WARRIORS DISPLAY TOUGHNESS IN WIN
Golden State wins with defense, makes use of Curry’s gravity to close out road back-to-back
The Golden State Warriors entered Wednesday evening’s game against the Indiana Pacers expecting a physical affair and plenty of attention on Stephen Curry.
And that’s exactly what they got, but they earned a gritty 111107 win over the Pacers on the second night of a back-to-back to close out a four-game trip 2-2 and improve to 18-15 on the season.
Though Curry (24 points on 7-for-21 shooting, 1-for-11 from 3-point range, eight rebounds and eight assists) saw his streak of scoring 25 or more points end at 13, he was helped by Kelly Oubre Jr. (17 points), Andrew Wiggins
(15 points) and Draymond Green (12 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds).
Here are a few takeaways from the game.
WARRIORS GET IT DONE IN THE PAINT >> Earlier in the season, the Warriors struggled to score in their Jan. 12 loss to the Pacers, eking out just 95 points — their second-lowest output of the season. So they entered Wednesday night prepared for the Pacers to overload on Curry with double and
triple teams. And though the Pacers did a good job of blitzing Curry and running shooters off the line (the Warriors missed 21of-25 3-point attempts), Golden State responded by pounding the paint, where it outscored Indiana 66-48.
The difference is how Curry’s supporting cast is reacting to openings in the defense. They are more decisive in slipping screens and aggressive when driving to the paint and passing out to open shooters.
“We were more prepared this time around,” Green said. “We were really driving and kicking the ball, which is important. Driving, making a second drive.”
This was the reason why Kerr went with a small-ball frontcourt of Green and Paschall down the stretch. Not only did this space the floor, but it also put Paschall — a physical finisher — in position to take advantage of Indiana sending multiple defenders to the 3-point line.
“In that game, I thought the Pacers were just tougher than we were down the stretch,” said head coach Steve Kerr. “I thought tonight we were the smarter, tougher team. That’s what wins close games, especially on the road. So I think we’ve made really big strides since that last game.”
WINNING WITH DEFENSE >> As Steve Kerr walked off the floor and into the locker room, assistant coach Ron Adams pulled him aside and said something surprising: The Warriors, once lightyears ahead, are winning
by playing like an East Coast, grind-it-out team from the 90s.
That was certainly the case Wednesday night. Despite the cold shooting night from 3-point range, the Warriors were able to keep the game close by holding the Pacers to 45.7% shooting and just 7-of-29 from 3-point range. They also out-rebounded Indiana 41-39 and scored 23 points off 19 turnovers.
For the season, Golden State has the fourth-best defensive rating in the league and is second in field goal percentage allowed
— well above their stated goal of being a top10 defense. Wiggins and Oubre suffocating scorers on the perimeter is a large factor in their success, as is consistent efforts from Kevon Looney and others. Even Curry is defending well, prompting Kerr to claim, “Steph’s defense this year has been totally overlooked.”
Of course, it begins with Green, the former defensive player of the year and captain of the defense. After the game, he went into detail about why the Warriors’ defense is clicking.
“When you look at the makeup of this team, when we put it all together — which I think we are starting to do that — we should be a good defensive team,” Green said.
CURRY’S FLOATER GAME >> Curry is getting ridiculously good at these floaters. He made a handful of them against Indiana, and continues to go to his bag of finger-rolls and higharching bank shots when defenses run him off the 3-point line. It’s this ability to score in multiple ways that makes him a bona fide MVP candidate.