Warriors beat Thunder
2016.02.07 – The Golden State Warriors have now won nine games in a row after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-108 at Oracle Arena on Saturday night.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 26 points and 10 assists. Draymond Green stuffed the stat sheet with nine points, 14 rebounds and six assists, while Harrison Barnes and Klay Thompson each chipped in 19 and 18 points, respectively.
With the win, the Warriors improve to 46-4 on the season.
The game had a wild beginning, as Oklahoma City got off to a 9-0 start before the Warriors responded by scoring the next six points of the game. Harrison Barnes scored all nine of his first quarter points within the first four-and-a-half minutes of the frame, the final three of which pulled Golden State within 16-13 by way of a three-pointer.
The Thunder would add four more points to their advantage, but then Stephen Curry began to get going. After Russell Westbrook fouled him in the process of shooting a three-pointer, Curry sank all three free throws to begin a stretch in which he’d score 10 of the Warriors’ next 14 points to pull Golden State within 29-27 with 3:22 left in the frame.
Exactly one minute later, Leandro Barbosa gave the Dubs their first lead of the night at 31-29. After Kevin Durant tied the game, Barbosa and Draymond Green would each score in the final minute to give the Warriors a 36-31 lead heading into the second quarter.
The Warriors opened up the second frame on a 6-2 run, as Barnes’ hook shot put Golden State up 42-33 with 8:56 remaining in the half.
Westbrook’s layup would cut the deficit to seven points at the 7:37 mark, but then Golden State began to take over. Klay Thompson sank a jumper on the ensuing possession, beginning a stretch in which the Warriors outscored the Thunder 14-1 over the next three minutes to take a 60-40 lead. At that point, Golden State had nearly doubled up Oklahoma City since the opening minutes of the game, outscoring the Thunder 60-31 since Oklahoma City’s 9-0 surge.
The Thunder, however, would not go away quietly. They’d outscore Golden State 19-11 over the next four minutes to cut the deficit to 12 points. Curry’s step-back jumper with 5.9 seconds remaining sent the game into halftime with the Warriors leading 73-59. It was the ninth time this season that the Warriors have scored at least 70 points in the first half; no other team in the NBA has done so more than once.
As hot as the Warriors were in the first half, they certainly cooled off in the third quarter, which allowed Oklahoma City to creep back into the game.
Trailing by the same 14-point deficit 10 minutes into the second half, the Thunder outscored Golden State 8-2 over the final 90 seconds to pull within single digits heading into the fourth and final quarter, down 91-83. Golden State’s 18 points in the frame matched a season-low for the third quarter, and for awhile there, it seemed as if they might end up regretting it.
After Oklahoma City chipped off two points from the deficit in the opening three minutes, Shaun Livingston became the only member of the Warriors who could find the bottom of the net, allowing the Thunder’s team-oriented attack to narrow in on Golden State’s lead.
Livingston would score seven-consecutive points for the Warriors, but over that span, the Thunder outscored Golden State 10-7, pulling within 100-97 with 5:22 left in regulation. Barnes drained a three-pointer on the next possession, but Oklahoma City would not go away quietly.
Kevin Durant would score five-straight Thunder points over the next minute to pull within 103-102, and Enes Kanter’s fadeaway jumper pulled Oklahoma City even at 104-104 with 3:36 left to play.
The Warriors, would not be denied. The Dubs immediately responded with a 6-0 run, and after Durant made two free throws to pull the Thunder within four points with less than a minute left, Curry sank a jumper and then assisted on Andre Iguodala’s breakaway dunk to ice the game away.
With the 116-108 victory, the Warriors improve to 46-4 on the season. They’ll look to keep the momentum going when they play their next and final home game of the month on Tuesday night against the visting Houston Rockets.
Read more at: Golden State Warriors Media Services / More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA
JEstevez@EMIsportsCentral.com
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