The Warriors came into this game against the Los Angeles Clippers knowing they might be without Kevin Durant, but quite frankly they were not going to need them. The Warriors were clearly the better team and unless they were out partying in Los Angeles the night before, this was going to be a victory for Steve Kerr and the boys.
Steph Curry has been playing well and today was no different. His big performance would give the Warriors a comfortable lead and it only took the two-time MVP three quarters to get the job done. The Clippers lost Blake Griffin early, but even then it might not been enough to even make it close with the Warriors.
Here’s a quick breakdown of tonight’s victory against the Warriors:
1st Quarter
The Warriors got off to a slow start to start the game and fell behind early. They missed some easy shots near the basket and the Clippers were able to knock down some jumpers. However it didn’t take long for the Warriors offense to start clicking and they rattled off a 9-2 run to give them a three point lead with about half of the quarter remaining. The Clippers were playing with purpose, but you could tell that they were simply not in the same league. Steph was able to knock down a transition triple to extend the lead to five and then proceeded to draw the foul on a three point attempt to earn another three points. All of a sudden is started raining threes at the Staples Center and before you knew it, the Warriors were up 10 in the first quarter. As the quarter was coming to an end, play had to be stopped after Blake Griffin was elbowed by JaVale McGee inadvertently. Griffin had to be taken to the locker room for further evaluation. Lou Williams ended the quarter by scoring five unanswered points, cutting the Warrior lead to only three to end the first quarter.
2nd Quarter
Again, a little sloppy to start the second quarter. The Clippers were able to cut the lead to a single point in the opening minutes of the quarter, but David West was feeling his jumper and was able to knock down a couple to keep the Warriors ahead. Credit to the Clippers for putting up a fight, especially without their star player. Omri Casspi and West were able to get the Warriors more cushion with some nice and easy baskets, but just when you thought they were going to pull away, the Clippers would manage to string together some baskets and keep the game close. Without Griffin, the Clippers needed to rely on players like Montrezl Harrell and Sam Dekker to keep them in the game, they both were able to get some key buckets, while Steph was trying to put this game away. However, the Warriors went cold and couldn’t knock down the triple. Finally, the Warriors were able to break their slump with both Splash Brothers hitting a three of their own. Curry then took over the game to end the half and in blink of an eye the Warriors were up nine at the break.
3rd Quarter
This time, both teams came out a little flat to start the second half. The first two minutes they simply traded baskets and the lead remained the same for the Warriors. Another Curry triple would give the Warriors their largest lead of the game, 73-59. Curry was starting to feel it and you could tell he was having a blast out there in the court. He kept knocking down shots and for the second time in the game, he was able to draw a foul and earn another three shots at the charity stripe. Curry was able to get to the 40 point mark with several minutes left in the third and at that point the game was over. The Warriors started rolling behind Curry’s hot hand and the game was quickly out of reach. The fans here at the Staples Center were loving every minute of Curry’s performance. All you kept hearing is “ohhhh” and “ahhhh” every time he had the ball in his hands. The Warriors ended the quarter up 27 points and that was the last we would see of Curry and the rest of the starters.
4th Quarter
We all know what happened here. Steve Kerr emptied his bench because this game was over. The rest of the fourth quarter felt like an exhibition match-up. Some good baskets, but a lot of bad misses as well. The crowd was out of it and at this point we were all just waiting for this game to end. The Warriors would finish this game by beating the Clippers 121-105 and Curry led the way with 45 points in three quarters.