The Golden State Warriors are in Stephen Curry hometown of Charlotte, NC to take on the Charlotte Hornets at Time-Warner Cable Arena. Here are the pregame notes, as the Warriors look to win their eighth straight while the Hornets look to avoid losing their eighth straight…
From Noey Kupchan of STATS:
The visiting Warriors try to extend their winning streak to eight and hand the Hornets an eight consecutive defeat Friday night.
Golden State (12-2) has outscored opponents by an average of 14.9 points during its run after winning 111-96 at Orlando on Wednesday. .
Stephen Curry had 28 points to lead seven players in double figures for the Warriors, who shot at least 50.0 percent for the fifth time in six games.
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“Right now I think we have a pretty high level of tunnel vision to stay in the moment, cherish every opportunity to play,” Curry said. “We’re winning in different styles, everybody’s getting involved and you enjoy that as you go along.”
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The Hornets haven’t tasted victory since a 103-95 win at Phoenix on Nov. 14.
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Aside from forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (foot), Charlotte was without Gary Neal due to a sprained shoulder. Marvin Williams exited in the second quarter with a similar injury, leaving his status for Friday unclear.
Kemba Walker has scored 16 or fewer points in each of the last seven games while shooting 33.7 percent. He finished with eight on 3-of-14 shooting against Golden State.
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The Hornets are 3-0 when Walker scores at least 18 compared to 1-12 when he doesn’t.
More pre-game info:
- “Stephen Curry has now purchased 75 tickets for tonight’s game. At shootaround, he was sure he’d break his record with 61.” — Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle
- “Leandro Barbosa to play, no Marvin Williams for Charlotte.” — Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group
- “No Marvin Williams tonight…He has a shoulder strain.” — Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer
- “P.J. Hairston is shooting 3s with his right thumb taped up. He sprained that thumb Wednesday. Looks good to play, important with Neal out.” — Bonnell
- If Kerr sees (Michael) Jordan tonight: “I usually manage to say, ‘Thank you,’ when I see him. ‘Thanks for all of the rings, contracts & everything.'” — Simmons
- Kerr on Curry: “He’s always been a high-risk, high-reward player, but in the past several weeks, he’s become a low-risk, high-reward player.” — Simmons
- “Warriors’ Stephen Curry cut down turnovers after making bet with his mother” — Leung (full story)
- “‘It’s just a fun thought to have. The Hornets name does mean a lot to my family, and obviously I’m starting a new thing with the Warriors. I definitely feel right at home here (with Golden State).'” — Curry in an interview with Leung
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