Category: Golden State Warriors

Thompson leads Warriors over Thunder to force Game 7

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By: Eric He

AP photo: Golden State Warriors Klay Thompson is congratulated by fans at Chesapeake Energy Arena concluding game six win over the OKC Thunder on Saturday night

Klay Thompson set an NBA playoff record with 11 three-pointers, propelling the Warriors over the Thunder in a dramatic Game 6 win, 108-101, to force a Game 7.

It looked for the longest time on Saturday that the Thunder would pull away and close out a disappointing end to a historic season for the Warriors.

But Thompson would have none of that. The sharpshooter hit three after three in the fourth quarter to close an eight-point Thunder lead. Stephen Curry knocked down consecutive threes to tie the game at 99-99 with under three minutes to play, and Thompson put the Warriors ahead 104-101, catching an outlet pass from Andre Iguodala and hitting a three.

Curry followed with layup over Serge Ibaka to extend the lead to five with 15 seconds left, and the Warriors close it out with a couple of steals.

Thompson finished with 41 points, while Curry had 29.

The ending was surreal considering the Thunder had control all game long. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook had 29 and 28 points, respectively, and Oklahoma City had opened up a double-digit lead by the second quarter. The Thunder maintained that advantage throughout, and, save for a brief spurt in the third when the Warriors took a slim lead, they largely kept the Warriors at bay whenever Golden State closed on a run.

The Warriors finished 21-of-44 from 3-point range while the Thunder shot just 3-of-21.

This will be the Warriors’ first Game 7 at home in 40 years. The winner will advance to the NBA Finals to face the Cavaliers.

Warriors stay alive with Game 5 win

Published on by Eric HeLeave a comment

By: Eric He

AP photo: Golden State Warriors Klay Thompson left yellow shirt and Stephen Curry (30) exalt watching a warrior bucket in game five at Oracle Arena in Oakland

The Golden State Warriors staved off elimination with a 120-111 win over the Thunder in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals on Thursday night at Oracle Arena.

Stephen Curry led the way with 31 points, while Klay Thompson poured in 27. With the win, the Warriors send the series back to Oklahoma City needing a win to force a Game 7.

The Warriors led by four heading into the fourth quarter, but quickly opened up a double-digit advantage with the help of a 12-4 run. The Thunder hung around and closed the gap late, but the Warriors hung on to keep their playoff dreams alive.

The Warriors led for a majority of the game, not allowing the Thunder to take control as they have in the previous two contests. The Thunder took a brief 68-67 lead in the third quarter, but otherwise the Warriors turned up their play a notch to get the win.

Golden State shot 47.1 percent from the field, getting the all-around contributions they needed to beat the Thunder. Draymond Green played better, while Andrew Bogut had a big night with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Marreese Speights scored 14 points off the bench.

But the Warriors still have a monumental challenge in the front of them. They must find a way to beat the Thunder on the road to keep their season alive. Game 6 is Saturday night in Oklahoma City.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: With backs to the wall the Dubs need to get that fire in their bellies

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photo by The Sporting News: Head coach Steve Kerr (right) and Stephen Curry (30) do some consultations during game four

On the Warriors podcast with David it’s been a frustrating series with the Oklahoma City Thunder outside of game two. In game one the Warriors were in it but lost by six 108-102 so you can excuse that. Game two the Warriors grabbed a 118-91 win OKC just ran them out of the building and part of that this gives OKC a little bit of leg up. The Warriors looked out it on Tuesday night and I don’t get it in a Western Conference final the Warriors would be motivated ready to go and feel the pressure and respond.

The Warriors have done this before and now it’s time for them to do that again the thing that you notice the most they just don’t seem to have that fire or passion that we saw last year when they went through the post season. The Warriors have to find out what they have to do to fix that and they have to find out what needs to happen.

David Zizmor does the Warriors podcast during the Western Conference Finals on Sportstalk at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Westbrook, Durant throttle champs in Game 4

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By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Contributor

photo credit The Sporting News: Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant (35) hand looks blinding for Golden State’s Stephen Curry in the third defeat of the Warriors at OKC on Tuesday night

Oklahoma City — Don’t look now but the Golden State Warriors are in some serious trouble for the first time in two years.

Russell Westbrook recorded his third career triple double, racking up 36 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, while fellow superstar Kevin Durant dropped 26 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 118-94 victory Tuesday night and a commanding 3-1 lead in the best-of-7 Western Conference finals.

