Category: Golden State Warriors

Warriors get it going in second quarter and roll over Suns 117-107

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Photo credit: nba.com/warriors

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors started Sunday night slowly against the lowly Phoenix Suns.

The Suns, behind Marquisee Chriss and Dragen Bender, were able to build a 14-point lead about halfway through the second quarter.

The Warriors, led by Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Quinn Cook, went on a 14-5 run at the end of the quarter to finish the first half trailing 59-58.

In the third quarter, the Warriors’ defense shut down the Suns’ offense by holding them to just 18 points, and the offense came to life pouring in 36 points to finish the third quarter leading by 94-77. The Warriors were leading by 18 when Phoenix rallied and went on a 12-3 run to trail by nine.

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr sent Kevin Durant back into the game, and the Warriors were able to build the lead back to 14 before Phoenix scored the last two buckets of the game. The Warriors win 117-110.

Game Notes and stats. The Warriors improved to 56-21 and Phoenix drops to 19-59. The Warriors have won fourteen straight against the Suns.

Game Notes and Stats: Kevin Durant led the Warriors with 29 points, eight assists, 11 rebounds, and two blocked shots.

The Warriors have three of the big four players back in action, and there is no question that Durant is the man.

“Kevin is going to be Kevin no matter what,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “He’s got as much ability as anybody, pretty much anybody ever in the history of the game. Put him out there with Steph, great. Put him out there without Steph, great. He’s still going to get any shot he wants and dominate a game.”

Klay Thompson, in his second game back since injuring his thumb, showed that he is a very important cog in the Warrior offense as he tallied 23 points.

Draymond Green had another double-double. Green scored 13 to go along with 12 assists, six rebounds, and one blocked shot.

Quinn Cook finished the night with 19 points, six assists, four rebounds, and three steals. Cook has scored in double figures in 10 consecutive games, and he has shown that he can play with the big boys and will be a huge asset for the Warriors not only until the return of Steph Curry, but being able to come off the bench and give the Warriors some instant offense on the second unit.

Up Next: The Warriors meet the Oklahoma City Thunder Tuesday night in Oklahoma City. Game time will be at 5 pm PST.

Golden State too much for Kings to handle; Warriors win 112-96

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
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Warriors vs Kings Photo: Sports Radio Service

By Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento – The Sacramento Kings dream of winning the 2017-18 season series versus the NBA World Champion Golden State Warriors will not be realized as they were soundly beaten by the Dubs 112-96 on Saturday night in Sacramento. The Kings will finish the four-game series with a very respectable 2-2 record. No one would have predicted that outcome back in October.

The Warriors had to play with this game without their superstar Steph Curry but unlike the last time the teams met in Oakland, Golden State had their other three All-Star players available to face the upstart Kings. Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson were all healthy and ready to go at the opening tip-off.

The Kings kept it close in opening 12-minutes as they trailed the Warriors by just three points – 28 to 25 – at the close of the quarter. Durant scored 15 for Golden State while De’Aaron Fox put up 10 for the Kings. Both teams were ice cold from 3-point land as the Warriors went 1-for-4 and Sacramento hit just 1-of-7 from long-range.

The Warriors opened the second quarter with a 7-0 run that really set the tone for the rest of the game. Golden State maintained a lead of nine to 11 points for most the period. SAC was able to cut the Warriors lead to eight points at the half when Buddy Hield hit a 25-foot jump shot at the buzzer. At the half, Golden State held a 57-49 lead over the Kings.

Frankly, there really is not that much more to talk about in what became a runaway game. The Warriors held a 93-69 lead at the end of the third quarter and the Kings second unit played hard in the final period to outscore Golden State 27-19 for the quarter.

The Warriors won the game 112-96. Golden State’s record improves to 55-21 while the Kings drop to 24-53 for the season.

A Dark Cloud Over the Game

McCaw
Teams huddle in prayer for McCaw Photo: @SacramentoKings

With less than 50-seconds remaining in the third quarter, the Warriors Patrick McCaw cut across the lane to attempt a layup. Vince Carter stepped in front of McCaw to defend against him. McCaw’s leg came down on Carter’s shoulder and McCaw free-fell to the floor landing on his tailbone.

McCaw was not allowed to stand up and was eventually removed from the court by a stretcher. He was taken to the hospital where he will undergo testing.

The Warriors and Kings huddled together in prayer for McCaw before continuing the game.

