Curry leads Warriors to victory in Game 1
SAN FRANCISCO – Once Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson caught their breath and stopped rushing their shots, the Splash Brothers got on a roll that proved too much for Dallas to stop.
Curry had 21 points and a game-high 12 rebounds, Golden State’s defense held Luka Doncic in check, and the Warriors beat the Mavericks 112-87 on Wednesday night for a 1-0 lead in the Western Conference finals.
Doncic scored 20 points but shot just 6 for 18 and 3 of 10 from deep. He made back-to-back 3-pointers late in the first half to get his team within 5445 at the break, but Curry and Thompson heated up and helped the Warriors pull away in the second half.
Jalen Brunson scored 14 points but missed all five of his 3s for the surprising Mavs, who stunned the top-seeded Suns in a 123-90 thumping in Game 7 on Sunday in Phoenix.
Game 2 in the best-of-seven series is Friday night at Chase Center, where the raucous, yellow-clad sellout crowd brought back memories of that 2007 “We Believe” Warriors playoff team led by Baron Davis that shocked the No. 1seeded Mavericks in a six-game firstround upset at Oracle Arena.
That helped propel Golden State back to prominence. The Warriors reached five straight NBA Finals from 2015-19 but missed the playoffs the past two years before this run. Now, they’re one win closer to getting back to the big stage.
Andrew Wiggins added 19 points, getting Golden State going by making six of his first eight shots on the way to shooting 8 for 17.
Doncic received a scratch across his face early from a first-quarter swipe by Wiggins, who handled much of the defensive load. The mark went from the bridge of the star guard’s his nose across his right cheek under the eye. Donic also tugged at his troublesome right shoulder that has been taped previously during these playoffs.
“They did a really good job. Wiggins picking him up full court,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. “They went box-andone, they went zone. We understood coming into the series that we were going to see that. We’ll go back and look at the video and see what we can do better.”
Stopping Doncic is the tall task this time after the Warriors already handled two-time reigning MVP Nikola Jokic of Denver in the first round, then Ja Morant early last series before his knee injury.
“I thought Wiggs was fantastic,” coach Steve Kerr said. “Doncic is as difficult a cover as there is in this league. … It’s important to make him work. He’s so good. Any great player in the league you’re trying to limit the damage that they do.”
Curry hit two quick 3s in sparking a 10-2 burst to begin the third for a Golden State squad that eliminated Memphis in a six-game semifinal series.