The loss puts the defending NBA champions on the brink of elimination. It also marked the first time that this season that Golden State has loss back-to-back games this season.

Klay Thompson scored 19 of his team-leading 26 points in the third quarter while dealing with foul trouble, while Stephen Curry scored 19 points but struggled tremendously from the floor finishing 6-for-20 from the floor.

The two-time league MVP missed wide open shots for the majority of the game while exerting so much energy chasing Westbrook for most of the night.

Westbrook was an instant fastbreak starter, engineering a Thunder squad that outscored Golden State 48-38 in the paint.

The Thunder, who were the league’s top rebounding team at 48.6 rebounds per game during the regular season, dominated the boards 56 to 40. For the series, OKC has out-rebounded Golden State by averaging 49 to 41 rebounds per game.

In addition to Westbrook and Durant, OKC finished with five players in double figures (Serge Ibaka and Andre Roberson each scored 17 points, Steven Adams scored 11 points, and Dion Waiters chipped in with 10 points off the bench.)

Roberson, who 17 points were a career-high, also finished with 12 rebounds.

During the playoffs, the Thunder are 7-0 when they have five or more players finish in double figures.

“The Thunder are outplaying us right now,” said Warriors head coach Steve Kerr. “We have to come up with answers.”

Golden State needs to come up with some answers fast heading back to Oakland for a do-or-die Game 5 Thursday night in what will be  raucous Oracle Arena crowd.

Draymond Green had a game to forget tonight.

Green, who avoided suspension from the league after kicking Adams in the groin during Game 3, finished with just six points and 11 rebounds, but shot 1-for-7 from the floor.

“I bring the energy for this team and I haven’t been bringing that energy,” Green said post game. “We just didn’t take care of the ball well tonight. I have to bring more energy for this team to win.”

The Warriors had 13 of their 21 turnovers in the first half. Green and Curry each had six turnovers.

Harrison Barnes finished with 11 points for Golden State, who now have a larger mountain to climb if they are going to reach the NBA Finals for the second straight year.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, teams that trail 3-1 in a best-of-7 series are just 9-223.

But the focus wasn’t just on Curry’s disappearing act (2-for-10 on 3s), or Thompson racking off 19 straight points in the third quarter that pulled Golden State within eight points after being down as much as 25 points, but on the tentative play by Green.

“This is the first time in my life I didn’t respond to critics,” said Green.

The Thunder have smacked the NBA champions in the mouth the last two games, hammering the Warriors by an average of 26.5 points per game in the two win at Oklahoma City.

Oklahoma City rung up 72 points in the first half for the second straight game on Golden State this postseason, joining the 1987 Showtime Lakers as the only team to score 72 points in the first half in back-to-back games in the playoffs.

For Golden State, the next 48 hours are going to be the most important 48 hours that the team has faced during the Steve Kerr era.

The team that won a regular season-best 73 games during the regular season, has looked awful the last two games of the Western Conference finals with the bad shot selections, turnovers, and poor rebounding.

But if winning championships were easy then everyone would be doing it, right?

The Warriors have face adversity all season, but the Thunder have made life extremely difficult for Golden State in this series.

Kerr and the coaching staff has to find answers for a beat up Warriors team that are on the ropes.

 

 

 

That’s Amaury’s News and Podcast: No fun being Green; Draymond escapes league suspension for famous groin kick

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photo credit totalprosports.com: Golden State Warriors Draymond Green kick Oklahoma City Thunder Steven Adams in groin

On That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary the groin kick of Steven Adams of the OKC Thunder by the Golden State Warriors Draymond Green was excused with a $25,000 fine and no league suspension. The Warriors are a super team there has been no better team in the last three years. Green was so frustrated and he went ballistic with that kick and he shouldn’t have done that he was lucky that he didn’t get suspended by the NBA.

Its frustration and the Warriors got so used to winning and the Thunder in the last game won by some 28 points it was a blow out they’re a pretty good team and they deserve some respect. We’ll see what happens and Green was just something like that happens in the heat of the moment in a passionate game and all that the team has been so good so long it’s hard to comprehend if your going to lose.

Amaury does the weekly podcast commentary at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

Thunder roll past Warriors in game 3

Published on by Michael MartinezLeave a comment

by Michael Martinez

After the Warriors 27 point blow out win in game 2, the momentum seemed to be in there in Golden State’s favor.

But the Oklahoma City Thunder made it seem like that game was in the very far past.

