Tag: Steph Curry

The Warriors and Denver Nuggets play a very fast paced game in W’s win 127-119

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by Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors and the Denver Nuggets played a very entertaining and fast-paced game Monday night at Oracle Arena. The Nuggets, behind the great play of their three big men Nikola Jokic, Jusuf Nurkic, and Danilo Gallinari, stayed close to the Dubs for most of the game. The Warriors ha six players in double figures and Draymond Green had his second triple-double of the season. Ian Clark was hot in the first half, and Shaun Livingston made three big baskets down the stretch to doom the Nuggets  Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Kevin Durant all scored more than twenty points in the game and the Warriors are now 12-0 for the season when that happens. As a result, the Warriors were able to down a very determined Denver Nugget team 127-119.

Both teams played a very high scoring first quarter as evidenced by the fact that each team shot over 60% from the floor, The lead changed hands several times in the quarter, but the Dubs finished the first 12 minutes of play leading 35-33.  Steph, Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, Zaza Pachulia and Ian Clark led the team in scoring. The Dubs increased the lead to four at the half when KD hit a 3-point shot as the buzzer sounded. The Warriors couldn’t put Denver into its dust. The Dubs tried, but the Nuggets kept coming back. They Nuggets tied the game at 51, but the Warriors were able to go up by six 62-56. The Nuggets closed the gap to just one 65-64, but Durant’s 3-pointer at the buzzer put the Warriors ahead by 4. Kevin Durant led the Dubs with 13.

Zaza Pachulia added 9, Klay had 12 and Steph tallied 11. Ian Clark, coming off the bench scored 12. Clark is getting more playing time, and his confidence has soared as he has become an instant offense for Golden State when he comes into the game. Jokic had 8 for Denver. Greg Harris had 7, and Wilson Chandler knocked down 6. Gallinari, who is six feet 10 inches tall scored 11. Jusuf Nurkic and Will Barton, coming off the bench, tallied nine apiece for the Nuggets.

The Dubs, who usually go on a tear in the third quarter to put away their opponent, were not able to do that to the Nuggets. They did outscore the Nuggets by five to increase the lead to 9 at the end of the period, but it was not easy. The Dubs were leading by 6 points 86-80 when Steph Curry scored 2 buckets and 2 free throws. Draymond Green also made 2 free throws, and the Dubs enjoyed a 14-point lead which was the biggest lead of the night. The Nuggets scored the next 5 points and trailed by just nine heading into the fourth quarter.

In the fourth quarter, the Warriors led by 15 late in the quarter. Shaun Livingston made three big buckets to help propel the Dubs to that advantage. The Nuggets kept coming back. With the score 121-111, the Warriors failed to score on three trips to the basket. The Nuggets closed the gap to six. The key play to seal the win was made by Draymond Green. Draymond not only fought for an offensive rebound but was able to make a layup to put the Warriors up by eight. Each team scored another basket, and the Warriors won again 127-119.

Game notes- the Warriors big tree of Klay Thompson, Steph Curry had 25, 22, and 21 points respectively. The Warriors had good ball movement again as they tallied 33 assists in the game. Denver also moved the ball well, and they recorded 33 assists too. The Warriors shot 52.6% from the floor and held Denver to 47.5%. The Dubs made 11 3-point shots in 15 attempts while Denver was 9-for-35 in that department. The Warriors turned the ball over 13 times which pleased coach Steve Kerr. Denver also took care of the ball as the committed just 14 turnovers in the game.  The Warriors scored 22 fast break points and had 56 points in the paint.

Denver had 60 points in the paint for the game. The Warrior defense had trouble with Denver’s big men, but Steve Kerr said the “we started defending well the last five minutes of the second quarter.  Draymond Green scored 15 points to go along with 13 assists and 10 rebounds for his second consecutive game with a triple-double. Green was a force on the floor all night, and he made two huge rebounds that helped secure the win for Golden State. Jokic and Chandler led Denver with 21 points each. Gallinari had 19, Nurkic 15, Barton 14, and Harris 11.

After the game, Kerr said that “Denver changed their style a little bit.” Coach Mike Malone, a former Warrior assistant coach, and former Sacramento Kings head coach, removed Nurkic from the starting lineup and has him coming off the bench. Chandler replaced him in the starting lineup. The Warrior’s bench player scored 33 points in the game, and Kerr said ” the bench was the key to the game.” they had to be good as the Denver bench outscored them 39-33.

The Warriors won their 30th game of the season and are now 30-5. Denver, a team that had won 5 of their last 8, falls to 14-19.

