Category: NBA

Sacramento Kings Friday game wrap: Kings make valiant effort but can’t hang on in 98-94 loss to Lakers

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Los Angeles Lakers guard Tyler Ennis, right, tries to take the ball from Sacramento Kings forward Anthony Tolliver during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Friday, April 7, 2017, in Los Angeles. The Lakers won 98-94. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

By Jessica Kwong

LOS ANGELES – The Sacramento Kings allowed the Los Angeles Lakers, two spots behind them in rankings and second to last in the western conference, to come up from behind and win Friday night’s game at Staples Center.

After Darren Collison’s triple with 14 seconds remaining, the Kings finished the quarter up 31-18, but that dwindled, and the close game got out of reach for Sacramento in the last minute.

Kings head coach Dave Joerger said what the team talked about postgame was “the consolation prize.”

“That we put ourselves in another game-ending situation, some things that you can learn,” Joerger said.

The Kings quickly blew a 13-point lead from the first quarter. A minute-and-a-half into the second quarter, Jordan Clarkson made a three-pointer to cut the lead to 31-25, forcing the Kings to call a timeout. The Lakers tied the game at 37 points when Julius Randle made two free throws with just under four minutes to go in the quarter.

Los Angeles lead by as many as four points before Collison passed the ball to Skal Labissiere who made a cutting dunk to put the Kings back up 45-44.

The third quarter was head-to-head, with neither team leading by more than five points and four lead changes. Sacramento managed to take the lead after George Papagiannis made an eight-foot turnaround hook shot. Then Collison made a running layup to put the Kings up 70-67, but Brandon Ingram made two free throws to put the Lakers within one point at the end of the quarter.

Sacramento again led by as many as five points in the fourth quarter, but the Lakers tied the game four times and sealed the win in the final minute.

D’Angelo Russell made a driving finger roll lay-up with 41 seconds remaining to give the Lakers up 93-92. Buddy Hield made a bad pass and Corey Brewer stole the ball, the Kings’ 23rd turnover. Langston Galloway fouled Brewer, who made both at the free throw line.

“Guys are trying to make plays. Most of them are not forced turnovers with us. Some of them are just losing the ball or a loose ball rolling off the foot or unforced turnovers,” Hield said. “We have to fix that and I think we’ll be fine.”

Hield made a driving lay-up with a second left in the game to 96-94, but fouled Russell, who made both at the line and give the Lakers a win by four points.

“They threw us around in the paint and got 16 offensive rebounds,” Joerger said. “Is it good for us to learn some of that stuff? Yes, because hopefully down the line that play that we have to draw up at the end is for us to get into the playoffs or the difference between getting fifth seed and seventh seed.”

The regular season for the past few weeks for the Kings has been about giving young players more time on the court and getting ready for a better season next year.

“That’s all this time is right now is gaining experience. Trying to compare through things like that. That’s big for our young guys and us making a step forward to making the playoffs for next year,” Cauley-Stein said. “You have to be able to execute those plays down the stretch. That’s part of learning it.”

The Kings return to the Golden 1 Center on Sunday to face the Houston Rockets. Tipoff is at 3 p.m.

 

The Warriors defeat the Suns 120-111, clinch home-court advantage throughout the playoffs

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by Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors, playing without defensive standouts Draymond Green and Andre, Iguodala, beat the Phoenix Suns 120-111 to clinch the best record in the Western Conference for the third straight season. The Warriors won their thirteenth game in a row and now own a 65-14 record. They play the next three games at home, and Kevin Durant will return to action Saturday night against the New Orleans Pelicans.

The Warriors behind Steph Curry’s torrid first period raced out to a 43-20 lead early in the second quarter. Stephy scored 23 points in the quarter, but the Suns were not willing to roll ver and play dead. The Suns got their act together and finished the first half trailing 58-52.

The Warriors behind Steph and Klay Thompson were able to keep the Dubs in the lead. The young Suns were not able to catch the Warriors, and the Dubs won the game.

