Tag: Phoenix Suns

Golden State Warriors Klay Thompson driving to the basket gets the ball knocked out of his hands by the Phoenix Suns Devin Booker (1) at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Thu Mar 30, 2022 (AP News photo)

Suns Edge Warriors In a Shootout – 107-103

By Barbara Mason

Wednesday night the Golden State Warriors (48-29) took on the best team in the NBA, the Phoenix Suns (62-14).

With Stephen Curry still on the sidelines the Suns were highly favored. The way this game started in the opening quarter all signs pointed toward another Sun road win. They jumped out to a quick 12-2 start. The starting roster for the Suns is a litany of stars. Chris Paul, Devon Booker, Jae Crowder, Mikal Bridges and Deandre Ayton. A formidable starting lineup. There was no stopping the number one team in the NBA as the Suns won in a close game 107-103 at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Thursday night.

After trailing for much of the first quarter the Warriors started to heat up and after the opening quarter the Suns held a slim 32-29 lead.

Both teams would trade the lead in the second quarter. The Suns continued to lead at the half 50-48. Despite having 14 turnovers in the first half the Warriors were hanging in this game holding the Suns to 36% shooting and only 19% shooting three’s. They had to maintain that defense in the second half.

Much of the Warriors success was due to the shooting of Jordan Poole who had 20 points in the first half. Andrew Wiggins had ten points and Golden State was waiting on Klay Thompson to come to the party. He finished the half with six points and no rebounds with one assist.

The third quarter was a wild wild west shootout with the Warriors taking a seven point lead that quickly dissolved. The Suns had a slim 77-75 lead after three. The Warriors had continued the great defense that they played with in the first half.

The fourth quarter saw a series of ties in the early minutes. The Warriors had 20 turnovers and too many empty possessions. Despite that Golden State refused to go away. With 7:30 left in the game the score was again tied at 86.

The Suns would take a 96-93 lead with 2:59 on the clock. With the great defense that Golden State had played with in this game, they needed their offense to really step up in the final minutes. Draymond Green had key play after key play in this game and was a big reason that the Warriors were still hanging around with every chance to take this game. At two minutes what else, a tie game.

The Suns had a two point lead at the half, a two point lead after three quarters and this game was up for grabs. The Warriors led 101-100 with 39.8 seconds left in this game. The Warriors needed a stop and a little offense and this game could be a wrap.

Golden State came up just short losing by four points. Empty possessions and 20 turnovers spelled disaster for the Warriors. The Warriors did so many great things in this game and it was a tough loss for them.

Poole finished the game with 38 points and this game was a great improvement over their last road trip. This was a great effort for the Warriors and they really looked like contenders in the upcoming playoffs.

The Warriors will have a few days to rest up before taking on the Utah Jazz Saturday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 PM.

Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry (30) and Phoenix Suns Devon Booker (1) battled on Wed Dec 25, 2021 for the NBA Christmas Day special at Footprint Arena in Phoenix (AP News photo)

On the Warriors podcast with Barbara:

#1 The Golden State Warriors Draymond Green is out for Covid 19 protocols as announced by the team today with Green out of the line up how do you see that impacting the team as they prepare for the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night at Chase Center. Andrew Wiggins, Damion Lee, and Jordan Poole all out for Covid 19 protocols with Green.

#2 The Golden State Warriors (27-6) got a Christmas Day 116-107 win over the Phoenix Suns (26-6) at the Footprint Center in Phoenix on Wednesday. This is the second time the Warriors have defeated the Suns this season.

#3 The win puts the Warriors on top of the Suns for the NBA lead by a game with the Warriors having one more win than the Suns in the win column.

#4 Warriors leading scorer Stephen Curry had 33 points against the Suns coming after he scored 46 against the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday. The Warriors battling one of the best teams in the NBA needed all the help that Curry and the offense could provide in beating the Sun by nine points.

#5 Otto Porter Jr scored seven crucial points in the last few moments of the game he got a hot hand and it was the difference in his 19 point game to help Golden State win it.

#6 The Denver Nuggets (15-15) who are playing .500 ball winning five of their last ten games before their game Sunday in Los Angeles against the Clippers will tip off against the Warriors on Tuesday at Chase Center, Barbara tell us how you see that match up?

