Golden State Wins Fifth-Straight Game
Golden State won its fifth consecutive preseason game, earning a 123-112 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in San Diego on Wednesday night.
The Warriors jumped out to an early lead and held it from start to finish, as Stephen Curry paced all scorers with 32 points and six three-pointers. Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson would add 23 and 19 points, respectively, while Draymond Green stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. With the victory Golden State improves to 5-1 in preseason play.
It didn’t take long for Golden State to find their shooting touch, as Draymond Green and Stephen Curry opened the scoring with back-to-back three-pointers as the Dubs opened the gamed on a 12-0 run. Kevon Looney entered the game for Zaza Pachulia at the 6:16 mark and would go on to score six points in the frame, all in a span of 59 seconds, the last two of which gave Golden State their largest lead of the quarter at 29-13 with 3:57 remaining. Los Angeles would cut the Warriors’ lead to 33-20 at the end of the first, much of which was built on Golden State’s proficiency in sharing the ball, tallying 13 assists on their 14 made field goals.
The Lakers would cut the deficit to four points just before the halfway mark of the frame, but Golden State responded with an 8-2 burst over the next two minutes to rebuild a double-digit cushion. Los Angeles would then climb within 45-41 with 3:12 remaining in the half before Golden State ended the quarter on a 7-2 run to take a 52-43 lead into halftime. Klay Thompson, who tallied a total of six assists in the Warriors’ first five preseason games, totaled five in the first half, as the Dubs recorded assists on 17 of their 19 made field goals.
Klay Thompson’s three-pointer two-and-a-half minutes into the second half capped a 13-4 Warriors’ run to open the third quarter, establishing their largest lead of the entire game at 65-47. The youthful Lakers would not go away quietly, however, as Los Angeles cut that deficit in half over the next five minutes, ensuring that Golden State wouldn’t run away with the game before the fourth quarter. Lou Williams split two free throws with 10 seconds remaining to close out the scoring in the third and send the game into the fourth and final quarter with the Warriors leading 87-77.
The Lakers would continue to chip away at Golden State’s advantage early on in the fourth quarter, and Brandon Ingram’s two free throws at the 8:34 mark brought Los Angeles within 92-86. However, that’s as close as the Lakers would get, as Stephen Curry ensured the Warriors would taste victory for a fifth-straight game. He entered the game with 5:54 remaining and Golden State leading 103-90 and his three-pointer at the 4:37 mark ignited an individual sequence in which he’d convert three three-pointers in a span of 99 seconds to keep the Warriors’ advantage in double-digits. The Lakers would cut the deficit to nine points within the final minute, but the damage had been done as the Warriors rounded out the eventual 123-112 victory.
With their fifth-straight win, Golden State improves to 5-1 in preseason play. Next up, they’ll close out the preseason when they host the Trail Blazers at home on Friday.