Game Notes and Stats- Steph Curry had a fantastic game as he led the Dubs with 42 points, 11 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 steals. Klay Thompson finished with 22. None of the bench players made double-figures, but they all contributed to the win. James Michael McAdoo, Matt Barnes, JaVale McGee, and David West all scored 8 points. Patrick McCaw finished the night with nine.Scoring leaders for Phoenix were Devin Booker with 21, Tyler Ulis 20, Jared Dudley 19, and Alan Williams 16. Williams pulled down 17 rebounds for the Suns.

The Warriors shot 50% from the floor and made 13 3-point shots. Steph led the Dubs with 8 3-pointers. They held Phoenix to just 41.7%  shooting. On defense, the Warriors made 13 steals and had 9 blocks.

The Warriors meet the New Orleans Pelicans Saturday night at Oracle Arena.

 

 

Sacramento Kings podcast with Charlie O: From the first day of the Kings and Golden One Arena to this month it’s been a great experience

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Sacramento Kings guard Langston Galloway, left, shoots against Dallas Mavericks forward Dwight Powell during the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, April 4, 2017, in Sacramento, Calif. The Kings won 98-87. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

By Charlie O

SACRAMENTO–Time flies it just seems like yesterday when it was the opening of the Sacramento Kings new arena and the beginning of the season and now look were just a week away from the end of the season. I was just downstairs last night at Golden One Arena and it seems like old hat and were all kind of taking it for granted the amazing facility of Golden One as a whole and the professionalism of the Kings media relations staff. Now that were able to work in that great new arena. It’s wonderful to hear the feed back of other people coming into the building about what it’s like to come to Sacramento and cover a game.

The Kings know their not going to the playoffs so you want the best position in the draft lottery you want to get as many ping pong balls that you possibly can because you want to get that number one pick. Last night you have the Dallas Mavericks as a lottery pick team. You got the Kings in the lottery pick and everybody is resting everybody. The Kings rested multiple players last night and it didn’t feel right so somehow the Kings wound up losing it to the Mavs 98-87.

Charlie O does the Sacramento Kings podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

OMG! The Kings win second consecutive game downing the Mavericks 98-87

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

SACRAMENTO–Here is your 2:20 Game Wrap from the Kings 98-87 win over the Mavericks

It is that time of year when winning can be losing and losing can be winning

If you are an NBA team that is not headed to the Playoffs, there is very little incentive for your management to encourage your team to win games. The fact is – the more games your team loses – the better your chances are in the NBA Draft Lottery and the NBA Draft.

The 2017 NBA Draft has been labeled as one of the most talent-laden drafts in a decade or more. Non-playoff teams want to have the best possible selection positions as possible for this once in decade or more event. The question becomes how do you tell your players and fans that their team needs to lose games now to make things better in the future.

“Tanking” is a word that no one in NBA HQ wants to hear or acknowledge exists. The whole concept of a professional sports team doing less than its best to win a game is repugnant to sports fans everywhere, but yet, the current draft system totally encourages teams to “tank” after they are eliminated from Playoff contention.

Commissioner Adam Silver and his staff need to come up with a plan that rewards non-playoff teams for winning rather than losing as they head into the Draft Lottery. It would be better for the fans, players and the game overall. The game cannot have a system where winning is losing.

The Kings won the game because of their 3-point shooting and rebounding

The Kings shot an incredible 54.5-percent (12-for-22) from beyond the 3-point line on Tuesday night. Ben McLemore was a perfect 5-for-5 from downtown. Buddy Hield hit 4-of-7 from long range. Langston Galloway converted 2-of-4 three point attempts.

The Mavericks attempted 43 three-point shots. They were successful just 12 times(27.9-percent).

Sacramento outrebounded Dallas 50-39. The Kings grabbed 10 offensive rebounds and 40 on defense.

The Kings outscored the Mavs in the paint 38-30.

Ben Mac was on fire

Ben McLemore scored 11 points in the final 4:02 of the third quarter. He would go on to lead the Kings in scoring with 22 points. McLemore went 5-for-5 from beyond the 3-point arc.

