The Warriors trimmed a 25-point deficit down to three in the third quarter and again in the fourth, but the Dubs never quite got over the hump in Wednesday’s 125-119 loss in Indiana.
Playing the back end of a back-to-back, the Warriors were already without Klay Thompson (hasn’t played consecutive games all season) and Andrew Wiggins (right adductor tightness), the Dubs were dealt another blow when Stephen Curry injured his left shoulder in the third quarter and Draymond Green was ejected in the fourth quarter after receiving his second technical.
The Pacers pushed their lead to 12 points with the free throw following Green’s ejection, but the undermanned Warriors continued to fight. Timely 3-point shooting from JaMychal Green and Donte DiVincenzo contributed to a 25-15 run that made it 122-119 with 1:25 left in the game. But an overturned offensive foul led to an Indiana free throw and Andrew Nembhard’s layup as the shot clock was running low proved to be enough to hold off the late Warriors run, and the Dubs were left with their second straight loss to open this season-long six-game road trip.
Golden State Warriors Highlights vs. Indiana Pacers
Team Leaders
GSW
| Points | Rebounds | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Curry - 38 | DiVincenzo - 8 | Curry - 7 |
| Poole - 20 | Kuminga - 8 | Poole - 5 |
| J. Green - 15 | Curry - 7 | 4 Tied - 3 |
IND
| Points | Rebounds | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Haliburton - 29 | Mathurin - 6 | McConnell - 9 |
| Mathurin - 24 | Smith - 6 | Haliburton - 6 |
| Turner - 21 | Hield - 5 | Smith - 4 |
CURRY'S BIG NIGHT CUT SHORT
Stephen Curry led the way with 38 points and seven assists, but a shoulder injury suffered in the third quarter while playing defense caused him to sit out the entire final period. Curry will receive an MRI on Thursday, and an update on his condition will be determined following that.
Right up until the injury, Curry was keeping the Warriors in the game. He started the game strong, making his first four shots. He had 15 points in the first quarter, surpassing his total for the entire game (12 points) when the Dubs previously faced the Pacers last week. And even though the Pacers would surge ahead with a 16-4 run late in the first quarter, Curry was instrumental in leading the Dubs' third quarter comeback surge, coming up with eight points and three assists during a 19-4 run that brought the Dubs within five (78-73).
Stephen Curry with the And-1!
SECOND QUARTER SLIP
Behind Curry’s effort, the Warriors led by as many as nine points in the opening period, but the Pacers recovered to take a 27-26 lead by the end of the quarter. And the Pacers’ momentum then extended pretty much through the entire second quarter. Indiana shot 16-for-23 in the period on the way to a 47-point quarter, the most given up by the Warriors in a single period this season. Tyrese Haliburton, who was 0-for-9 from the floor in the Pacers’ previous game against Miami, had 20 of his 29 points in the first half, and Myles Turner had 14. Haliburton’s 3-pointer with 1:24 left in the second quarter had the Pacers up 71-46, but the Warriors would battle back.
DUBS MAKE A RUN
Curry scored the final 10 Warriors points of the second quarter, includer a buzzer-beating 3-pointer that trimmed Indiana’s advantage to 20, and the run would continue well into the third period. After Indiana’s Buddy Hield opened the second half with a 3-pointer, the Warriors responded with a 14-0 run. But after a Jonathan Kuminga tip-in made it 78-73 midway through the third period, Pacers rookie Bennedict Mathurin made two 3-pointers to ignite a 10-0 Pacers run that pushed their lead back into double digits, and a further gut punch came with Curry’s shoulder injury.
What a play by Jonathan Kuminga!
MOODY MAKES AN IMPACT
Jordan Poole (20 points) knocked down his only 3-pointer of the game on the first play following Curry’s injury, and Moses Moody came through with a four-point play to cap a quick 7-0 run to close the quarter, a period in which the Warriors outscored Indiana 33-19. Moody made his first four shots of the game and finished the game 5-for-6 from the field for 13 points, his highest-scoring game in over a month.
Moses Moody with the hoop & harm
JAMYCHAL GREEN LEADS 4TH QUARTER CHARGE
With the Warriors down bodies, another unlikely source provided a spark in the fourth quarter. JaMychal Green scored 12 of the team’s first 14 points in the period, including three 3-pointers. Green, who entered the game with eight made 3-pointers for the season, finished the game with a season-high 15 points, all in the fourth quarter, on 4-for-4 shooting.
JaMychal Green nails it from behind the arc
Donte DiVincenzo, who started in place of Klay Thompson, followed his season-high 16-point effort on Tuesday with 15 more points on Wednesday, including a pair of 3-pointers late in the fourth quarter that brought the Dubs within three.
Despite all that, it wasn’t enough to overcome the disastrous second quarter for the Dubs, not to mention the 24 turnovers that led to 33 points for the Pacers.
UP NEXT
With the loss, the Warriors have now dropped their last four road games, including the first two of this season-long six-game road trip. Now 14-15 on the season, the Dubs will look to bounce back on Friday when they visit the Philadelphia 76ers.