The Warriors resume play Wednesday night against the Portland Trailblazers at Oracle Arena. Game time will be at 7:30 pm. It will be the third meeting of the year between the two teams, and the Blazers will be trying to avenge the 45  point loss the last time the played the Dubs in Oakland on December 17th.

 

 

 

 

 

The Warriors bounce back, take down the Toronto Raptors

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By Jerry Feitelberg

Still smarting after a one-point loss at the hands of the reigning NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers on Christmas Day, the Golden State Warriors (28-6) returned home to face the second-best team in the East, the Toronto Raptors (22-9). Trying to establish themselves as an elite team, the Raptors trailed by as few as five points in the fourth quarter, but the Warriors’ shot-blocking defense proved too much for Toronto in a 121-111 Golden State win.

The Warriors ran the Raptors off the court in the first quarter. The Warriors scored 42 points and held Toronto to just 17. Klay Thompson led the Dubs with 12, but Steph Curry and Kevin Durant also contributed. Toronto won the second quarter as they closed the gap to just five trailing 56-51. The Raptors outscored the Dubs 21-6 in the first eight minutes of play but Golden State was able to get back on track as they increased the lead to 17 at the end of the first half 72-55. The Warriors shot a blistering 74.4% from the field in the half. Toronto was held to just 37%. Toronto, however, took fifteen more shots than the Dubs to stay close. Demar DeRozan, Kyle Lowry, and Terrence Ross, off the bench, scored 49 of Toronto’s  55 points.

The teams played even in the third quarter as Golden State maintained its 17 point lead. The play of the game came when Steph Curry made a behind the back pass to Klay Thompson. Thompson then made a three-point shot from the corner that lit up the crowd. The fourth quarter was an entirely different story. The Raptors played defense and held the Warriors to just 17 points in the quarter. The Dubs led Cleveland by 14, and they blew the lead and lost. The Dubs must have been thinking it was deja vu all over again when the woke up to play great defense and regrouped after Toronto closed to within five 114-109 with 3:01 left in the game. The Dubs held them at bay and won by ten 121-111.

Game Notes- The star of the night was Kevin Durant. Durant scored 22 points but was a monster on defense as he had 17 rebounds and five blocked shots. Draymond Green had a double-double with 14 points and 10 assists to go along with six rebounds and 2 blocked shots. Klay had 21 and Steph led the team with 28. Steph had 7 assists and 7 rebounds. Ian Clark with 9, Andre Iguodala added 11 and Zaza Pachulia knocked down 8. The Warriors had 33 assists in the game to go along with 4 steals and 10 blocks. The one negative was the 20 turnovers that allowed the Raptors to stay close. The Raptors were led by DeMar DeRozan’s 29, Kyle Lowry’s 27 points and 11 assists, DeMarre Carroll’s 13 and Terrence Ross’ 24. The Warriors extended their NBA record to 119 consecutive games without back to back losses.

The Warriors improve to 28-5 while Toronto drops to 22-9. After the game, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said he thought this about the game:”between the turnovers and offensive rebounds, it was a strange first half and a strange game overall.” He said “there was a lot of energy to start the game’ and that “we needed it as we couldn’t sustain the pace.” Rhen asked about the 20 turnovers, Kerr said”twenty was too many. We gotta clean that up.” He thought Steph was great:”he had the ball quite a bit. Had a great game.” However, Kerr was not happy that the game nearly got out of hand and said “we had a lot of bad possessions down the stretch. It could have been worse but as someone once said: “all’s well that ends well.”

The Warriors play the Dallas Mavericks Friday night at Oracle Arena. Former Warriors Harrison Barnes and Andrew Bogut will be aiming to upset their ex-mates on Friday. Game time will be at 7:30 pm.

The two best teams slug it out on Christmas day in Cleveland. It’s a lump of coal for the Dubs

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Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James, right, hugs Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry before an NBA basketball game, Sunday, Dec. 25, 2016, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

by Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors had this game marked on their calendar since last June 19th when they lost game 7 and the NBA Championship to the Cavaliers. Losing a game in a regular season hurts but not as much as in the playoffs. The Dubs really wanted to beat Cleveland Sunday and it looked like that was a strong possibility as the Dubs led by 14 94-80 early in the fourth quarter. The Cavs went on a 14-1 run to trail by three. The Dubs were just not able to put the game away. Steph Curry made a three-point shot to put them ahead 108105 with 1:14 left in the game. The Dubs did not score again and Cleveland, behind Kyrie Irving’s bucket with 3.4 seconds left, won the game for Cleveland 109-108.