Buddy Hield – the Western Conference Rookie of the Month – finished with 16 points. Four of his five field goals were 3-point baskets.

The Kings converted 12-of-22 (54.5-percent) from 3-point land in the game.

Game snapshot

  • Biggest lead: Kings 12 Mavericks 7
  • Lead changes in game 10
  • Number of times the game was tied 9

Coach Joerger’s final analysis of the game

Up next for the Kings

The Kings will have two days to rest and regroup before they have to fly to Southern California to face the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.

The Warriors win their 12th straight, pummel the Timberwolves 121-107

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by Jerry Feitelberg

Oakland- The Golden State Warriors continued their winnings ways as they beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 121-107 Tuesday night at Oracle Arena. The Warriors gained a measure of revenge as they lost to the T-Wolves on March 10th in Minneapolis. They were near the end of an 8-city thirteen-day road trip that covered 13,000 miles, and there was no question that the schedule was not kind to the Dubs. The tired players lost to Minnesota, and the next day, Steve Kerr rested four of his player much to the dismay of the NBA. However, since that loss, the Dubs have won every game including five in a row against playoff teams.

The task Tuesday night was to keep the Wolves best player, Karl-Anthony Towns under control. The Dubs defense has been fantastic during the winning streak, and it did the job again as the held Towns to just 21 points. The Warriors’ offense was led by Klay Thompson. Klay tallied 41 points and made 7 3-point shots. Steph finished with 19 and had 9 assists. Matt Barnes had 12, and Andre Iguodala finished with 11. The T-Wolves scorers were Andrew Wiggins with 24, Towns,21, Ricky Rubio15, and Shabazz Muhammad, coming off the bench, had a big night with 24 points and 11 rebounds.

The Dubs moved the ball well as they found the open man and recorded 33 assists and the defense had 9 steals and 7 blocks.

Game Notes and Stats- The Warriors set an NBA record Tuesday night with the win. The have won 204 games in the last three season to break the record set by the Chicago Bulls. The Dubs can extend the record as they have 4 games left, three at home. The Warriors magic number dropped to two. Any combination of Warrior wins, or San Antonio losses will give the home-court advantage to the Dubs throughout the playoffs. The Spurs didn’t help the Dubs as they beat Memphis to remain 2 games behind the Dubs in the loss column.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: W’s set for back to back games starting tonight; Curry does Carpool Karoke on Late Night

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celebmix.com photo: Stephen Curry does Carpool Karoke with James Corden on Late Night on CBS

By David Zizmor

OAKLAND–The Golden State Warriors host the Minnesota Timerberwolves, the Warriors have had trouble with the T-Wolves about a month ago it was around the time they were having their troubles in of February and March. Minnesota was one of the teams on that road trip that knocked the Warriors off and gave them some trouble in general. The Warriors were in the midst of that awful road trip they looked really tired the shots weren’t falling and the T-Wolves were playing a lot better.

That Minnesota team are a good team the T-Wolves have two young players who have made a difference and they’ve taken the time and experience to really master and as they progressed over the course of the season they’ve gotten better and better. They’re not to the point where their going to be a playoff team yet but going forward they have such good young talent, the players, the coach, that if these guys really start to put it together that’s a dangerous team.

Plus Carpool Karoke with Stephen Curry and Jim Corden on Late Night

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

The Warriors win their 11th in a row, gain revenge as they blast the Wizards by twenty-two points

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by Jerry Feitelberg

Oakland- Steph Curry showed the Wizards and the NBA why he was named the MVP the last two seasons. Steph scored 42 points as he led the Dubs to a 139-115 win over Washington. The win avenged the loss to the Wizards on February 28th. Kevin Durant was injured that night, The Dubs made sure that they did not lose Sunday night.

The Warriors outscored the Wizards in every quarter. The Wizards tied the game at 14 in the first quarter. They trailed the rest of the way. They came close to tieing the score late in the second quarter as they were down by three points 53-50. The Dubs met the challenge and were able to finish the first half with a 10-point lead 67-57.

