Golden State Warrior guard Chris Paul will need surgery on his left hand after fracturing it against the Detroit Pistons on Fri Jan 5, 2024 at Chase Center in San Francisco (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Detroit Pistons (3-32) put quite a fight but Golden State (17-18) met the challenge and came away with the win 113-109. The Warriors handed the Pistons their 32nd loss of the season.

Game recap: The first quarter was a close one with the Warriors leading after the first twelve minutes 22-20. The turnovers were mounting for Golden State and through 1 1/2 quarters they already had nine. Through the same 1 1/2 quarters Warriors guard Stephen Curry had not scored a single point getting another very slow start. 

At 4:35 in the second quarter, Curry scored three free throws and at 3:26 scored his first basket of the game followed by a three point jumper. A Curry flurry was exactly what the Warriors needed as the first half began to wind down. The Warriors led at the half 50-46 after having led by nine points in the second quarter. The Pistons were not backing down refusing to go away.

The turnovers for Golden State were a problem in the first half with 12. Detroit was protecting the ball very well with only five turnovers which accounted for some of the success they were having in this game.

At halftime, bench player Dario Saric , had the high score with 12 points and starter Jonathan Kuminga had 11 points. The team would be looking for some production in the second half from not only Curry but also from Klay Thompson. The good news for Golden State was the late half action from Curry.

As the third quarter came to an end, the Pistons were making a move pulling to within four points. After three quarters the Warriors were clinging to a four point lead 79-75. 

In the final seconds of the third quarter, Detroit had pulled to within one point proving to be a very real threat. There were five more turnovers for the Warriors in the quarter now with a total of 17 through three quarters.

The Pistons continued to hang around and with 3:45 left in the game, the Warriors were hanging on by a single point 95-94. With 1:56 left in the game it was all tied up at 100. With 1:32 left in the game the Pistons took their first lead of the half 103-102. 

Curry finished off this game with a couple of free throws and a 28-foot jump shot followed by a second 28-foot shot. The final was 113-109 and the Warriors were lucky to get this win. Detroit put up quite a fight pushing Golden State to their limit.

Both the third and fourth quarters of this game finished in a tie. The Pistons pulled out all the stops but the Warriors proved to be just a little too much. Curry had the high for the team with 26 points and Thompson finished with 19.

 It was not the Warriors finest offensive nor defensive effort. They have been struggling on defense and it really showed in this game. They had 19 turnovers just when it seemed that they were turning it around.

Post game notes: Friday night the Warriors took on the Pistons after losing a heart-breaker last night against the Denver Nuggets who pulled off a Nikola Jokic buzzer beater 130-127 for the win. Jokic hit a 39-foot three pointer with 0.1 left on the game clock. With 4.1 seconds on the clock, Curry turned the ball over making this loss an especially tough pill to swallow. 

The Pistons who are having a miserable season. At one point they had lost 28 straight games for the longest losing streak in NBA history. That streak ended last Saturday at Little Caesar’s Arena in Detroit with a narrow 129-127 victory.

Warriors guard Chris Paul fractured his left hand Friday night against the Pistons and will need surgery sometime next week. Warrior head coach Steve Kerr made the announcement right after the game. Paul went 23 minutes scoring eight points, six rebounds and had four assists before having to leave with the fracture.

Sunday evening the Warriors continue their home stand taking on the Toronto Raptors. They will be looking for a better offensive and defensive effort and then there are those pesky turnovers to deal with.

The Warriors have a lot to clean up. Toronto comes to Golden State after losing to the Sacramento Kings Friday night 135-130. The Kings had a 20 point lead in the third quarter of the game and Toronto came roaring back. Golden State has a lot to address; they cannot afford another game like Friday night’s. Tipoff for the game Sunday is scheduled for 5:30 PM.