Thriller right up to the end
Jerebko nets winning basket in Warriors’ see-saw win over Jazz
LOS ANGELES: Jonas Jerebko executed a clutch tip in with 0.3 seconds left against his former team to lift the Golden State Warriors to a 124-123 win over the Utah Jazz.
Kevin Durant scored 38 points and Stephen Curry tallied 31, while Sweden’s Jerebko came off the bench to score 10 and the game winner in a wild contest in front of a crowd of 18,300.
“My teammates knew this was a big game for me coming back here. I wanted to win and told them I really wanted this one,” said Jerebko.
The Jazz built a big lead by scoring 47 points in the second quarter but Golden State clawed their way back into it with a strong second half, led by Curry.
The defending NBA champion Warriors are favoured to win their third title in a row but many wondered how they would against the Jazz’s lockdown defence at the Vivint Smart arena.
Utah was the only team last year to beat Golden State three times.
Journeyman Jerebko, who also played for the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons, joined the Warriors in the offseason after being let go by the Jazz.
On the Warriors’ final possession of the game, Durant attempted a jump shot from the free-throw line which rattled off the rim but Jerebko was right there to outmuscle Rudy Gobert for the winner.
Elsewhere, Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 26 points and 15 rebounds as Milwaukee Bucks tried out their new longrange attack in their home opener on Friday to beat the Indiana Pacers 118-101.
Antetokounmpo said the long-range assault is part of their game plan now.
In Toronto, Kawhi Leonard had 15 of his 31 points in the third quarter to power the Toronto Raptors to a 113-101 victory over the Celtics.
Leonard grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds for the Raptors who are undefeated in the new 2018-19 NBA season.
Serge Ibaka had 21 points, while Kyle Lowry had 15 points, six assists and five rebounds.
In Minneapolis, Jimmy Butler, who has been the object of scorn from Timberwolves fans for saying he will not resign for next season, scoring 33 points to lead the Minnesota past the Cleveland Cavaliers 131123. — AP