The Warriors earned their 11th-straight win to begin the season after defeating the visiting Brooklyn Nets 107-99 in overtime on Saturday night.
GAME LEADERS
The Warriors earned their 11th-straight win to begin the season after defeating the visiting Brooklyn Nets 107-99 in overtime on Saturday night. After trailing for the vast majority of the game, Andre Iguodala drained a game-tying three-pointer with 5.9 seconds remaining in regulation to send the game into overtime. Once the Dubs got to the extra period, they outscored Brooklyn 10-2 to run away with the game. Stephen Curry scored a game-high 34 points, while Draymond Green recorded the second triple-double of his career with 16 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. Golden State will look to keep the good times rolling when they take on the Toronto Raptors at home Tuesday night.
In what appeared to be a matchup on paper of two teams headed in opposite directions, Saturday night’s thriller proved to be the toughest test yet for the Warriors in their torrid start to the season. Entering the night with only a single win on the season, Brooklyn’s veterans showed they would not be intimidated by the undefeated Warriors, and they came out of the gate firing on all cylinders. The Nets made their first two and seven of their first nine shots to begin the game, racing out to an early 15-10 lead. Brandon Rush, starting in place of Klay Thompson who missed the game due to injury, capped off a streak in which he scored eight-consecutive points for Golden State with a three-pointer to cut the deficit to two, but Brooklyn soon gained separation. The Nets immediately responded with a 12-0 run to go up 27-13 with 3:39 left in the first quarter, placing the Warriors in their largest deficit of the 2015-16 season up to that point. That deficit would grow as large as 15 points in the opening quarter, as the two sides headed into the second frame with Brooklyn leading 36-21.
Piece by piece, the Warriors would claw their way back into the game. Stephen Curry’s three-pointer completed a 20-4 run for Golden State to pull within a single point at 44-43 with 3:09 remaining in the first half, but the Nets would not give in. The two teams traded baskets until Curry made three consecutive free throws to tie the game up at 52 with 13.1 seconds left. Thaddeus Young’s jump shot on the ensuing possession sent the game into halftime with the Nets holding a slight 54-42 advantage.
Brooklyn increased their cushion to six points when Curry’s third three-pointer of the night cut their lead to 71-68 with 3:13 left in the third quarter. That was the 1,245th three-pointer of Curry’s career, tying him with his father Dell, who he would eventually pass on the all-time list later in the game. Consecutive Brooklyn’ baskets at the end of the quarter maintained the Nets’ lead, as Jarrett Jack’s jump shot with a tenth of a second left sent the game into the fourth and final quarter with Brooklyn still leading, 77-70.
Time and again, it appeared the Warriors were about to surge past the Nets, but Brooklyn continued to keep Golden State at bay with timely baskets. Just as it was looking like it was not going to be the Warriors’ night, Curry’s layup gave Golden State their first lead since it was 5-4 at 86-85 with 4:36 left in regulation. However, the Nets would not go away. Jack scored six consecutive points for Brooklyn in the final two minutes, giving the Nets a slight 95-94 lead with 29.9 seconds left on the clock. The Warriors failed to score on the ensuing possession, prompting them to foul Thaddeus Young, who sank both of his free throws to put Brooklyn up 97-94 with less than 10 seconds remaining in regulation. Four seconds later, it was Iguodala’s chance to be the hero. The reigning Finals MVP rose up from the beyond the arc and found the bottom of the net with a three-pointer, tying the game at 97 with 5.9 seconds left on the clock. Brooklyn failed to score on the ensuing possession, sending the game into overtime.
Once the Warriors had come back and then survived to reach the extra period, the momentum carried them to victory. Golden State made five of their first seven shots in overtime while holding the Nets scoreless over that stretch. In the end, the Warriors would outscore Brooklyn 10-2 in overtime to secure their 11th-straight win to begin the season, becoming the 11th team in NBA history to accomplish that feat. They’ll try to keep the winning streak going when they host the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night at Oracle Arena.