Golden State’s Stephen Curry is selected NBA’s MVP

Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry won the league’s top individual award Monday, beating out Houston’s James Harden in a race that turned out not to be that close.

Curry received 100 of 130 first-place votes for a total of 1,198 points from a panel of 129 writers and broadcasters, along with the fan vote on the NBA’s website. Harden had 25 first-place votes and 936 points. Cleveland’s LeBron James, a four-time MVP, got five first-place votes and 552 points.

Oklahoma City Thunder’s Russell Westbrook (352 points) finished fourth and New Orleans Pelicans big man Anthony Davis (203 points) was fifth.

With the revitalized Warriors winning at a historic pace, Curry’s case for MVP resonated around the league as loud as the nightly chants at rowdy Oracle Arena.

Curry carried the top-seeded Warriors to a franchise-record 67 wins, surpassed his own record for most 3-pointers in a season and added to his growing reputation as one of the most entertaining spectacles in sports. He’s the franchise’s first MVP since Wilt Chamberlain in 1960, when the Warriors played in Philadelphia.

Curry was set to receive the award during an afternoon news conference Monday in Oakland. He will be presented with the hardware again during an on-court ceremony when Golden State hosts Memphis in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals Tuesday night.