The Warriors didn’t have an answer for the Thunder’s Game 3 onslaught and now trail the Western Conference Finals, 2-1.
GAME LEADERS
The Warriors are used to receiving their opponent’s best punch, but Sunday marked one of the rare occasions in which the Dubs didn’t have an answer. Playing in front of their frenzied home crowd, the Thunder took it to the Warriors throughout the first half and handed Golden State a 133-105 defeat in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals.
The Dubs now trail the series, 2-1, after seeing the Thunder showed off an aggressiveness and intensity that the Warriors simply didn’t match. After the Warriors recovered from a 13-point deficit to tie the game early in the second quarter, the Thunder absolutely dominated the last eight minutes of the first half and took complete control of the game. While the Warriors made just two of their final 23 shots of the second quarter, the Thunder ran the ball at every opportunity they could find and ended the half on a 32-7 run.
Oklahoma City out-scored the Dubs 22-5 on fast-break points and had a 20-point advantage at the free throw line at the break, and it didn’t get much better in the third or fourth quarters. The Warriors trailed by as many as 41 in this defeat, were dominated on the glass 52-38, and shot 41 percent from the field to the Thunder’s 50 percent.
Stephen Curry had 24 points to lead the Dubs for the third straight game in this series and Klay Thompson tallied 18 points, but no other Warriors player scored in double figures.
Fortunately for the Warriors, this game only counts as one, and they will have a chance to tie the series when the Western Conference Finals continues on Tuesday with Game 4.