The Warriors blazed away in the third quarter as they outscored the Wizards 39-31. Steph tossed in 15, and Klay Thompson added 12. The lead after three periods of play was 18. Steph and company did not relax as they continued the scoring onslaught and overwhelmed the Wizards 139-115.

Game Notes and stats- The Warriors won their 11th game in a row and improved to 63-14. There are five games left in the season, and four are at Oracle Arena. The Warriors magic number is 3 to clinch home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. Any combination of Warrior wins or Spurs losses will give them the crown.

Steph and Klay led the Dubs in scoring. Steph had 42 and Klay 23. Draymond Green recorded his 19th career triple-double. The Warrior bench was terrific. Shaun Livingston had a season-high 17 points. David West and JaVale McGee each had 10. Andre Iguodala played another terrific game and continues to wow his coach and the fans with his ability. The Warriors continue to excel on defense. They recorded 7 steals and 14 blocks. The Dubs held John Wall to just 15 points. The Warrior defense has been outstanding in the last five games, all against playoff teams, as they have shut down the leading scorer for each team in every one of those games. Bradley Beal and Bojan Bogdanovich led the Wizards with 20 points each.

The Warriors face the Minnesota Timberwolves Tuesday night at Oracle Arena. The Dubs want to avenge the 103-102 lost to Minnesota on March 10th.

The Kings hand the T-Wolves a 123-117 loss on the road in Minnesota

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

min kat
Two former Wildcats working against each other Photo NBAE

The Sacramento Kings faced an impossible task on Saturday night in Minneapolis. They had been blown out of the arena in New Orleans on Friday night and then had to make a long flight to the Twin Cities to play the second game of a back-to-back set on the road on Saturday versus the Timeberwolves.

Dealing with losses is something a young team has to do but wait … the Kings did not lose in Minnesota. They beat the Timberwolves 123-117 to up their record to 30-47 on the season which puts them just one game behind the 12th place T-Wolves in the Western Conference standings.

The loss puts Minnesota just one game behind the Kings for the seventh best odds in the NBA Lottery. I hate this time of year where winning can be bad and losing can be good for your team. Somehow that system needs to be tweaked – hello Adam Silver!

This was a game of extremes

min buckets
Hield drives on the basket Photo NBAE

The T-Wolves led by 13 after the first 12-minutes. They increased that lead to 16 at one point. The Kings recovered from the big leads and held a 15 point lead of their own at one point.

There were 13 lead changes in this game and it was tied nine times. Both teams fought hard in this contest. The key for Sacramento was outscoring Minnesota 37-28 in the second quarter and 36-26 in the third quarter.

The Kings out-shot the Timberwolves

min hield
Hield scored 22 for the Kings Photo NBAE

Sacramento finished with some very strong shooting stats. They shot 56.4-percent (44-for-78) from the floor overall. They were an incredible 11-for-19 (57.9-percent) from downtown.

Minnesota shot 39-for-87 (44.8-percent) from the field and just 36-percent (9-of-25) from behind the 3-point arc. The two teams tied with 48 points each in the paint.

The big difference was the bench scoring

The Kings bench outscored the Minnesota bench 66-26. It is very tough to stop a team who has a second unit that is that on fire.

Ty Lawson led the Kings bench scoring with 21 points. He was 5-for-8 from the floor and an incredible 11-for-14 from the charity stripe. Langston Galloway put up 17 points and hit 3-of-4 3-point shots. Arron Afflalo scored 16 points for the second unit converting 4-of-5 3-point tries.

Buckets and WCS lead the starters

min wcs
WCS ready to shoot Photo NBAE

Rookie Buddy Hield tied his season-high points total with 22 against Minnesota. He went 9-for-15 from the floor and hit 4-of-6 from downtown. Hield played just over 34-minutes in the game.

Willie Cauley-Stein posted another double-double scoring 15 points and posting 10 rebounds. He shot 5-for-9 from the floor and hit 5-of-7 free throws. WCS also had three assists and two steals.