Join Barbara for the Warrior podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) gets between Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton (22) and guard Cameron Payne to take a shot at Footprint Center in Phoenix on Sat Dec 25, 2021 (AP News photo)

Battle of the Titans Favors Golden State 116-107

By Barbara Mason

Otto Porter Jr. and Gary Payton II took the court in the absence of Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole to spur their team on to a 116-107 win over the Phoenix Suns.

Once again the Golden State Warriors (27-6) took the court on Christmas Day against the Phoenix Suns (26-56). It is the second year that they have played on the holiday and Head Coach Steve Kerr is not pleased with this schedule. He is confident however that this will not be the case next year but it is not at all fair. With the two top dogs in the league matching up it is all about the ratings.

Again the Warriors will be short-handed with Andrew Wiggins, Damian Lee and Jordan Poole still on covid protocol giving the Suns a definite defensive advantage.

The Warriors took the lead after the first quarter 33-27 but were outplayed in the second quarter by quite a margin, ten points. Golden State trailed at the half 62-58.

After two quarters the Suns had four of their starters in double digits but not a lot from their bench with only six points but it was enough to hold a narrow lead.

Guard Stephen Curry led the Warriors with double digits but it was the bench that kept the team in this game. Mid-way through the third quarter they had scored 20 points. The third quarter was a crazy physical affair and the Warriors began to build a slight lead with 4:36 left in the quarter 77-71. The Suns came roaring back and as the third quarter came to an end the score was tied at 84.

As the fourth quarter got underway one thing was certain, this game would have a wild finish. It was fast and physical as the Golden State bench continued to shine with 34 points after six minutes into the final quarter. The depth on this team is amazing and in the absence of Wiggins, Poole, Porter Jr. and Gary Payton II took care of business.

The Warriors won the game 116-107. Curry finished with 33 points, five from downtown. Otto Porter Jr. finished with a season high 19 points and Payton II with 14 points. Draymond Green was rock solid with seven rebounds, ten assists and eight points. Again we saw a great game from rookie Jonathan Kuminga with 12 points.

The Suns fought hard to the end with Chris Paul scoring 21 points. This was an elite matchup between two elite teams. The fact that the Warriors were short-handed was testament to the depth on Golden State right now.

Next Tuesday the Warriors will be home at Chase Center to take on the Denver Nuggets. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 PM.

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots against Phoenix Suns forward Jae Crowder (99) at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Fri Dec 3, 2021 (AP News photo)

Warriors Beat Phoenix By Double Digits 118-96

By Barbara Mason

The Golden State Warriors looked like a different team in tonights game against the Phoenix Suns. Gary Payton II and Juan Toscano-Anderson came off the bench and put this game away in an incredible showing by the entire team 118-96.

Friday night the Golden State Warriors (19-3) took on the Phoenix Suns (19-4) after having lost a close one in Phoenix Tuesday. That night the Warriors had their season lows in practically every category you could imagine.

Stephen Curry had a very frustrating game Tuesday night. We all know that Curry is an absolute student of the game and he has spent a lot of time these past few days watching game film from that Tuesday game. We also know that it is rare for Curry to have back to back disappointing games.

A lot of credit has to go to the Suns for a beautifully executed game that night but even when Golden State had open shots they were just not falling. The Warrior turnovers were horrific tuesday night with 22 and the Suns jumped all over those miscues.

In tonight’s game the Warriors have to protect the ball and stuff the three point shooting by the Suns. As expected the first quarter was a close one although the Warriors turned up the heat as the clock wound down leading 28-21. This was a great start for Golden State.

The Warriors kept up the pressure in the second quarter but was letting Deandre Ayton get loose which as we have all seen is a recipe for disaster. In the quarter Mikal Bridges had to leave the floor for the locker room with an apparent hand issue.

The Suns had already lost Devin Booker for this game and so this was of great concern to Phoenix. The three’s were falling for the Warriors and the tempo of this game was far different from last Tuesdays game. Curry was four of seven from downtown and the Warriors were shooting 51% but they were missing some great looks and fouling far too much.

The Suns were only shooting 37 % but they were in this game thanks to the 20 free throws that the Warriors threw their way. The 12 point lead that the Warriors had in the quarter was whittled to three points 51-48 at the half.

