Posted on March 9, 2019, by Travis Pulver
It hasn’t been pretty for the Golden State Warriors lately. Heading into Friday night’s game against the Denver Nuggets they had gone 5-5 in their last ten games. That’s something typical NBA teams do, not the defending champs and certainly not the Golden State Warriors.
After Tuesday’s 33-point loss to the Boston Celtics in front of a home crowd, the Warriors needed to redeem themselves in front of their fans—and they did.
Led by Klay Thompson’s 39 points and with contributions from all their star player, the Warriors cruised to an easy 122-105 win.
Sign up for a FREE Consultation to start working with Legendary Sports Bettor Jon Price
The game got off to a good start for the Warriors as they took a 30-20 lead heading into the second quarter. Golden State shot out to an early 15-3 lead and never looked back. While things were a little more competitive in the second quarter, the Warriors were still able to extend their lead.
At the break, they led by 17 points, 67-50.
Denver got within nine during the third, but by the time the fourth quarter rolled around the deficit was back up to 15, 90-75. But An early push got them within 11 points, but the Warriors were simply too much for the Nuggets. Denver guard Monte Morris closed out the scoring for the game with a short jumper to make the final score 122-105.
“They’re a better team than we are. If it wasn’t for our bench we would have gotten completely blown out,” Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said after the game (NBCSports). “Our bench at least kept it respectable.”
Denver’s accounted for over half the team’s points (58).
While it was Thompson who led the way after being out the last two games, it was a solid team effort. Kevin Durant had 26 points on the night and Steph Curry chipped in another 17. Also, Boogie Cousins contributed on both ends of the court with 13 points, six rebounds, six assists, six blocks, and three steals.
“The last couple days of practice was great for us,” Draymond Green said after the game (ESPN). “You could just kind of sense that everybody was locked in, and there’s still a lot of things we can correct. … It was good to kind of feel that energy and focus level from the start of the game.”
Malik Beasley and Monte Morris led the way for the Nuggets with 17 points apiece off the bench. Nikola Jokic led Denver’s starters with 16 followed by Jamal Murray with 11. Isaiah Thomas only played 15 minutes and scored just five points.
The Nuggets will get another chance to take down the Warriors in a few weeks. They will visit Golden State once again on April 2.
Denver will try to get back on the right side of the scoreboard when they take on the Minnesota Timberwolves at home on Tuesday. The Warriors will try to keep the good times rolling when they face the Phoenix Suns Sunday night.