The Warriors won their second game in as many nights after defeating the Clippers 133-120 on Thursday. Stephen Curry led Golden State with 29 points and 11 assists, while Kevin Durant wasn’t far behind with 26 and 10, respectively. Klay Thompson added 21 points and seven rebounds, while Andre Iguodala, Ian Clark and James Michael McAdoo all reached double-figures in scoring. With the victory, Golden State improves to 43-7 on the season.
GAME LEADERS
Golden State led from wire to wire, as Kevin Durant opened the scoring with a dunk 27 seconds into the game, and the Dubs never looked back. Patrick McCaw started in place of Draymond Green, who sat out the game with a left shoulder contusion, and the Warriors’ smaller lineup spread the Clippers’ defense to its breaking point. McCaw knocked down back-to-back three-pointers in a span of 34 seconds to give Golden State a 14-6 lead less than three minutes into the contest, and they’d eventually go on to build a 33-22 advantage at the end of the opening frame. The Warriors outrebounded the Clippers 13-4 in the quarter, which played a significant role in their 11-0 advantage in second chance points.
Los Angeles would trim Golden State’s lead to four points on two separate occasions in the second quarter, but that’s as close as they’d get for the rest of the night. After DeAndre Jordan split free throws to close within 50-44 with 2:51 remaining, Klay Thompson sank a three-pointer on the ensuing possession to ignite a 14-6 Warriors’ run in response. Despite possessing a 14-2 advantage in fast break points in the frame, Los Angeles trimmed just a single point off the Warriors’ lead in the second quarter, as the two sides went into halftime with Golden State in front 65-55.
Every time it appeared the Clippers might threaten to climb all the way back, the Warriors had an answer. After Austin Rivers scored to cut the Warriors’ lead to 84-76 just past the midway point of the third quarter, Andre Iguodala converted a three-pointer 13 seconds later to build their advantage back to double-digits, where it would remain until the final minutes of the contest. Iguodala’s heroics weren’t quite finished yet, however, as his layup at the quarter buzzer gave the Dubs a commanding 104-87 leading heading into the fourth and final frame.
Golden State would open the fourth quarter on a 9-5 surge to take their largest lead of the entire game on Iguodala’s jumper with 9:48 remaining in the game. Los Angeles would begin to chip away at the deficit from there, but it ultimately proved too large to overcome. The Dubs maintained a double-digit advantage until Jamal Crawford sank a three-pointer to pull the Clippers within 124-117 with 1:54 left. Kevin Durant answered right back with a three-pointer on the ensuing possession, and after Rivers converted a layup, Thompson made his third and final three-pointer of the night to ice away the eventual 133-120 victory.
With the win, Golden State improves to 43-7 on the season. They’ll put their five-game winning streak on the line when they travel to Sacramento to take on the Kings on Saturday.