Top Performances

Kings

  • Buddy Hield was the Kings leading scorer with 19-points. He shot 6-for-11 from the field and hit 4-of-5 from 3-point range.
  • De’Aaron Fox added 15 points of his own for SAC. He also led the team in assists with eight.
  • Willie Cauley-Stein and Bogdan Bogdanovic each scored 12 points in the game.
  • Bruno Caboclo played 15-plus minutes in the game and scored all seven of his points in the fourth quarter.

Warriors

  • Kevin Durant put up a double-double scoring 27 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in just over 30-minutes on the court. He was their leading scorer.
  • Klay Thompson returned after missing eight games to score 25 points against the Kings.
  • Draymond Green scored eight points, pulled down nine rebounds and dished out seven assists.

Up Next

Kings

The Kings get to celebrate Easter in Los Angeles by playing the Lakers at the Staples Center. The game is scheduled to get underway at 6:30 PM PDT.

Warriors

Golden State will also have to work on Easter Sunday as they will host the Phoenix Suns for a 5:30 PM PDT tip.

 

 

Patrick McCaw’s injury overshadows Warriors’ 112-96 win over Kings

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Photo credit: nba.com/warriors

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Warriors had three of their All-Stars back in the lineup Saturday night, and they looked like they were the defending champions. They won the game 112-94 over Sacramento, but all the air went out of the Golden 1 Arena with just 41 seconds left in the third quarter. Patrick McCaw, who had recently returned from a wrist injury, was seriously hurt going in for a layup. While he was in the air, he was brushed by the veteran player, Vince Carter. The force of Carter’s action caused McCaw to fly into the air, and he landed on his backside and was in immense pain. He rolled over on the floor twice, and everyone in the arena knew that McCaw was seriously hurt. The EMT people had to immobilize McCaw, and he was taken on a stretcher to UC Davis Medical Center for examination and tests. A member of the Warriors’ training staff went with him. Nothing was known about his condition after the game. Neither Steve Kerr nor any of the Warrior players felt that Carter’s foul was intentional. Carter apologized to McCaw and Carter participated in a team prayer with the Warrior players before play resumed. Steve Kerr spoke to the media about McCaw after the game. He made some comments about the injury, but did not discuss the game as he felt that was rather inappropriate.

However, a game was played, and the Warriors had Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green back in the lineup. Steph Curry was not able to play, and he will miss the last six games of the season. The Warriors were looking to snap a three-game losing streak, and they accomplished their goal. Thompson looked sharp. He wore a protective guard around his right thumb, and that did not appear to affect his shooting. He tallied 25 points and made three 3-point shots. Kevin Durant led the Warriors with 27 points, five assists, and 10 rebounds. Draymond Green was a force on the court and flirted with a triple-double. He recorded eight points, seven assists, and nine rebounds. Quinn Cook added 10 points.

The Warriors won the first half 57-49. They went on a 19-2 run midway through the first quarter to regain the lead and were never headed after that. As they have done so many times this year, they owned the third quarter. They outscored Sacramento, 36-20, in the period and had a 24-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. If the game could have been stopped at this point, the Warriors would have gladly ended the game. The Kings won the fourth quarter, but they couldn’t catch the Warriors.

Notes: Warriors chief operating officer Rick Welts was named to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, part of a 13-person class that also includes player development consultant and former MVP Steve Nash.

Up Next: The Warriors return home to Oracle Arena Sunday night to play the Phoenix Suns. Game time is at 5:30 pm PT.

 

Warriors lose third straight game, fall to Bucks 116-107

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Photo credit: @warriors

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors lost their third straight game and the seventh in the last 10 as they were defeated by the Milwaukee Bucks 116-107 Thursday night at Oracle Arena. It was the first time in the Steve Kerr Era that the Warriors have lost three straight games.

The game marked the return of Kevin Durant, who was out with a rib injury, and Draymond Green, who suffered a groin injury and had to deal with a bout of the flu. The Warriors were competitive in the first half. They trailed the Bucks by just two at the end of the first quarter and fell behind by nine after the first 24 minutes of play.

Kevin Durant played 17 minutes in the first half and scored 10 points. Durant was hit with two technical fouls as he felt he was fouled while driving towards the basket. Durant also felt that referee Tre Maddox missed several calls and when he complained about getting mugged. Maddox called a technical and when Durant continued to gripe. Maddox ejected him for the game and that spelled doom for the Warriors.

Durant on his ejection: “I got fouled, and I told [the ref] how I felt, and he kicked me out.”