The game was a thriller from start to finish. The Dubs led most of the way, but the Cavs kept coming back. The Dubs’ biggest lead until the fourth quarter was 49-38 in the second quarter, but the Cavs went on a 12-1 run and trailed by three 55-52 at the half. Draymond Green was called for two fouls in the first three minutes of the first quarter. He also was called for his 7th technical of the year when he complained to the refs that he was kicked by a Cleveland player. They didn’t listen, and Draymond had to sit out the entire first quarter.

Kevin Durant led the Warrior attack with twelve in the first 12 minutes of play. LeBron James had 6, Kevin Love 7, and Kyrie Irving 5 to lead Cleveland. The Dubs led by two 27-25 at the end of the quarter.  Klay Thompson started to score in the second quarter. Klay hit 2 3-point shots, and Steph had one.

The Dubs led by 11, but Cleveland went on a 12-1 run to tie the game at 50. Zaza Pachulia scored a deuce and KD hit a three. Cleveland score and the half ended with the Warriors up by three. KD Led the Dubs with 17, Klay had 13 and Steph was held to 6 points by the Cavaliers’ DeAndre Liggins. Lebron James, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love and Channing Frye were the leading scorers for the Cavs. The Dubs shot 46.2% from the floor, and they held the Cavs to 33.3%. However, the Cavs had more rebounds, especially on offense, and took more shots and were able to stay close.

The Warriors continued to hold the lead in the third quarter. Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, Klay Thompson all played well in the quarter. The Cavs’ LeBron James scored 16, but the Dubs were able to increase the lead to 87-80 at the end of the third quarter. The Dubs went on a 7-0 run to start the final stanza and were up by 14 when things started going south.

The Cavs continued to chip away at the lead and finally tied the game at 105 late in the quarter. Curry hit a three but, perhaps the key play was a Klay Thompson 3-point shot that was waved off by the refs as the 24-second shot clock expired. Had the shot counted the Dubs would have won but as mentioned earlier, they lost.

Game Notes- The Dubs fall to 27-5 while Cleveland improves to 23-6. Kevin Durant was fantastic for Golden State with 36 points, 3 assists, and 15 rebounds. Klay Thompson added 24. Draymond had 16 point, 4 assists, and 4 rebounds. Steph Curry was held to 15. He did make 2  3-poin shots, and the one he made late in the game almost won the Dubs the game.The Warriors committed 19 turnovers while Cleveland did better holding on to the ball as they lost it just 12 times.

The Warriors return home to face the Toronto Raptors Wednesday night at Oracle Arena. Game time will be at 7:30 pm.

 

The Warriors and Pistons go at it tooth and nail in Detroit. Golden State hangs on to win

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by Jerry Feitelberg

Detroit- The Warriors and Pistons duked it out Friday night at the Palace of Auburn Hills.The game was highly competitive and thrilling from start to finish as the Dubs won their seventh game in a row 119-113 over the Detroit Pistons.

Last year in Detroit, the Pistons beat the Dubs and were hoping to upset the Warriors’ apple cart once again. Didn’t happen as the Warriors were just a little bit better on offense and defense in the last two minutes of the game and were able to record the win. Warrior defensive star, Draymond Green, played just 24 hours after returning to the Bay Area to be with his newborn son on Thursday.

The Warriors led by one 33-32 after the first quarter. The biggest lead was seven, but Detroit went on a 9-0 run and took the lead 24-23. JaVale McGee scored four and Steph Curry had two 3-point shots in the stanza. The Pistons outscored Golden State 27-24 in the second quarter. The Warriors were ahead by four 47-43 when they suddenly couldn’t make a field goal. They went over four minutes in the quarter without a bucket and that allowed the Pistons to regain the lead. The Dubs trailed by four when Steph hit another 3-pointer to trail by one 52-51, but Detroit would come back, and score and the half ended with Detroit in the lead by two points 59-57.

The Warriors, who usually own the third quarter, did not break the game open. They did outscore Detroit by six and led 88-84 at the end of the quarter, but the outcome of the game was still in doubt. JaVale McGee was one of the key players for the Dubs in the quarter. McGee scored nine of his fifteen points in the quarter, and that helped Golden State regain the lead.

The Pistons, at one point in the quarter, fell behind by eight but they would not fold as they came back to trail by four at the close of three. The Pistons and Dubs slugged it out in the final quarter. The Dubs fell behind 91-90 but went ahead by three 102-99. Detroit clawed back and led 104-102. Steph Curry made a layup to tie the game at 104.

Steph made a three to make it 107-14, but Detroit scored the next four points and led 108-107. Kevin Durant hit a three to regain the lead 110-108. Detroit came back and tied the game at 110 with just one minute and forty seconds left to play. The Dubs took the lead for good when Draymond Green made a slam as he was all alone on the weak side and was able to walk in uncontested.

