Starting new streak?
Thompson catches fire as Warriors rebound from their first defeat
Warriors forward Draymond Green battles Phoenix Suns players P.J. Tucker, left, and T.J. Warren for a loose ball Wednesday in the first half of Golden State’s win at Oracle Arena. Green had a triple-double.
OAKLAND — After dazzling with a 43-point night in three quarters, guard Klay Thompson fired off a couple of warning shots.
The Warriors had wasted no time in getting back to their winning ways in their first game since suffering their first loss of the season, thrashing the Phoenix Suns in a 128-103 rout at Oracle Arena on Wednesday.
“We try to make a statement every night to be honest,” said Thompson, who poured in 27 points in the third quarter and hit eight 3-pointers in the game. “We’ve got a very competitive team, and we do not like to lose.”
Then Thompson turned his attention to the Warriors’ next game, which he said had been circled on the calendar. The Mil-
waukee Bucks come to town Friday — six days after handing the Warriors their first loss — and it was one that didn’t sit well with Thompson.
He was one of the Warriors who noticed how with the game in the final minute of Milwaukee’s 108-95 win, Bucks guard Michael Carter-Williams had a breakaway dunk and then proceeded to look toward the Golden State bench where most of the starters were sitting.
“We thought at the time they could have won with a little more class some of those guys, but I’d have been fired up, too, so we definitely remember that,” said Thompson, who was held to 4-for-14 shooting in the loss in his first game back from a sprained ankle.
“There’s nothing wrong with the dunk,” Thompson added, “but the stare-down and trying to talk mess at the end of the game like that. It’s like, ‘All right, you realize you see us next Friday and in our building, too,’ so that’s going to be fun. … We’ve got to send a message to them when they come to our building.”
Upon returning home following a grueling sevengame trip, the Warriors improved their record to 25-1 and pleased the crowd behind Thompson as he rebounded with a 15-for-22 shooting night.
“When he gets to clicking, there’s no better thing to watch,” Stephen Curry said. “He made some crazy shots.”
Curry, who added 25 points on 10-for-14 shooting to go along with seven assists, remembered how the Bucks celebrated their win as well.
“We were just kind of laughing at some of the stuff going on,” Curry said. “It was a big game for them, and Friday will be a big game for us.”
Draymond Green needed only three quarters to rack up 16 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for his fourth triple-double of the season and umpteenth time he’s shown the potential to be an All-Star selection this season.
By the time the night was finished for the three players, the Warriors led 10565 headed into the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for the Suns, they were on the schedule for a Warriors team that was well-rested and looking forward to tasting victory again.
The Warriors after setting a franchise record with 22 3-pointers against the Suns last month dropped in 15 more.
Brandon Rush hit three straight 3-pointers for the Warriors in the first and finished with 11 points, but they got off a slow start and trailed by as many as seven in the quarter as interim head coach Luke Walton said he noticed a hangover from the long trip.
Then, Curry and his teammates decided to put on a show as they closed the second on a 21-4 run over a three-minute stretch to take a 13-point lead at halftime.
Thompson hit back-toback 3-pointers to give the Warriors the lead for good, eventually finishing 8 for 13 from beyond the arc. Curry poured it on with two 3pointers, a layup and an assist for a Green 3-pointer.
Mirza Teletovic led the Suns with 24 points off the bench while top scorer Eric Bledsoe was held to six points on 3-for-12 shooting — the first time all season he scored in single digits.
Bill Kennedy was one of n the officials working the game two days after telling Yahoo Sports he is a gay man.