While the first quarter was close, OKC broke things open in the second quarter thanks  to Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. The big key for the Thunder in the game was that they were able to get to the free throw line and get easy points. In the second quarter alone, the Thunder went 17 of 18 from the charity stripe.

As everything went right for the Thunder, everything went abysmal for the Warriors who shot 22.6% from the field in the second quarter. Golden State also only made two three pointers in the quarter.

At the half, the Thunder led 72-45 and the third quarter was no different. Golden State showed a little more offensive life, but were still outscored by their opponent. The Thunder took their biggest lead in the game in the third quarter, going up by 41 points at one point in the game.

Golden State scored more than OKC in the fourth quarter, but it was a very lost cause. Oklahoma City blew out the defending world champs in dominate fashion. Durant and Westbrook both had huge games and the Thunder shot 50% from the field for the game.

Westbrook neared a triple double with 30 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds. Durant scored a game high 33 points and eight assists while going 10-15 from the field. The two All Stars played really well and collectively as a whole the Thunder played well.

Steph Curry had a team high for the Warriors with 24 points and Klay Thompson added 18. The Warriors just looked flat and were completely outplayed.

Draymond Green was not a factor in the game at all, which played a role in why the Warriors did poorly. Green also picked up a flagrant one foul after kicking Steven Adams in the groin, which he claims was inadvertent.

Whether it was or not, my guess is that Green will not pick up a suspension for the foul. In the end, the Thunder defeated Golden State, 133-105. OKC’s blowout victory was a point more than the Warriors game two win. After everybody thought the Warriors would have the momentum, Oklahoma City struck right back.

Can Durant and Westbrook continue their incredible play? With the Warriors down two games to one in the series, they will look to try to even the series on Tuesday at 6 p.m. on TNT.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: Anytime the Warriors lose they never fail to get fired up for next game

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AFP photo: Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry battles for the ball with the Cleveland Cavaliers LeBron James in Finals action on June 5, 2015 in game one at Oracle Arena in Oakland

On the Warriors podcast with David the Warriors who lost game one by six 108-102 on Monday night took the loss personally and they came back with a 118-91 and won with a vengeance led by the help of Stephen Curry who scored 15 points in two minutes to help electrify the club. After that loss no matter who the Warriors played they were going to crush them they take these loses personally.

You might remember last season with the Cleveland Cavaliers the W’s played in Cleveland a game after the Warriors got mauled by the Detroit Pistons and whatever the deal is when the Warriors lose a game they tend to regroup and refocus and they just come out hard and strong and they just seemed to really have a good game. It wasn’t really surprising that they were able to pull off a win in game two of this round.

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

 

Curry leads the Warriors to a 118-91 win over OKC in game 2

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
NBA: Playoffs-Oklahoma City Thunder at Golden State Warriors
Photo Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Basketball is a game of runs. The key run in game two of the NBA Western Conference Finals came in the third quarter when Golden State went on a 15-2 run. All 15 Warriors points were scored by Stephen Curry.

The Warriors showed why they have not lost back-to-back games in 2015-16 on Wednesday night. They played solid defense that set up their offense to do what few teams in the history of the NBA have been able to do as they won game two 118-91. The series is now tied at 1-1.

The Thunder were able to keep the game close and even took the lead late in the second quarter. The Warriors then ran off eight unanswered points and took 57-49 lead into the locker room at the half.

The third quarter is where the Warriors put the game away. Golden State outscored the Thunder 31-17 in the quarter led by Curry’s 17 points. Durant scored four points and Westbrook had just two points for OKC. Down 88-68 after three quarters, the Thunder did not give up but could not overcome the deficit in the final quarter.

Golden State

The Warriors shot 50.6-percent (43-for-85) for the game. They went 13-for-28 (46.4-percent) from beyond the 3-point arc. Golden State did struggle from the free throw line converting just 19-of-28 (67.9-percent) attempts.

Golden State out-rebounded Oklahoma City 45-36. The Warriors recorded 26 assists and turned the ball over just 12 times. The 12 turnovers resulted in just 12 points for the Thunder.

Stephen Curry was the Warriors leading scoring putting up 28 points in just 29-minutes on the floor. Curry was 5-for-8 from 3-point land and a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe.

Klay Thompson put up 15 points in the game. He did struggle shooting going just 5-for-17 from the field for the game.

Draymond Green scored 10 points, grabbed eight rebounds, dished out seven assists, blocked two shots and had one steal for the Warriors.