Klay Thompson made a bucket to put the Dubs up 114-110 with 53.2 seconds left in the contest. Detroit scored a deuce, but Klay hit a three and the Warriors led by five 117-112 with 22.1 seconds left. The Warriors could have iced the game then and there but they turned the ball over on an inbound pass the bounced off Kevin Durant’s hands. The Dubs fouled Andre Drummond, and he made just one free throw. The Pistons fouled Steph, and he iced the game with two free throws with just 2 seconds to play. Dubs win 119-113

Game Notes- The Warriors played a very sloppy game as they committed twenty-three turnovers that nearly cost them the game. Detroit scored thirty-three points off the turnovers. The Dubs, however, did play well on defense. They had 41 rebounds, nine steals, and two blocked shots. They also moved the ball well as they had another game with over 30 assists(35 to be exact).

Kevin Durant led the Dubs in scoring with 32 points in 31 minutes of action. Durant had three assists and 8 boards. Draymond Green had another double-double. Green had 12 assists, ten rebounds, 1 blocked shot and just five points in Friday’s game. Steph had 25 points, 8 assists, and 3 rebounds. Klay Thompson had seventeen, but he had two key buckets in the fourth quarter.

JaVale McGee, continuing to improve, had a season-high 15 points. Zaza Pachulia, who had a season-high 15 points against Brooklyn, scored seven and had 7 boards. Ian Clark, David West had six each while Shaun Livingston and Andre Iguodala each had 4. Golden State shot a blistering 55.8% from the floor. The Pistons shot well, too, as they shot 50.6% Leading scoring for Detroit was Tobias Harris, coming off the bench, with 26. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 25. Reggie Jackson knocked down 17, and big Andre Drummond added 15. The Warriors are now 27-4 for the year and Detroit drops to 14-18.

After the game, Steve Kerr had this to say about the team’s performance:”I think there were some good things at the end.” He was not pleased about the “23 turnovers and a lot of careless defense.” He thought the Warriors performance at the end of the game “was a good way to finish but not a good performance overall.”

The Warriors are on their way to Cleveland to face the Cavaliers for the first time since game 7 of the NBA Finals last June. The Cavaliers will be without J.R.Smith who injured his wrist and will be out for a while. Nonetheless, the Warriors will have to still contend with LeBron James, Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving and company.  The game will be played on Christmas Day at 11:30 am.

The Warriors shine on defense beat the Jazz by 30 104-74

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by Jerry Feitelberg

The game between the Dubs and the Utah Jazz was billed as a contest between a great offense and a great defense. The Warriors have the best offense and the Jazz the best defense in the NBA. The Jazz held the Memphis Grizzlies to just 73 the other night were 11-2 since November 21st. The Jazz came from 25 down when they played the Warriors earlier in Utah, and they almost beat them, and they were missing four starters. However, after a very, very slow start, the Warriors were able to stop the Jazz offense cold and beat them by thirty 104-74. The Jazz style of play which is to use as much of the 24-second clock as possible and to prevent the Dubs from using the fast break seemed to favor them in the early going. Every time the Warriors appeared to be getting control of the game, Utah coach Quin Snyder would call a timeout. The strategy worked for a while, but once the Warriors opened up a double-digit lead, it became impossible for the Jazz to catch up.

Neither team started well in the first quarter. No one could hit a bucket. The Dubs led 4-2 with just about half the first quarter played. The Warriors played better in the last six minutes of the quarter as Steph Curry led the offense with seven points and the Warriors held the Jazz to just fifteen as the quarter ended with Golden State leading 19-15.

The Warriors owned the second quarter. They continued to play great defense as they caused the Jazz to commit 13 turnovers in the half and the Dubs had seven steals. The game was still close 26-21 when the Dubs put it into gear and outscored the Jazz 29-10 to end the second quarter ahead by 24 points 55-31. Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Steph Curry were all in double figures.

The Warriors put the game away in the third quarter. The Big Four of Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Steph Curry, and Draymond Green were just too much for the Jazz. Backup center JaVale McGee scored two buckets on lobs from Draymond and Patrick McCaw. McGee made a layup for another bucket, and he made a great pass to Draymond to pick up an assist. Steph hit a couple of threes, but the big play was a dunk by Draymond after he made a steal at the other end of the court. The Dubs led 82-54 at the end of three.

Kevin Durant played a few minutes of the fourth quarter but Steve Kerr removed him from the game, and the reserves went the rest of the way. The Warriors committed just four turnovers in the first three-quarters of play, but the bench got a little sloppy and made six in the fourth quarter. It didn’t matter as the Jazz were too far behind to catch up as the Warrior defense was superb and the Warriors were able to put the game in the win column 104-74.

