The Warriors used a strong second half to pull away from the Mavericks and notch a 112-97 victory on Thursday night at Oracle Arena.
TEAM LEADERS
With the Dubs down three members of their starting lineup (Stephen Curry - sprained right ankle; Draymond Green - sore right shoulder; Zaza Pachulia - sore left shoulder), Kevin Durant once again stepped into the role of playmaker and tallied 36 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. Klay Thompson got hot in the fourth quarter and Omri Casspi played his best game of the season as the Dubs picked up their eighth straight win.
FINISHING STRONG
A tie game at half, the Warriors took the lead for good with seven minutes left in the third quarter and wound up winning by 15 points. The Dubs takeover began with an Andre Iguodala dunk in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter and Klay Thompson followed with four straight 3-pointers. With 14 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, Thompson broke the game open in the fourth quarter and David West capped the team’s momentum with a powerful slam in transition.
THE DURANT FACTOR
Kevin Durant picked up where he left off, scoring 12 points in the first quarter. Turns out KD was just getting started, as he had 15 points in the third quarter when the Dubs took the lead for good. His 36 points were a season-high and he has now averaged 33.8 points, 10.3 rebounds and 7.3 rebounds over his last four games.
OMRI SHINES ON JEWISH HERITAGE NIGHT
The first Israeli-born player to play in the NBA, Omri Casspi scored a season-high 17 points as the Dubs celebrated Jewish Heritage Night on Warriors Ground. Casspi, who started his sixth game of the season, shot 7-for-9 from the floor and pulled down 11 rebounds, also a season-high. But he didn’t stop there, as after the game he joined a group of ticket holders for a postgame chalk talk and lit a menorah on the third night of Hanukkah.
WARRIORS HONOR 92-YEAR-OLD HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR
During a halftime ceremony on the court, the Warriors honored 92-year-old Holocaust survivor Arthur Weil with the Walmart Community Playmaker Award, a joint effort by the Dubs and the retailer to highlight and recognize members of the community who are making a positive impact. Weil spends a lot of time volunteering to share his knowledge and experiences of the Holocaust with students of all ages, and he recently went back to Israel for a Holocaust Survivor Reunion.
UP NEXT
The Warriors have the weekend off before getting back to work on Monday against the Lakers in Los Angeles. Following that game the Dubs will be home for the holidays with a seven-straight games at Oracle Arena. The season-long homestand begins on Wednesday against the Grizzlies on Zaza Pachulia Bobblehead Night, presented by realtor.com. Find Tickets