The Bucks outscored the Warriors 34-23 in the third quarter and had a 20-point lead after three periods of play. The Warriors rallied in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Bucks 35-24; but 20-point leads are so difficult to overcome so late in the game, and Milwaukee was able to hold on for the win.

Game Notes: The Warriors Quinn Cook scored a career-high 30 points in a losing effort. Draymond Green had 11, JaVale McGee and Patrick McCaw both had 12 and Kevon Looney and David West added 12 apiece, respectively.

Scoring leaders for Milwaukee were Giannis Antetokounpo with 32, Khris Middleton 23, Eric Bledsoe 20, and Jabari Parker 14.

With the loss, the Warriors fall one game behind the Toronto Raptors for the NBA’s second-best record.

The Warriors are now 54-21 for the season.

Up Next: The Warriors play the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center Saturday night.

Klay Thompson has not been cleared to play, and it is still not known when he will return.

The Warriors need one more win to clinch the second seed in the Western Conference.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pacers outlast injury-ravaged Warriors 92-81

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Photo credit: nba.com/warriors

By Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors were missing their four All-Star starters for the second game in a row and played well for three quarters, but ran out of gas in the fourth quarter and lost to the Indiana Pacers 92-81 at the Oracle Arena Tuesday night.

However, the Warriors fans as well as their coaching staff appreciated the effort by their team. The team played well on defense, but they did not have anyone that could jump-start the offense.

Draymond Green was supposed to return to the lineup Tuesday, but didn’t feel right after practice earlier in the day. He is slated to return Thursday night against Milwaukee. Kevin Durant wanted to play, but the coaching staff held him out. Durant will also be available Thursday. Klay Thompson should be back soon as he recovers from a broken thumb. Steph Curry is out for at least four weeks.

The Warriors started Zaza Pachulia, Jordan Bell, Patrick McCaw, Quinn Cook, and Nick Young. The Warriors played very well in the first quarter. Nick Young paced the attack with 10 points, and the Warrior defense held the Pacers to just 18 points, and they were able to own the advantage 27-18 after one period of play. The Warriors were able to maintain the nine-point lead as each team scored 21 points and the score at the end of the first half was 48-39. Cook had seven, Bell had four, McCaw had six, and Kevon Looney had five. The Pacers were led by Thaddeus Young and Victor Oladipo. The Warriors shot 45% from the floor and held the Pacers to 40.5%.

The Pacers picked up the intensity in the third quarter. They went on a 22-6 run to take the lead 57-54. They increased the lead to five, 68-63, but the Warriors scored the last seven points of the quarter to lead 70-68. However, in the fourth quarter, the Warriors ran out of gas and were outscored 24-11. The Pacers’ Victor Oladipo, Thaddeus Young, and Bojan Bogdanovic could not be stopped.

Game notes and Stats: Kevon Looney had one of his best games as a Warrior. The third-year player out of UCLA tallied eight points and had a career-high 11 rebounds as well as two blocked shots. Nick Young, who scored 10 points in the first half, scored just two in the last 24 minutes of play. Quinn Cook and Andre Iguodala each had 11. JaVale McGee finished with nine and Shaun Livingston and David West each added eight. The Pacers were led by Oladipo’s 24, Thaddeus Young’s 17, and Bogdanovic’s 17.

The Pacers improved to 44-31 and are in a dogfight with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Philadelphia 76ers for the third spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Warriors are now 54-20 and need just one win or one Portland Trail Blazers loss to clinch the second seed in the Western Conference.

Up Next: The Warriors meet the Milwaukee Bucks Thursday night at Oracle Arena. The Bucks are led by Giannis Antetokounmpo and are in eighth place in the Eastern Conference, and they will be looking for a win over the depleted Warriors Thursday.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: Warriors get tamed at home 92-81 by Pacers as Big Four continues to rest

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Photo credit: sports.yahoo.com

By David Zizmor

The Warriors without their big four are still trying to get their bearing, they struggled against the Atlanta Hawks and Utah Jazz at home and likewise with the game tonight against the Indiana Pacers. When the Warriors played against Utah on Sunday, they were not an easy team to beat when Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green. The Jazz for the last two or three seasons this year’s team is different because Gordon Hayward is now on the Boston Celtics. Utah is a really well coached team head coach Quin Synder is one of the top coaches in the NBA which answers the question why the Jazz are having such a good year.