Game Notes- The Warriors, with the win, improved the season record to 25-4 while the Jazz drops to 18-11. Steph Curry had 25 points, KD followed with 23, Klay Thompson had 17 and 5 boards. Draymond Green had another double-double as he had 15 points to go along with 4 assists and eleven rebounds. JaVale McGee scored eight and had seven rebounds off the bench. Rudy Gobert was the only Jazz starter in double figures with eleven. Gobert was a monster on the boards as he pulled down sixteen. Joe Johnson, off the bench, led Utah with 14. Joe Ingles and Trey Lyles each had 11.

The Warriors go East for a three-game road trip. They meet the Brooklyn Nets in Brooklyn Thursday night at 4:30 pm. They travel to Detroit for another back-to-back game Friday night against the Pistons. Game time will be at 4:30 pm. The Warriors then travel to face the LeBron James, Kevin Love and the rest of the Cleveland Cavaliers for the first time since the devastating loss in Game & at the Oracle Arena last June. The game will be on Christmas Day and will be on national television. This is a game that should be on every fan’s calendar.Game time will be at 11:30 am.

 

 

The Warriors hold off the Utah Jazz to win again

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by Jerry Feitelberg

Salt Lake City- The Golden State Warriors, playing the third game in four days and the second in the last two days, downed the Utah Jazz 106-99. The Jazz, playing with five players out with injuries, fell behind early and trailed by nineteen at the half, rallied to outplay the Dubs in the second half but fell short. The Jazz love to slow the pace of the game and try to get opposing teams out of rhythm. The Dubs, on the other hand, run the court and enjoy it when they get good ball movement and get players open for shots.

The Warriors played their style in the first half. The Jazz scored the first two buckets of the game to lead 4-0. TheWarriors then went on an amazing 26-1 run to lead 35-17 after one-quarter. Steph Curry made two 3-pointers early in the run. The Jazz played the Dubs even in the second quarter. Steph finished the half with 17, and Draymond Green was second in scoring with 12. He also made two 3-point shots and had eight rebounds. Patrick McCaw, coming off the bench added ten as the Dubs increased the advantage to nineteen 65-46.

The second half was an entirely different story. The Jazz held the Dubs scoreless for the first three minutes of the third quarter. The Dubs were out of rhythm, and that allowed the Jazz to get back into the game. They outscored the Dubs by seven in the period and closed the gap to just twelve 82-70 after three-quarters. The Jazz refused to go away and the Warriors behind Kevin Durant’s strong play in the second half were able to play just well enough to win the game. Dubs win 106-99

Game Notes- With the win, the Warriors improve to 20-3 while Utah falls to 14-10. Shaun Livingstone had the night off. Backup guards Patrick McCaw, and Ian Clark played well. McCaw had ten points all in the first half and Clark nailed two 3-point shots in the fourth quarter that helped seal the win for Golden State. Kevin Durant, who scored just four points in the first half, finished the game with twenty-one points. Durant also recorded eleven rebounds to give him a double-double. Draymond Green also had a double-double. Green scored thirteen and had ten boards. Steph Curry led the team with twenty-six. Klay Thompson scored ten. The Warriors, loaded with talent, do not have to rely on one or two players to carry the load. The entire team makes contributions both on offense as well as defense. In Thursday’s game, Andre Iguodala, Kevon Looney, JaVale McGee, David West, Ian Clark, and Patrick McCaw all made significant contributions. Draymond Green hurt his ankle late in the third quarter. Green was helped off the court and went to the dressing room for treatment. Draymond returned to the bench in the fourth quarter and returned to action.

Joe Johnson with 13, Shelvin Mack(19), Rudy Gobert(20), and Joe Ingles(21) carried the attack for Utah. Steve Kerr said this about the Jazz:”give them a lot of credit.They are a well-coached team.”  Kerr said the Dubs”didn’t play our best.The first quarter was great, intensely fantastic.” He also thought Patrick McCaw had a nice game.

The Warriors travel to Memphis for game three of the five-game road trip on Saturday. Game time will be at 4 pm. After the game, the Dubs are off to Minneapolis to face the Timberwolves on Sunday.

 

 

The Warriors steamroll the Pacers behind Klay Thompson’s 60-point game

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by Jerry Feitelberg

The Golden State Warriors crushed the Indiana Pacers 142-106 Monday night at Oracle Arena. The Dubs were wary about the Pacers. The Pacers upset the Clippers in Los Angeles Sunday night and were hoping to even the season series with the Dubs. Paul George, C.J.Miles, and Myles Turner did not play when the two teams met earlier in Indiana.

