eight of them to score 29 points — and for a change that wasn't enough for the sloppy defending champs, who couldn't overcome 22 turnovers that led to 27 points for the Celtics.