(Photo: cinesport.com)
ORACLE ARENA, OAKLAND, CA — The age-old question that still suggests #DubNation has not quite let go of the Chris Cohan era: Does #Roaracle prefer blowout wins against teams they’re supposed to beat, like the Los Angeles Lakers last night, or would it rather continue with the 4th-quarter nailbiters that are prefaced by sloppy play?
Whatever the case, “boring” seemed to be the most oft-used word in the describing the game last night, at least on Twitter and in the media room.
Yet, it didn’t start that way, despite the Lakers being without Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Jordan Farmar, and Steve Blake. Center Pau Gasol, who tallied 8 assists in the absence of any true point guards, also did not make it the arena due to a reported “upper respiratory infection”.
Rusty Simmons of the SF Chronicle wrote:
Still, the Warriors plodded along in a tight game for 2 1/2 quarters before realizing that they could take advantage of a squad missing Steve Blake (torn ulnar collateral ligament), Kobe Bryant (fracture of the lateral tibial plateau), Jordan Farmar (hamstring tear), Pau Gasol (upper respiratory infection) and Steve Nash (nerve root irritation in the back).
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“Obviously, with no Kobe and no Pau, they were missing their two best players,” Warriors head coach Mark Jackson said. “…I told the guys, ‘What we don’t want to do is let any more opportunities slip.’ We felt tonight – even if they had Pau Gasol – we were in our building and playing against a team that we’re supposed to beat.
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“The mind-set was to handle the business, and we did that.”
Carl Steward of the San Jose Mercury News summarized how bad things got for the depleted Lakers. Andrew Bogut took advantage:
The Lakers, sporting a barely recognizable cast, had a miserable night, hitting just 26 of 80 shots (32.5 percent). They were particularly bad from 3-point range — 4 for 20 (20 percent).
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But some of that poor shooting was the result of a stronger Warriors defensive effort, led by center Andrew Bogut’s control in the paint during his 28 minutes. Bogut had a season-high 20 rebounds, including nine on offense that included four tip-ins, and he badgered 7-footer Chris Kaman into a 5-for-17 shooting night.
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“He’s been outstanding lately,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. “He’s really setting the tone, altering and blocking shots, being a force, getting every rebound. He’s been the guy we traded for and the guy we paid big bucks to.”
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Bogut was pleased with the team’s defensive effort but wasn’t about to make too much of a victory over a Lakers team missing so many key parts.
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“We haven’t accomplished anything by this win,” he said. “We won a game we should have won. And now it’s going to be a big game for us in a couple days (Monday) in Denver.”
Sarah Todd of SFBay.ca recalled a nice sequence in the pivotal third quarter:
The Lakers cut the Warriors lead to five, but Golden State found their rhythm when Bogut snatched his season-high-tying 18th rebound and ran to the other end of the floor to throw down an alley-oop pass from Curry.
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On the Dubs’ next offensive possession, Bogut passed to an open Curry who hit the mid-range jumper. Marreese Speights checked into the game and immediately scored four points, finishing off the Warriors 21-4 run, to put the Warriors on top 72-50.
Monte Poole of CSN Bay Area also pointed to the spark Marreese Speights provided off the bench:
STANDOUT PERFORMANCES
On a night when the Warriors did not shoot well, they got 14 good minutes from Marreese Speights off the bench. He scored 10 points, grabbed three rebounds and blocked a shot.
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And then there was Bogut’s work on the boards, his ninth career game of 20 or more rebounds.
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TURNING POINT
With 8:22 left in the third quarter and the Warriors up 51-46, coach Mark Jackson called a timeout, after which his team responded with a 21-4 run, taking a 72-50 lead with 2:06 left in the quarter. Seven players scored during the run, led by 6 points from Marreese Speights.
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The Lakers never trimmed the margin below 15 points after that.
With so many point guards out for the Lakers, the bench unit consisting of Toney Douglas, Kent Bazemore, and Draymond Green pressured the Lakers into a few turnovers.
“They did put a lot of pressure on us,” Lakers head coach Mike D’Antoni said, “Their second unit came in and backed us up about five feet, and we turned it over.”
“They forced us to play a different game with Douglas picking up full court,” said Lakers small forward Wesley Johnson, “Me, X (Xavier Henry), and Jodie (Meeks) kind of aren’t used to having all that pressure just bringing it up.”
OAN I had two amazing defensive stops last night back to back… I also had two of the worst turnovers ever right after both lol whoops
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) December 22, 2013
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