The story of the game was Klay Thompson. He scored a career-high sixty points in twenty-nine minutes of play. He sat out the entire fourth quarter as the Dubs were just too powerful for the Pacers. The Dubs were magnificent on offense, but they excelled on defense, too. The Warriors led by eleven 38-27 after the first quarter. The game was even for about the first five minutes of play, but Klay was on fire. He scored seventeen points in the quarter. The Dubs were rebounding and getting the ball out on the fast break. Draymond Green and Steph Curry combined for twelve assists in the quarter. Klay stayed hot in the second period. He scored twenty-three and the Warriors went on a 17-2 run to gain a thirty-point lead 80-50 at the end of the half. They had twenty-five assists and just two turnovers in the half. They had twenty-three fast break points and scored 36 in the paint. Durant had sixteen and Steph ten. They shot 59% from the field. Thompson had 40 of the Dubs 80 points in the half. It was an amazing performance.

The Warriors did not let up in the third quarter. Thompson stayed hot as he scored twenty points.  He made three three-point shots and the crowd went ballistic. He received a standing ovation and the crowd kept chanting Klay, Klay, Klay. His sixty points was a new career high for him. The lead at the end of the quarter was 116-83. Coach Steve Kerr kept Klay, Steph, KD, Draymond, and Zaza on the bench for the entire fourth quarter. The second unit of Ian Clark, Patrick McCaw, Kevon Looney, JaVale McGee, and James Michael McAdoo finished out the game for the Dubs.

Game Notes- The Warriors’ record improved to 18-3 with the win. The Dubs hit the road and face the Los Angeles Clippers Wednesday night in LA. They play the Utah Jazz on Thursday. They do not play Friday but they have another back-to-back  set with Memphis on Saturday and then Minnesota on Sunday.

Kevin Durant scored twenty and had eight rebounds. Steph Curry scored just thirteen but he had eleven assists and he thoroughly enjoyed Klay’s performance as he was jumping up and down off the bench watching his teammate’s magnificent performance. Draymond Green had ten assists. Paul George scored twenty-one for the Pacers. Thaddeus Young and Jeff Teague scored 10 and 16 respectively.

The Dubs shot 52% from the floor. They outrebounded the Pacers 63-45 and they had twelve steals and twelve blocked shots as they overpowered the Pacers.

After the game, as Klay as being interviewed, Klay remarked that he “felt great obviously. It was a lot of fun.” At that point, Steph Curry dropped a bag of ice on his head. The interviewer asked him “did it cool you off?'” Klay remarked: “no, I’m still hot.” Was he ever. Later, Coach Kerr said this about not letting Klay play the fourth quarter:”we were up and hand the game in hand. Had no thought of playing him in the quarter.” When asked about his team he said this:”the team takes a lot of joy in each others success.” He was also quite pleased with the way the way the team moved the ball and did not commit many turnovers:” we kept our turnovers way down. Don’t give up the easy stuff when you take care of the ball.” The Dubs committed eleven turnovers in the game but seven of them came in the fourth quarter when the second unit was in the game.

Next game is Wednesday night in Los Angeles against the Clippers at the Staples Center. First meeting of the year between the two bitter rivals. Game time is at 7:30 pm.

 

The Houston Rockets subdue the Dubs in double overtime 132-127

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AP photo:Montezl Harrell of the Houston Rockets (right) loses the ball as Kevin Durant (left) of the Golden State Warriors defends in the first half as the Warriors drop an double overtime performance to the Houston Rockets at Oracle Arena on Wednesday night

by Jerry Feitelberg

Oakland-The Houston Rockets snapped the Golden State Warriors twelve-game winning streak Thursday night at Oracle Arena in double overtime by a score of 132-27. The game was fiecely contested by both teams all  night. Neither team would give an inch. The Rockets had seven players finish the night in double figures. The Dubs had five. There were five technical fouls called in the game. Draymond Green played his heart out, but he was called for a flagrant foul one in the second overtime period that, unfortunately, turned out to be the key play that doomed the Dubs. Green was going up for a layup when he was fouled by James Harden. As Draymond was going down backward to the floor, his right leg came up and hit Harden in the face. To many, it appeared to be inadvertent, but after a long review, the refs charged him with the foul.Draymond was awarded two free throws, and he made one. Harden made both, and the Rockets retained possession. The Rockets went up by four 128-124. They increased the lead to six, and that was the ballgame.