Andre Iguodala (14), Festus Ezeli (12), Marreese Speights (13) and Harrison Barnes (11) all scored in double figures for Golden State.

The Warriors did get a big scare in the first quarter when Stephen Curry went flying into the crowd and no one tried to break his fall. Curry developed a large knot on his right elbow which obviously did not affect his shooting later in the game.

Oklahoma City

The Thunder shot 44.9-percent (35-for-78) from the floor for the game. They were just 7-for-23 (30.4-percent) from behind the 3-point line. The Thunder did go 14-for-19 (73.7-percent) from the free throw line but they only went to the line 19 times.

OKC had 22 assists but turned the ball over 16 times. Those 16 turnovers resulted in 23 Golden State points.

The Thunder had just two players score in double figures.

Kevin Durant led all scorers with 29 points. Durant shot 11-for-18 from the floor but was just 2-for-4 from downtown.

Russell Westbrook put up 16 points for the Thunder on Wednesday night. Westbrook shot 5-for-14 overall and was just 1-for-5 from long distance. He was a perfect 5-for-5 at the free throw line.

What they said after the game

Stephen Curry on what got him going in the third quarter:

“The ball movement was a lot better tonight. There were certain situations on offense where we took advantage of some iso possessions. We got the ball movement side to side, set great screens for each other. We found easier shots. Thankfully they went down. That’s the way we’ve got to play going forward.”

Up next

The teams travel to Oklahoma City for game three on Sunday. Tip-off will be at 5:00 PDT.

 

The Thunder stuns the Dubs in Game One; Adams apologizes for calling Warriors Guards “quick little monkeys”

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by Jerry Feitelberg

photo espn.com: OKC Thunder’s Steven Adams stops for a post game interview following the Thunders’ defeat of Golden State at Oracle Arena

In a post game interview following the victory over the Golden State Warriors the Oklahoma City Thunder’s Steven Adams who is from New Zealand said that the Warrior guards are “quick little monkeys” when word of this spread and there was some complaint to outrage. Adams quickly apologized saying “It was a poor choice of words mate, I wasn’t thinking straight. I didn’t know it was going to offend anyone but I’m truly sorry. It was a poor choice of words. I was trying to describe how difficult it was chasing those guys around.” said Adams

The OKC Thunder stunned the Golden State Warriors 108-102 in Game One of the Western Conference Finals. The Dubs had a fourteen-point lead in the third quarter, but OKC shut down the Dubs offense to win. The Warriors have to win Game Two as game three and fours will be played in Oklahoma City. As it stands now, the Thunder owns home court advantage even if the Dubs win game two.

The Warriors won the first half. They were able to contain Russell Westbrook to three points for the first twenty-nine minutes of the game. The Dubs led 27-21 after the first quarter and 60-47. The taller Thunder erased the lead in the third quarter. The Thunder, the best rebounding team in the NBA, used their big men to control the boards. They also shut down the Warrior offense in the fourth quarter by holding them to just fourteen points. The Thunder outscored the Warriors 61-42 in the second half.

The story of the game can be shown in the production of the big men. The Thunder’s centers, Steve Adams, and Enes Kanter combined to score 24 points and had 18 rebounds. Andrew Bogut, Festus Ezeli, and Mo Speights combined for four points and six rebounds. Bogut did not score at all. He was questionable before the game as he had a groin injury. Hopefully, he will be at full strength Wednesday night.

Steph scored twenty-six. Klay added twenty-five and Draymond had twenty-three. The Thunder’s big three were Kevin Durant with twenty-six, Russell Westbrook had twenty-seven and Steve Adams knocked down sixteen.

Game two of the series will be Wednesday night at the Oracle Arena at 6 PM PT. There is no question that the game is a MUST win for Golden State.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: For W’s round three there’s Thunder in the house

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photo by pixgood.com: Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant

On the Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor the San Antonio Spurs (eliminated) and the Oklahoma City Thunder were always considered the two most viable teams to face the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals. Now the Thunder and the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals the two best teams will have to face each other. In the second round the Warriors had to play the Portland Trailblazers and won in five games.

With the Thunder and Spurs those two teams took it to the limit going seven games the Thunder in that series kind of exposed the Spurs weaknesses on that Spurs roster. Part of it is that the Thunder have Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant who are two of the best six players in the NBA.

David takes you through the latest with the updates in previewing the third round Western Conference Finals Series between Golden State and OKC listen below at http://www.sportsradioservice.com