Warriors romp to double-digit win
SAN FRANCISCO » When it appeared the Warriors would live and die by the long ball Friday night against New Orleans, it turned out to be smoke and mirrors. The numbers coach Steve Kerr and company will point to are 36 and 12, as in the team’s second-best assist-to-turnover ratio of the season.
The Warriors were able to retain and even build on a lead after their 3-pointers stopped falling, dismantling the 1-9 Pelicans, 12685, to improve to 7-1 in their third straight double-digit victory of the season, doubling their previous largest winning margin.
Golden State put the game away with a dominant third quarter, highlighted by a 13-2 run in the middle. Jordan Poole bookended the stretch with a pair of 3 pointers, and the Warriors assisted on all five baskets, including four from Draymond Green. But it was Andre Iguodala who led the team with 10 of 36 total dimes.
More importantly, the Warriors’ 12 turnovers were their second-fewest of the young season.
After starting their homestand with an overtime loss to Memphis, the Warriors have followed it up with wins of 21, 22 and 41 against Oklahoma City,
Charlotte and, on Friday, New Orleans, teams with a combined winning percentage of .307.
The 3 ball was flying early on. Golden State was launching long balls with abandon, and almost half were going in.
The Warriors built a first-half lead as large as 15 points while connecting on 10 of their first 21 attempts from distance. But the Warriors clanked their next 10 shots from deep and allowed New Orleans to climb within 54-50 by halftime, despite the Pelicans’ 1-8 record and star
Zion Williamson out with a fractured foot.
Their eight first-quarter 3-pointers were their thirdmost in a quarter this season, topped only by a 9-of15 shooting performance in the second quarter vs. Charlotte and 9-of-13 in Stephen Curry’s 25-point first-quarter earlier this season.
The Warriors connected on 10 of 19 shots from distance in the second half to finish the game 40%.
Curry had the hot hand early Friday night, too, though not quite to the tune of 25 again.
However, it was enough for Kerr to abandon a planned shakeup in Curry’s substitution pattern.
The Warriors have been attempting to find their star some extra rest time during the opening period. Kerr said that was the plan again Friday, but that, “If he’s smoking and he’s made six shots in a row, I’m not taking him out.”
Four for his first six must have been good enough. Unfortunately for Golden State, Curry was infected by the team-wide cold spell and missed his next six attempts from the field.