The game went back and forth all night. The Rockets biggest lead of the night came in the first period when they had a 13-4 lead. The game was tied at four when the Rockets went on a 9-0 run. The Dubs came back and tied the game at twenty. The Dubst hen took the lead by four 24-20, but it didn’t last long. The Rockets tied  it at twenty-five Houston then went ahead and finished the first quarter with a 32-30 lead.

The Dubs tied it at 32 on a Kevin Durant bucket. Houston regained the lead, but the Dubs came back and led by three 46-43. The Rockets continued to match the Dubs offensively and regained the lead 51-48. They finished the first half with a five -point lead 64-59.  James Harden, Ryan Anderson, and Eric Gordon led the Rockets attack. Durant with nineteen, Draymond Green had ten points, six assists, and six rebounds. Andre Iguodala added nine. Steph Curry, saddled, with three fouls, had just five points in eleven plus minutes in  the first half. Klay Thompson did not have a good shooting night, and he finished the first twenty-four minutes with seven points. The Rockets scored ten second-chance points while Golden State had zero. That was the most telling stat of the first half.

The Rockets continued to answer every Warrior challenge in the third quarter. Steph got it going as he made a couple of clutch three-point shots. Houston refused to bend. The Dubs outscored the Rockets by just one point and trailed by four 86-82 after three. The Dubs closed the gap to one 86-85 when KD hit a three to start the quarter. The Rockets increased the lead to seven 97-90.The Dubs started a comeback. They tied Houston at 97 behind two key buckets by Draymond.  Neither team could get separation from the other. They tied the score four times before the buzzer ended the game tied at 113 in regulation.

Steph Curry scored the Warriors’first six points of the first overtime session. He made a reverse layup and was fouled on the play. He made the free throw. Houston came back with a 2-point bucket to make it 116-115. Steph hit a three. Harden countered with a three of his own to trail 119-118. KD responded to put the Dubs up by three. The Rockets scored the next five points to take the lead 123-121. The Dubs tied it again. The Rockets had the ball for the last twenty-five second but the Dubs defense held and the Rockets committed a 24-second violation and the first OT period ended with the score tied.

Steph Curry, saddled with five personal fouls, committed an offensive foul and had to leave the game early in the second OT. Harden made a three to put the Rockets up 126-123. It was at this point that Harden fouled Draymond as he was going in for a layup. Both players were called for a foul. Green made one but Harden made his two and Houston had pssossion of the ball. That was the game. The Dubs could not catch up and they lost by five 132-127.

Game notes- With the loss, the Dubs fall to 16-3 while Houston improves to 12-7. James Harden had his fourth triple-double of the season as he had 29 points, 13 assists, and 14 rebounds. Ryan Anderson had 29 and Eric Gordon added 23, coming off the bench. Four other rockets were in double figures.  Kevin Durant had a double-double with 39 points and 13 boards. Draymond also had a double-double. He scored 20, had nine assists and 15 rebounds. Curry scored 28, Iguodala ten and Klay fifteen.There were 12ties in the game. The Rockets won the offensive rebound battle as they scored twenty-eigh second chance points.

The Warriors hope to get back on the winning track Saturday night againstthe Phoenix Suns. It won’t be easy as the Suns seem to match up well agains the Warriors and have played the Dubs hard in the two meeting so far this year. The game will be at the Oracle arena at 7:30 pm.

 

The Warriors win their eleventh in a row, down the Minnesota Timberwolves

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By Jerry Feitelberg

Oakland- The Golden State Warriors beat the young and talented Minnesota Timberwolves Saturday night at the Oracle Arena by a score of 115-102. The Warriors played the game without Draymond Green and Ian Clark. Green and Clark suffered injuries on the same play Friday night in Los Angeles. Coach Steve Kerr said that when he told Draymond that he would not play, Draymond “did not fight me on it. If someone is banged up, we give him the night off, no matter who he is.” Kerr gave Kevon Looney the first start of his relatively short NBA career. Looney, in a career-high nineteen minutes of play, scored six points, had two assists and three rebounds. Without Green in the lineup, the Dubs had to find a way to defend the Wolves Big Three. Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine, and Rookie-of-the-Year Karl-Anthony Towns are all just twenty-one years old, and these three can play basketball. Those three kept the Wolves in the game, but the Warriors prevailed. Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson led the Warriors in scoring. Durant was magnificent on defense as he had ten rebounds and a career-high six blocked shots. Steph had eight boards and six assists. Zaza Pachulia, Javon McGee, and David West all made their presence felt in the game.

