Warriors very much in a giving mood as they lose to the Heat
During the fourth quarter Thursday against Miami, Warriors rookie Nico Mannion reached in desperation as Heat guard Tyler Herro ripped the ball away and threw ahead to a sprinting Andre Iguodala.
Blunders like this ultimately sank the Warriors in their 116-109 loss to the Heat at AmericanAirlines Arena. Despite 36 points from Stephen Curry and 23 from Andrew Wiggins, the Warriors (23-25) turned the ball over 20 times, resulting in 27 points for the Heat.
In a game with 14 lead changes, Iguodala finished that fastbreak with a dunk to punctuate a 10-0 run that put the Heat up by 12 with 7:22 to go. Before that decisive run, the Warriors gave themselves a chance in the
first half on the road.
Wiggins poured in three 3-pointers in the second quarter alone, Draymond Green chipped in 16 points, and Curry went 9 for 19, including 13 for 13 from the free-throw line. His back-to-back 3-pointers and free throws with 49.5 seconds left cut the deficit to six, but that was not enough to overcome so many wasted possessions. Curry’s airball with 12.2 seconds to go stamped the loss.
For the Heat (25-24), Jimmy Butler had 22 points, eight assists, six rebounds and four steals, while Herro finished with 20 points and two steals. Iguodala, the former Warrior, scored all 10 of his points in the closing period.
But the loss could be the least of Golden State’s concerns. During the fourth quarter, guard Jordan Poole and center Kevon Looney each left the game with twisted ankles. It was unclear if either player will miss games with these injuries.
Tonight, the Warriors will go to Tampa to play the temporarily relocated Toronto Raptors for the second game of their 10th back-to-back set of the season.
PASCHALL INJURED >> Warriors forward Eric Paschall, who did not play Thursday in Miami with a wrist injury, is considered day to day, according to head coach Steve Kerr.
Paschall, who suffered the injury in practice last weekend and missed Monday’s win over the Bulls, sat out practice Wednesday. The Warriors play the Raptors tonight.