ORACLE ARENA, OAKLAND, CA — This is a continuation of the halftime recap of the San Antonio Spurs at the Golden State Warriors.
The Spurs held a 64-48 lead at halftime.
3rd Quarter – Another Late Collapse
The Warriors made a little run to start the third quarter, as Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker missed jumpers and the Dubs answered with a Draymond Green getting a putback of a Kevin Durant runner that went too hard and Green getting the ball to Durant for a reverse layup after that.
Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich quickly called timeout to stop the Golden State momentum, still leading 64-52.
After the timeout, Golden State cut the lead all the way to 8 points, 66-58, with 8:56 remaining
Klay Thompson hit a long two, then got a jumper to fall, and after a Leonard turnover, Curry found Green on a bounce pass for a dunk, Draymond screamed at the newfound momentum…
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…but was whistled for a questionable taunting technical, thereby killing the momentum.
Still, Klay managed to hit this three:
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LaMarcus Aldridge then took over, hitting a 21-footer, getting a putback, and even hitting a triple, all facilitated by Leonard, and Kawhi hit a strong runner for good measure to bring the Spurs back to a 16-point lead with 5:51 to play, up 80-64, forcing Warriors head coach Steve Kerr to call timeout.
Out of the timeout was a microcosm of the Warriors’ night.
Curry missed a three, but Andre Iguodala snagged the long rebound, only to have Thompson throw the ball away on a bad bounce pass, only to have Green steal it back, one of his five swipes on the night.
But guess who was there for the chase down block of Steph’s breakaway lefty layup? No, not LeBron James of course, which certainly sent a chill down #Roaracle’s spine, but first-half Spurs bench hero, Jonathon Simmons:
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Kerr then opted for rookie Patrick McCaw, but the Spurs left him wide, wide open, and he back-rimmed two threes. Meanwhile, San Antonio kept the heat on with an Aldridge jump hook, Draymond missed a three, and David Lee hit a layup as David West threw an outlet to Patty Mills.
Curry did his best to stem the tide…
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…but it wasn’t enough, getting a lefty layup, then drawing an “and-one” on Pau Gasol, but Kawhi was too much, getting a jumper, hitting free throws, and applying pressure as the quarter wound down.
Once again, the Warriors collapsed at the end of the quarter, as Curry threw the ball away to Leonard, resulting in a dunk, West threw the ball yet again away to none other than Mills, and Kawhi stopped-and-popped over Andre Iguodala.
That gave the Spurs an inconceivable 97-75 lead, but Ian Clark banked home a runner before the buzzer to draw the Warriors in by twenty, 97-77.
4th Quarter – Same Old Spurs
Mills started the quarter with a three-pointer, but Durant came back to the other end and answered with a 10-footer.
Later, Lee made yet another good hustle play by tipping a loose ball to Manu Ginobili, who drove in for the uncontested lay up.
After Anderson Varejao drew a foul and made both free throws, Mills came back for another trey to put the Spurs up 107-82.
Both teams traded misses, then Aldridge was fouled on a rebound. He made the first free throw and missed the second. Serving as a microcosm of the game, Kyle Anderson came up with the board and got the ball to Leonard who was fouled and made both shots.
At the 8:50 mark there was an official’s time out with the Spurs leading, 110-82. With the “Death Lineup” in, perhaps more as a process than an actual attempt by Kerr to come back from 28 points down.
Durant, Thompson, and Green all scored, but San Antonio answered every charge. Simmons went strong to the hoop, Ginobili scored on a Euro-step to keep the margin at 24 points, and Mills buried another triple.
The Spurs confidence never wavered as Anderson hit a corner three on a drive by Aldridge, after a KD jumper.
Durant got an “and-one” back, but the hole was far too deep to climb out of, and with 3:35 to go and the Warriors still down 120-97, Kerr finally waved the white flag and brought back in McCaw and Clark, as well as Shaun Livingston.
Not long after, Kevon Looney and JaVale McGee followed suit.
After a stretch of sloppy play by both squads, Spurs reserve Davis Bertans made a three, Clark continued Golden State’s woes with a miss from downtown, and Simmons added insult to injury with this massive facial on McGee:
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Final score: a shocking 129-100 Spurs blowout over the Warriors.
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