Stephen Curry struggled from the floor but the Golden State Warriors still eased to a 112-96 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

NBA MVP candidate Curry was four for 17 after missing 12 of his first 13 shots but the Warriors managed to post a double-double, with 16 points and 11 assists tallied at ORACLE Arena in Oakland.

Harrison Barnes led the Warriors by scoring 22 points as Golden State improved to a 55-13 win-loss record, the second-most wins in their history.

Marreese Speights (13), Leandro Barbosa (12) and Andre Iguodala (10) were also in double-digits for the Warriors, who boast an NBA-best home record of 32 wins and just two defeats.

The Pelicans (37-32) had 16 points from Norris Cole, while Quincy Pondexter and Alexis Ajinca posted 15 points each.

LeBron James helped the Cleveland Cavaliers past the slumping Indiana Pacers 95-92.

James sank 29 points, with 13 of those coming in the final quarter as the Cavs (45-26) overcame the Pacers to clinch their first play-off spot since 2010.

The Pacers (30-38) and their post-season hopes are clinging by a thread after losing a fourth straight game.

Elsewhere, the Memphis Grizzlies, Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio Spurs and Chicago Bulls were all victorious.

Zach Randolph scored 21 points to inspire the Grizzlies to a 112-101 win at the Dallas Mavericks.

The Clippers snapped the Washington Wizards' five-game winning streak via a 113-99 triumph in Los Angeles.

Reigning champions the Spurs saw off the fast-finishing Boston Celtics 101-89 on the back of Kawhi Leonard's 22 points.

Nikola Mirotic posted 29 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double as the Bulls accounted for the Toronto Raptors 108-92.

News of Kevin Durant's absence for the rest of the season was not enough to derail the Oklahoma City Thunder, who defeated the Atlanta Hawks 123-115 thanks to another triple-double from Russell Westbrook (36 points, 14 assists, 10 rebounds).

In other results, the Orlando Magic upstaged the Portland Trail Blazers 111-104 and the Sacramento Kings beat the struggling Charlotte Hornets 101-91.

Rookie of the Year candidate Nerlens Noel finished with 23 points and 14 rebounds as the Philadelphia 76ers downed fellow strugglers the New York Knicks 97-81, the Brooklyn Nets prevailed 129-127 over the Milwaukee Bucks in triple overtime, while the Miami Heat trumped the Denver Nuggets 108-91.