The Warriors started the game well. They had a 21-13 lead until Minnesota went on a thirteen-three run. The first quarter ended with the Wolves leading 33-30. Karl-Anthony Towns (12), Andrew Wiggins(9), and Zach LaVine(9) scored thirty of the thirty-three Wolves’ points in the quarter. The Wolves were 62.5% from the floor. The Dubs weren’t bad as they shot 60%, but they trailed by three.

The Warriors’ and the Wolves were cold to start the second quarter. The Dubs went four minutes without scoring a point. The Timberwolves weren’t much better. They scored just three to take a 36-30 lead with eight minutes left. The Dubs behind Durant, Curry, Looney, and Pachulia managed to put Golden State in the lead. The Warrior defense shut down the Minnesota offense and the Dubs outscored them 26-25 to take an eight-point lead (56-48) at the half. KD(18), Steph(11), and Klay(11) were the high scorers for Golden State.

The Warriors increased the lead to seventeen at the end of three as Steph continued to make three-point shots. However, Minnesota came to life in the fourth quarter and closed the gap to eight but Steph, Klay, and Durant made clutch baskets when needed and they took down the Timberwolves 115-102.

Game Notes- The Warriors won their eleventh straight game to improve to 15-2. The Wolves fall to 5-11. Steph led the Dubs with 34 to go along with six assists and eight rebounds. Klay Thompson had twenty-three and six boards. Durant had a double-double with 28 points and ten rebounds. Durant had a career-high six blocked shots. The Warriors streak of ten consecutive games with 30 or more assists ended. The Dubs made just twenty-five in the contest. Zach LaVine led the Wolves with 31. Towns had 18 and Wiggins added 18.

The Warriors meet the Atlanta Hawks Monday night at the Oracle Arena at 7:30 pm.

The Warriors crush the Pacers to win the final game of the four-game roadtrip

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by Jerry Feitelberg

Indianapolis- The Golden State Warriors, led by Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, and Draymond Green, beat the Indiana Pacers 120-83 Monday night at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Pacers, depleted by injuries, were no match for the Dubs. The Warriors were hot in the first quarter as they went on a 7-0 run early and slowly but surely increased the lead to 34-21 at the end of the first twelve minutes of play. Klay Thompson scored ten, including two 3-point shots) in the quarter. JaVale McGee made two nice buckets in relief of Zaza Pachulia. The Warriors increased the lead to nineteen at the end of the first half. Steph Curry found his shot and make a couple of three-pointers Klay scored six more points to end the half with sixteen. Kevin Durant had twelve. Draymond Green was all over the court in the first half. He scored six points to go along with seven assists, four rebounds, and two blocked shots. In the half, the Dubs had thirty-five rebounds, eighteen assists, four steals and five blocked shots as they held the Pacer offense to just 35.2% from the floor.

In the second half, the Warriors continued to have no trouble with the Pacers. The Pacers did score twenty-nine points in the third quarter, but the Dubs countered with thirty-nine to take a commanding twenty-nine point lead at the end of three-quarters. The Dubs in the lead 100-71. Coach Steve Kerr removed his starters for the entire fourth quarter. The Dubs, nevertheless, held the Pacers to just twelve points and won the game 120-83.

Game Notes- The Dubs won their eighth game in a row to improve to 12-2 for the year. The Pacers fell to 7-8. The Dubs had 31 assists for the eighth game in a row, too. The Warriors outrebounded the Pacers 70 to 56, and the defense had nine steals and ten blocks in the game. After the game, Steph Curry remarked that “we’re getting better” No kidding, Steph. He also said the guys were ready to go home” it’s a little too cold out here”. Steve Kerr said the game was dedicated to young Brody Stephens who is battling cancer. Steph made a 75 foot 3-point shot just after the buzzer sounded ending the first half and Kerr said that shot was for Brodie. Kerr said the team appears to be getting “better and better” He also thought is was a “great trip to go undefeated.” He mentioned that the team “took care of the ball and defended well.” he also said this about Draymond Green: ” I’m thrilled with Draymond’s play on both ends of the court.” Klay Thompson led the Dubs with 25 points. Steph had 22 while Durant scored just fourteen, Durant, however, had 11 rebounds and six assists plus a couple of blocked shots. Andre Iguodala pitched in with nine, Ian Clark ten and David West seven. Rodney Stuckey scored 21 for the Pacers. Jeff Teague added 11 and Thaddeus Young knocked down 14 for the hometown Pacers.

The Dubs return home to face the Los Angeles Lakers at Oracle Arena Wednesday night at 7:30p PM. The Dubs will attempt to avenge the loss to the Lakers earlier this season in LA. Luke Walton’s Lakers would love nothing more than to come to Oracle and send the Warriors down to defeat.