In the fourth quarter in the final minutes of the game of the Pacers-Warriors match, the Pacers maintained the lead even as the Warriors tried to battle back in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t catch the Pacers as Indiana pretty much dominated the fourth quarter by a good 10 points over Golden State.

David Zizmor does the Warrior podcasts each Tuesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Short-Handed Warriors Lack Firepower, Lose to Jazz 110-91

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Photo credit: nba.com/warriors

By Jerry Feitelberg

It is amazing how injuries to several key players can send a season spiraling south. The Warriors were without the four All-Star players Sunday night, and they were slammed by a very young, hungry, and torrid Utah Jazz squad as they fell 110-91. The Jazz are now 23-4 in their last 27 games.

The Warriors were the first NBA team to have four starters named as All-Stars, and it appears that they may also be the first team to have all four All-Stars injured and unable to play at the same time.

The Warriors’ two-time NBA MVP, Steph Curry, injured his medial collateral ligament in his left knee in last Friday’s game against Atlanta. He will be reevaluated by the team’s doctors in three weeks on April 14th. It does not mean he will return to action in the first playoff series as the injury normally takes four to six weeks to heal.

The Warriors need Klay Thompson (broken thumb), Kevin Durant (injured rib cartilage), and Draymond Green (bruised groin and the flu) to return as soon as possible. The Warriors may be facing Utah in the first round, and they will need every able-bodied player to be at full strength to be able to handle Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell and company.

The Warriors, coached by Steve Kerr, and the Jazz, coached by Quin Snyder, played a fairly low-scoring first period. The Warriors started five players that had never played together as a unit. All five players had been relegated to the bench during the season.

Nick Young, JaVale McGee, Patrick McCaw, Kevon Looney, and Quinn Cook took the floor for Steve Kerr’s club. They played excellent defense and held the Jazz to just 18 points, while scoring 22 in the first 12 minutes of action.

The Jazz–behind Gobert, Mitchell, and Ingles–outscored the Warriors 35-25 in the second quarter and finished the half leading 53-47. Andre Iguodala led the Warrior offense with nine points. Andre mad all three-point shots he attempted in the first half. Quinn Cook and JaVale McGee each had eight.

The Jazz increased the lead to 23 at the end of the third quarter. They scored 36, and their defense held the Warriors to just 18 points. The Warriors took the fourth quarter, 26-21, but they could not come back from a 23-point deficit.

Game Notes and Stats: The Warriors had just two players that scored double-digit points. Cook led the Warriors with 17 and Iguodala finished with 12. Nick Young and David West had nine apiece while JaVale McGee and Patrick McCaw had eight.

The Jazz had a balanced attack as they had seven players in double figures. Donovan Mitchell had 21, Rudy Gobert 17, Jae Crowder 14, Joe Ingles 14, Dante Exum 13, Ricky Rubio 11, and Derrick Favors 10. The Jazz shot 48.3% from the floor and made 12 3-point shots. The Warriors were held to 41.8% from the floor, and they made six treys in 20 attempts.

Up Next: The Warriors need one more win or one Portland loss to sew up the second seed in the NBA Western Conference. They play the Indiana Pacers Tuesday night, the Milwaukee Bucks Thursday night and the Sacramento Kings in Sacramento Saturday night.

Curry returns and helps Warriors in 106-94 win; leaves ball game early with knee injury

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photo from sfgate.com: Golden State’s Stephen Curry bent over with pain from his injured left knee after receiving a right elbow to the knee from teammate JaVale McGee in Friday night’s contest at Oracle Arena against the Atlanta Hawks

By Jerry Feitelberg

There was good news and bad news at Oracle Arena Friday night as Curry returned to action and the Warriors downed the Atlanta Hawks 106-94. Curry started slowly but heated up and tallied 29 points before he injured his left knee with 3:09 to play in the third quarter. The injury occurred when JaVale McGee’s right elbow landed on Curry’s left knee when McGee was falling down. Curry was not able to continue, and the fans and the Warriors could not believe what happened.

Curry sprained his medial collateral ligament and was scheduled for an MRI on Saturday. The Warriors said: “We’ll see what the MRI says tomorrow, there’s not a whole lot we can do or predict keep your fingers crossed.” said head coach Steve Kerr. “We’re hoping for the best after everything he’s gone through, that was tough to see him go down like that” said Warrior point guard Quinn Cook.

