by Jerry Feitelberg

AP photo: Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors raises his hands in delight as head coach Steve Kerr (right) is thrilled with the Warriors play against the Sacramento Kings on at SAP Center on Thursday night

SAN JOSE–The Golden State Warriors overcame a five-point halftime deficit to beat the Sacramento Kings 105-96 at the SAP Center Thursday night. The Dubs played their third pre-season game and had to work to defeat the Kings. Kings’ center DeMarcus Cousins led the Sacramento attack with twenty points, and Dubs’ center Zaza Pachulia had his hands full trying to contain the big man. Warriors’ coach Steve Kerr continued to play his regulars for about twenty-five minutes as they try to get Kevin Durant to adapt to the motion game that the Warriors feature.

Durant played twenty-six minutes and scored twenty-five points. Steph Curry also played 26 minutes, and he added thirteen to the Dubs’ attack. Klay Thompson and Draymond Green played 25 minutes, and Klay tallied eleven. Patrick McCaw and Ian Clark performed well coming off the bench. McCaw scored 8 and Clark poured in 16.

The stats were very even for the teams. The Kings shot 42.2% from the floor while the Dubs came in at 44.3%. The Kings shot 46.2% from three-point range, and the Warriors came in at 42.9%. Sacramento committed 22 turnovers contrasted the Dubs 24.  Golden State had the edge in fast-break points 33-14 while the Kings had a 32-22  edge in the points in the paint category.

The Warriors play the next three pre-season games on the road. They meet the Denver Nuggets on October 14th in Denver. They play the LA Lakers on Saturday the 15th and then again on the 19th.