Minnesota’s big two did their best to beat the Kings

Andrew Wiggins scored a game-high 32 points. He hit 13-of-20 shots from the floor and sank 4-of-7 3-point attempts. Interestingly, Wiggins converted just 2-of-6 free throws. He also had three assists and one blocked shot.

Karl-Anthony Towns sank 8-of-17 shots from the field for 26 points. He was just 1-for-5 from beyond the 3-point arc. He excelled from the charity stripe by sinking 9-of-10 from the line. Towns posted a double-double game by hauling in 11 rebounds.

The Kings return to the friendly confines of G1C

Sacramento – who has won two of their last three games – will return to action on Tuesday night when they will host the Dallas Mavericks.

Boogie gets his revenge against the Kings leading the Pelicans to a 117-89 victory

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by Charlie O. Mallonee

Sacramento Kings v New Orleans Pelicans
DeMarcus Cousins dominates versus the Kings Photo: NBAE

Former Kings All-Star center DeMarcus “Boogie” Cousins did not want to leave Sacramento. In fact not long before the big trade, Cousins said he was looking forward to having his jersey being retired and hanging in the rafters at the Golden 1 Center.

Since being traded to New Orleans, Cousins has been quoted making statements about loyalty – or lack there of – in some not so veiled jabs at his former team. So, everyone who follows the NBA was ready to see the man they call Boogie go off against his former team when they met in NOLA on Friday night. The big man did not disappoint.

Cousins put up 37 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as he led the Pelicans to a 117-89 thrashing of his old team. He also had four assists, three steals and two blocked shots. Cousins teammates made sure their new superstar was able to be in a position to publically embarrass his former team – especially the ownership and front office.

In a post-game interview with the Kings Radio Network, Jordan Crawford of the Pelicans said that he and his teammates were doing everything they could do to help Cousins win the game and dominate his old team. They were successful in their efforts.

Before all Kings fans start tearing their clothes and sitting in ash-heaps in mourning, they need to realize that Cousins presence in New Orleans has not been the difference maker that many people thought it would be when the trade went down.

The “Pels” (33-43) have been on a bit of a roll as they have won eight of their last 11 games and have pulled within 4.5 games of the eighth-place Portland Trail Blazers for the final playoff slot in the Western Conference. With just six games remaining, New Orleans would need a miracle to make the playoffs and turn the first-round draft selection they sent to the Kings into a non-Lottery pick.

Yes, Boogie had a big night. But, it was a short-term success because in the long-run the “revenge win” will mean nothing in big picture of the NBA. That is one of the reasons Cousins in no longer with the Kings. There were too many short-term victories and not enough long-term successes.

How did the former Pelicans do against their former team?

nolahield
Buddy Hield working against the his former team the Pelicans Photo: NBAE

Buddy “Buckets” Hield scored 13 points shooting 6-for-9 from the floor. He was 1-for-4 from beyond the 3-point line. Hield hauled in eight rebounds, dished out three assists and had one blocked shot.

Tyreke Evans made the start for his old team against his old team – that gets confusing really fast. Evans recorded 11 points going 3-for-9 from the floor including two 3-point baskets. Evans played just 19-minutes in the game.

Langston Galloway played almost 21-minutes but really struggled on offense. He shot just 1-for-7 from the field. His one score was a 3-point bucket.

How did the other young Kings do in the game?

Skal Labissiere played just over 36-minutes on Friday night and scored 13 points. He also pulled down eight rebounds. The rookie did not have his best shooting night going 5-for-16 from the floor. Labissiere did not attempt a 3-point shot which is an oddity for him. He converted 3-of-6 from the free throw line.

nola wcs
Willie Cauley-Stein had a double-double game vs the Pelicans Photo: NBAE

Second-year man Willie Cauley-Stein recorded 11 points in 34-minutes of playing time. “WCS” made it a double-double game by posting 14 rebounds. Cauley-Stein is taking advantage his opportunities to start and play big minutes.

