Golden State Warriors guard Jordan Poole (3) shoots against Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes (40) and guard Davion Mitchell (15) during the first half of Game 3 of the NBA Playoffs at Chase Center in San Francisco on Thu Apr 20, 2023 (AP News photo)

Warriors Manhandle Kings 114-97

By Barbara Mason

Thursday night the Sacramento Kings (48-35) traveled to San Francisco to take on the Warriors (45-38) and get a taste of the raucous crowd that is primed and ready to will their team to their first win in these playoffs and win they did with a 114-97 game 2 victory. The Warriors trail by one game 2-1 after game 3.

From the opening tipoff it became evident that, despite the absence of Draymond Green, Golden State was ready for this game. The Warriors took a 29-20 lead in the opening quarter. They completely outplayed the Kings in the first twelve minutes.

The Kings could not buy a three and they struggled with offensive rebounds. What further exacerbated the situation was that the Warriors were hitting three’s. Once again Keegan Murray was silent and the Kings were having an awful offensive night.

The Kings were outscored in the second quarter 24-21 and trailed 53-41 at the half. Sacramento had more turnovers than the Warriors and they were also having a poor defensive game. It was an all-around poor first half for Sacramento at every turn, offensively and defensively.

The Warriors continued to hold a healthy lead after three quarters 84-72. They had not trailed once in this game.

The Kings had one quarter left to fight back in this game. They had been outplayed at every turn. They were 6 of 30 for 21% from downtown. Both teams were shooting at 37% field goals. The Warriors had twice as many three’s and that spelled the difference in this game amid a host of other issues.

The brilliance that we have seen all season in the fourth quarter from De’Aaron Fox just didn’t materialize. The Warriors outplayed the Kings offensively and defensively. Golden State owned the glass; they finished with 16 threes to the Kings 11 of 47. The final was 114-97.

De’Aaron Fox finished with 26 points the high for the team. Every starter with the exception of Keegan Murray had double digits. The Kings bench was a disappointment. Going into this game Sacramento knew how tough it was going to be at Chase. Chase lived up to it’s reputation and the Kings fell flat unable to handle the Warriors.

Stephen Curry had the high for the Warriors with 36 points. Kevon Looney had 20 rebounds.

Sunday afternoon the Kings will get another shot to win their third game of the playoffs. They have a huge task in front of them. Tipoff is scheduled for 12:30 PM.