Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) tries to get past New Orleans Pelicans forward Herbert Jones during the first half at Chase Center in San Francisco on Fri Mar 3, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jerry Feitelberg

My oh my. How do the Warriors do it? For the fourth straight game, the Warriors overcame a double-digit deficit to win. The script was the same. The Warriors start slowly, then get the offense in gear and stop the opponent’s offense. They did that against Minnesota, Portland, and the LA Clippers.

Friday night’s foe, The New Orleans Pelicans, came into town with the NBA’s best defense against the three-point shot. Steve Kerr’s answer was for the Warriors to drive to the basket, get fouled, and have the Warriors defense stop the Pelican offense.

The Warriors didn’t get the message in the first quarter as the Pelicans led by 17, 35-18. Jonathan Kuminga made a three at the end of the period to get the Warriors closer, 35- 21. The Warriors started the comeback in the second quarter, holding the Pelicans to 22 points.

As they did in the games against Portland and LA, the Warrior defense allowed the Pelicans 21 points in the third quarter and 21 points in the fourth. The Warrior offense perked up, and behind the play of Klay Thompson, Kuminga, and Jordan Poole, The Warriors won a thriller 108-99.

Trailing by 15 points starting the second period, the Warriors outscored the Pelicans 33-22. JaMychal Green, coming off the bench, tallied eleven points to help the Warriors get back into the game. Thompson had 11, Kumina had nine, and Poole and Kevon Looney had eight. The Warriors finished the first half trailing 57-54. The Pelicans had four players in double figures in the first half Naji Marshall led the Pelicans with 12. Brandon Ingram, Trey Murphy, and C J McCollum each had ten.

In the previous two games, Golden State owned the third quarter. The Warriors did win the quarter 28-21 to end the third quarter with a four-point lead 82-78. Thompson led the surge by making three threes. The Warriors defense put the shackles on the Pelican’s Ingram.

A four-point lead is relatively easy to overcome in the fourth quarter. The Pelicans had to find a way to break down the Warrior defense. The Pelicans wanted to get the ball to McCullom or Ingram. Draymond Green, Kuminga, Looney, and Donte DiVincenzo was tasked with stopping the Pelicans.

Things did not go well for the Warriors. The Pelicans fought back and regained the lead 93-89. Anthony Lamb made a three to make it a 93-92 game. Thompson made his fourth three of the night to put the Warriors ahead 95-93. DiVincenzo made his first and only basket of the night.

It was a three-pointer. DiVincenzo spent most of the night playing defense against the Pelican’s two big stars, Ingram and McCollum. The Warriors defense made the stops, and the offense carried them to a hard-fought 108-99 win.

Game Notes: The Warriors won their fifth straight game. They are now four games over the .500 mark with a record of 34-30. The Pelicans fall to 31-33.

The Warriors had six players in double figures. Thompson led the team with 27 points and four threes. Kuminga had another big game. The young star finished with 19 points and seven rebounds. He played well on both ends of the court. Poole did not make a three.

What Poole did was take the ball to the basket. He was fouled several times, and he knocked down 12 free throws. His point total for the game was 18. Looney had a double-double with ten points and ten rebounds. JaMYchal Green had 14 points and six boards. Anthony Lamb made three threes and finished with 11. 

Instead of winning the game from behind the three-point arc, the Warriors won by outscoring the Pelicans 52-36 with points in the paint.

The Pelicans’ leading scorer was McCollum with 25. Ingram had 17. Trey Murphy had 16, and Naji Marshall finished with 14.

The Warriors meet the Los Angeles Lakers in LA on Sunday. Warriors guard Stephen Curry will be returning to the Warriors lineup. The game will start at 12:30 pm.