The Warriors extended their lead in the third quarter leading 8t0-68. This game was a far cry from last Tuesdays game. The turnovers were still there although not as plentiful and not sloppy. Curry already had 23 points and Wiggins was having a great game with 16 points. The Warriors had to hang on one more quarter to break the Suns winning streak.

Golden State kept the pressure on in the final quarter. The Warriors continued to put up double digit leads but the Suns had had the answer through three quarters fighting back to within striking distance. Every single Warrior was fighting for this game. It was raining three’s and the defense was extraordinary for Golden State.

When you see Chris Paul angry and rattled you know you’ve got a good thing going. The Warriors had pushed the lead to twenty and Golden State was going to end this incredible winning streak. The final was 118-96.

What an amazing bounce back game for Golden State. Eight players on the roster had shot at least one three and five of them had double digits for the game. In the last game the Suns held Curry to 25% on threes and in this game he was 6 of 11.

Everything that went wrong tuesday night went right tonight. Curry finished with 23, Wiggins with 19 and Poole had 14 points. Off the bench Juan Toscano-Anderson had a great game with 17 points and Gary Payton II had 19 points.

The Warriors will be back on the court tomorrow to take on the (7-13) San Antonio Spurs. Tipoff is 5:30 PM.

The Phoenix Suns Devon Booker (1) snuffs the Golden State Warriors Andrew Wiggins (right) at the Footprint Center in Phoenix Tue Nov 30, 2021 (AP News photo)

Suns Top the Warriors In A Thriller 104-96

By Barbara Mason

In the absence of Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, Chris Paul and Jae Crowder picked up the slack to power the Suns to a brilliant win over the Golden State Warriors 104-96.

Tuesday night fans got to enjoy the two best shooting teams in the NBA today in a battle of the Titans; the Golden State Warriors (18-3) and the Phoenix Suns (18-3) in Phoenix.

The Suns got a quick start in the the first quarter of this game leading by a slim margin for most of the quarter. The Suns were hurting the Warriors inside but it was the three point shooting by Golden State that pushed them into the lead 35-31 after one quarter.

It was so impressive in the previous game against the Clippers when Steph Curry shot 13 points in the fourth quarter but it was equally exciting in this game with Jordan Poole shooting 16 points in the first quarter.

The quick start that the Warriors were looking for kept this game close and it would be a dog fight to the end. In the second quarter the pace really picked up and after leading by nine points the Warriors offense began to cool off. With less than one minutes left in the half the game was tied at 53. At the half the Suns had regained the lead 56-54.

The first half was a very frustrating one for Stephen Curry. The Suns had contained him relentlessly and you could see the annoyance etched all over his face. It was a disappointing game so far for Curry who was two of eight from downtown and only had eight points.

Jordan Poole finished the half with 18 points which really got the team going. Off the bench another great performance came from Otto Porter Jr bombing three’s, (he was four of six from Downtown) and scoring 12 points.

The bad news for the Suns was a hamstring strain suffered by the hot Devon Booker who would miss the second half. How much time he was going to miss was still to be determined by the severity of the injury.

The one thing that really stood out for the Warriors were the number of offensive rebounds they had. They just needed to get their rhythm back and avoid getting stagnant like they did in the final minutes of the first half. The turnovers as well had to be cleaned up.

The flow for the Suns was great compared to a stagnant and indecisive Warriors team. It was not the Warrior offense that we are used to seeing although it was good enough to remain within striking distance after three quarters trailing 80-78. Throughout the game the Suns were keeping the Warriors uncomfortable and off balance.

With under four minutes left the Warriors were in trouble trailing 99-92. The Warriors were shooting 42 percent and Curry still could not get going. The Warriors had 23 turnovers which drained the life out them. The Suns were executing a brilliant game plan. This was the first time this season that the Warriors were kept under a hundred points in a game.

The Suns did a tremendous job slowing the Warriors and forcing 23 turnovers. They contained Curry who finished with 13 point unable to get on track at all in this game. This was a heavy weight fight between two giants. While there were a number of things that hurt the Warriors the primary culprit was the turnovers. It’s very hard to win when you are constantly turning the ball over especially against a team like the Suns.

Friday night the Warriors will have another chance to level the score when they will again play the Suns and try to break this amazing winning streak that Phoenix has going. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 at Chase Center.