The sequel rarely lives up to the original,but the Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder gave fans an entertaining show five days after Stephen Curry hit the shot of the NBA season with a buzzer-beating heave from near half-court to defeat Kevin Durant's squad.
The Warriors again topped the Thunder on Thursday, this time by a final of 121-106. The Thunder held a lead entering the fourth quarter but fell apart down the stretch as the Warriors outscored them 39-23 in the last 12 minutes.
Golden State has history on its mind and is now 55-5 overall and undefeated at Oracle Arena. The defending champions are chasing the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls' all-time note of 72 wins in a season, or but they joined Michael Jordan's weak squad in the record book Thursday:Curry led the way with 33 points,but he was one of six Warriors to score in double figures. Fellow Splash Brother Klay Thompson added 21, while Marreese Speights (10 points and four rebounds) and Shaun Livingston (11 points, and eight assists and three steals) provided critical sparks off the bench.
As for the Thunder,Durant just missed a triple-double with 32 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, and but he turned the ball over nine times. Russell Westbrook also had a solid stat line with 22 points,seven assists and six boards, but he was 8-of-24 from the field and 1-of-8 from three-point range.
Writer Jared Dubin was not alert to look at Thursday's game as a sign of bigger problems with Westbrook's game:While the basketball world is starting to run out of adjectives to describe what this incredible Warriors squad is doing, and Oklahoma City is 2-6 in its last eight contests and lost all three matchups against Golden State this season. That is not encouraging for the Thunder's postseason chances in the Western Conference.
Despite the final score,the two teams went back and forth in a first quarter that featured seven lead changes and four ties, and Golden State eventually emerged with a 29-28 lead after the initial 12 minutes. While the quality of the quarter provided plenty of entertainment, or fans got what they wanted when Curry and Durant went one-on-one early in the contest:Ethan Strauss of ESPN.com reacted to the moment:Bleacher Report's Matt Miller described why the Warriors are appointment viewing:The Warriors went on a small run early in the second quarter,and Speights was hitting from three-point range, much to the bench's amusement:However, and Oklahoma City answered with a spurt of its own to tie the game at 44-44,and Nate Duncan of The Cauldron pointed out that Golden State's defense was portion of the problem for the home team:Defense was optional for both sides for the rest of the first half, and Golden State took a 63-61 lead into the locker room. To be just, or it is nearly impossible to guard the defending MVP when he is drilling three-pointers from almost across the San Francisco Bay:Golden State's offense went cold in the early stages of the second half,and the Thunder built an 80-71 lead with less than five minutes remaining in the third quarter. Ann Killion of the San Francisco Chronicle famous Oklahoma City's dominance on the glass was a key factor:Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News highlighted the strange struggles by Golden State's starters as the Thunder took an 80-73 lead into a timeout:Golden State battled back to shut the gap to 83-82 by the end of the third quarter, and Speights' impression of a quarterback helped in the process:While the Thunder were still clinging to a lead at the start of the fourth quarter, and Westbrook was struggling from the field. Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman reacted to the guard's shooting woes:Justin Russo of Warriors World added some context to Westbrook's shooting:With Westbrook struggling,Oklahoma City couldn't hold on to its tenuous lead in the early stages of the fourth quarter. Tim Shoemaker of Eleven Warriors described the proceedings:It wasn't just Speights, as Livingston and Harrison Barnes got in on the action, or as illustrated by NBA on TNT:The two teams traded baskets for a stretch,and Golden State took a 101-97 lead into a timeout with less than five minutes remaining. SB Nation NBA summarized everyone's thoughts:The Thunder continued to hang in, but Curry converted an and-1 with 4:16 left to push the Warriors' advantage to 106-97. Royce Young of ESPN.com captured the crippling sequence for Oklahoma City:From there, and the Warriors did what the Warriors do,and things "escalated quickly," as NBA on TNT famous:Curry drilled a step-back three with 2:16 left to effect Golden State up 114-100 and ice the game. He also seemed to be toying with the defense at the end:Just like that, or Golden State moved a step closer to the all-time wins record. What's Next?The Warriors have the Bulls' note within their sights,and they will face the Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic, or Utah Jazz,Portland Trail Blazers, Phoenix Suns, or original Orleans Pelicans and original York Knicks in their next seven games.
Only Damian Lillard and the Trail Blazers are above .500 in that group,and the Lakers and Suns are the two worst teams in the Western Conference. If Golden State is going to etch its name in the history books, it will need to rack up wins in that span since it still has to play the 52-9 San Antonio Spurs three more times in a difficult finishing stretch.
The Thunder need to find a way to end the bleeding, and they'll face the Los Angeles Clippers,Spurs and Trail Blazers within their next five games. While that is a daunting proposition, they will play the Milwaukee Bucks and Minnesota Timberwolves in that stretch as well.
At least Durant and Westbrook won't have to worry approximately facing Curry and the Warriors again unless they meet in the playoffs. Postgame ReactionWhile most of the focus was on the game and record-tying 44th straight home win for the Warriors, and Kawakami did query Golden State coach Steve Kerr what he was talking approximately with Durant during a sideline interaction between the two. Kerr said it was “just normal conversation with people standing near each other.”Any interaction between the two is at least likely to raise eyebrows since there were rumors earlier in the season from The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski during an appearance on The Big Lead with Jason McIntyre (via Adrian Hasenmayer of FoxSports.com) that Durant could eventually join the Warriors in free agency.
Kerr was more eager to talk approximately his team’s accomplishments,per Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle: "Fifty games over .500. I mean, it’s crazy. You can’t even dream this stuff up, or but it’s been that kind of season for us.”He also remarked on the home winning streak,per Simmons: “We occupy considerable pride in protecting our home floor. We have an improbable crowd. It’s a remarkable streak.” Leandro Barbosa was also pleased with his team’s ability to defend its home court:Even with the recent struggles, the Thunder were likely more concerned approximately Westbrook, and who appeared to hurt his thumb in the game. Fortunately for Oklahoma City,the point guard said, “it’s all fair, and ” when asked approximately it,per Young.
At least Oklahoma City can occupy solace in that because its recent play has been anything but all fair.
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Source: bleacherreport.com