Ben Mac leads the Kings in scoring

nola mac
Ben McLemore led the Kings in scoring versus the Pelicans Photo: NBAE

Ben McLemore led the scoring attack for Sacramento recording 15 points against the Pelicans. He shot 6-for-16 from floor, added eight rebounds and distributed four assists in his 25-minutes of playing time. McLemore is an improving player under the guidance of Dave Joerger and his staff.

Up next for the Kings

After the game, the Kings headed for the airport and took off for a long flight from the “Crescent City” to the “Twin Cities” to face the Timberwolves. This is the type of brutal back-to-back scheduling that NBA has to eliminate if coaches are to be persuaded to stop sitting stars for rest.

The Warriors, behind a strong defensive performance, come back to defeat the Houston Rockets Friday night at Oracle Arena

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by Jerry Feitelberg

Oakland- The Warriors won their 10th game in a row as they came back to subdue the Houston Rockets and win 107-98. The Warriors improved to 62-14 and have five of the next six games at home. The magic number to clinch home-court advantage throughout the playoffs is four. Any combination of Warrior wins or Spurs losses will give the Dubs the best record in the NBA.

The Warriors started strong as they jumped out to an early 10-2 lead. The Rockets went on a 13-2 run to take the lead 15-12. The Warriors offense went south as they scored just 11 points in the last 9 and 1/2 minutes of play in the first quarter. The Rockets led 45-33 about halfway through the second quarter. At this point, Warrior coach Steve Kerr inserted big JaVale McGee into the game and did he ever impact the game. McGee was instant offense as he scored thirteen points and led the Warriors on a 10-2 run at the end of the first half. Andre Iguodala had another big night, and he was able to hit a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded to keep the Warriors close. The Rockets owned a 61-56 lead after 24 minutes of play. JaVale led the Dubs with 13, Klay Thompson had 10, and Andre tallied 8. Steph Curry was held to just 5 points. Eric Gordon had 10 for Houston and the Dubs defense held James Harden to just seven.

The teams played a very competitive third quarter. The Warriors outscored the Rockets 27-24 but could not take the lead. They tied at 78, but the Rockets were able to regain the lead 85-78. The Warriors were able to score the last five points of the quarter to trail 85-83.

The Dubs continued to play excellent defense, and they shut down the high-powered Houston offense. The Rockets were ahead 92-88 when the Dubs went on a 12-0 run to take the lead for good. The Rockets failed to score a single point for over 6 and 1/2 minutes. Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala made steals, and blocked shots as Steph Curry finally found his three-point shot. Steph also made a two-point shot as the 24-second buzzer sounded. Steph’s bucket sealed the win for the Warriors.

Game Notes and Stats- JaVale McGee had a big night and made a huge impact. McGee played just 11 minutes but knocked down 13 points, and had 4 rebounds and 5 blocked shots. Steph Curry finished with 24 points. Curry scored 14 in the 3rd quarter. Steph had 5 assists and 7 rebounds. Klay Thompson finished with 20. Andre Iguodala continued to elevate his game. His line was 14 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Ian Clark had seven, and he made a three-point shot with the scored tied at 92 to give the Warriors their first lead since early in the first period.  Draymond Green finished the night with 6 points, 8 assists, 6 boards, and 3 blocks. The Warriors shot 45.3% from the floor and held the Rockets to 37%.  On defense, the Warriors had 10 steals and 14 blocks. The Rockets’ James Harden led his team with 17, Trevor Ariza 15, Eric Gordon 15, Patrick Beverly 11. Lou Williams, coming off the bench for Houston scored 13.

The Warriors, in the last 4 games, beat Memphis, Houston(twice), and San Antonio. Steve Kerr said, ” it has been a great week and a great couple of weeks.” He commented this about the defense: ” our defense has been great”  Kerr said this about JaVale McGee” JaVale had one stretch in the second quarter. It was big.” It was really huge as he got the Dubs offense going as Houston was having their way against the Dubs at that point in the game.

The Warriors next game will be at Oracle Arena Sunday against the Washington Wizards. Game time will be at 5 pm. The Dubs lost to Washington on February 28th. Kevin Durant was injured that night and the Warriors will be looking to inflict a measure of revenge on the Wizards Sunday night.