“Kind of a strange, cruel twist of fate,” Kerr said. “He rehabs his ankle for the last couple weeks, he gets that strong and then the knee goes. So we’ll see what happens and we’ll keep our fingers crossed.”

Atlanta won the first half 51-43. The Warriors scored just 16 points in the first quarter. They played a little better in the second quarter, but the Hawks outscored the by six to finish the half with an 8-point lead. The Warriors continued to own the third quarter as they poured in 36 points and the defense held the Hawks to 23. The Warriors won the fourth quarter outscoring the Hawks 27-20.

Game Notes and Stats: The Warriors were without the services of Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, and Draymond Green. As mentioned earlier, the extent of Curry’s injury is unknown, and the Warriors are holding their collective breaths until the results of the MRI are known.

Patrick McCaw returned to action after missing substantial playing time due to a broken wrist. Jordan Bell started in place of Draymond Green, and he finished the night with 12 points, four assists, seven rebounds, and one blocked shot. Nick Young started in place of Klay Thompson, and he added 24 points to the winning effort. Quinn Cook, who had played so well in Curry’s absence and now coming off the bench, kicked in with 13.

The Hawks were led by strong forward Taurean Prince 20, Dennis Schroder 16, Damion Lee 10, Tyler Dorsey 13, and Mike Muscala 11.

The Warriors improve to 54-18 and Atlanta falls to 21-52.

Up Next: The Warriors meet the Utah Jazz Sunday afternoon at 5:30 pm PST.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: After dropping three of last five and Green day to day Warriors aren’t worried

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Photo credit: @NBAUK

On the Golden State Warriors podcast with David:

#1 Golden State’s Big Three are out with injuries: Stephen Curry (tweaked right ankle), Klay Thompson (fractured right thumb), Kevin Durant (fractured rib). They take on the Atlanta Hawks on Friday and a lot now rides on Draymond Green.

#2 The Warriors have struggled and lost to the Sacramento Kings on their home floor on Friday, but came right back with a win over the Phoenix Suns on Saturday. Which team will show up on Friday night against the Atlanta Hawks?

David Zizmor does the Warriors podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings find schedule unrelenting, drop home game to the reeling Pistons

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Photo by Marco Estrada/USA Today Sports

By Morris Phillips

SACRAMENTO–Saturday, the Kings drew praise from the NBA’s hottest team in a narrow loss at Salt Lake City.

Back in Sacramento Monday, the Kings let the struggling Pistons capture just their second road win of 2018, losing 106-90 at Golden 1 Center.

And the moral of that story? The NBA schedule is unrelenting, and a sixth game in nine days will blunt the progress of any youthful squad otherwise in the process of a significant growth spurt.

The Pistons got back-to-back baskets from Blake Griffin to break a 57-57 tie midway through the third quarter and never trailed again, breaking their 12-game road, losing streak. Griffin led the way for Detroit with 26 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

The Pistons hadn’t won on the road since beating the Nets in Brooklyn on January 10.

“This time of year, you’ll take it any way you can get it, but you get one on the road after being on the road for eight nights already — it’s always great,” Griffin said. “We took care of business and we have to go and do it again.”

The Kings failed to win for the fourth time in their last five home games in large part due to their deficiencies beyond the arc and at the free throw line. The Kings missed 17 of their 23 three-point attempts and made just four free throws (in nine attempts) in the game. The Pistons, with Griffin and Andre Drummond leading the way,  held a slight edge on the glass (44-39) along with significant advantages in made threes (14) and free throws (18 for 22).

The unrelenting schedule affected the Kings down the stretch on Saturday night against Utah when the Jazz pulled away for a 103-97 win, their 20th in their last 22 games. Afterwards, the Jazz complimented the Kings for their offensive tenacity and their ability to fashion several runs when Utah threatened to pull away. Against the Pistons, the Kings missed injured facilitator Bogdan Bogdanovich, and failed to capture any offensive flow.

“We talked about it this morning that it had a high probability of being a letdown game but it was a tough game for us,” Kings coach Dave Joerger said. “It’s that type of game we (have to) let roll off of us.”

Surprisingly, the Kings’ veterans put up far inferior numbers than their youthful teammates. The trio of Zach Randoloh, Garrett Temple and Kosta Koufos combined to miss 18 of 21 shots. Sacramento’s two rookie starters, Justin Jackson and De’Andre Fox, combined to make 15 of their 20 shots from the floor.

The Kings take a much-needed two days off before facing the Hawks on Thursday at Golden 1 Center.