Warriors let lead slip away in loss to Thunder

SAN FRANCISCO — The Golden State Warriors had not been in the situation before.

After coming back from 21 points down on Friday against the Utah Jazz only to lose by three points, the Warriors (3-15) on Monday let a 15-point lead slip away in their 100-97 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder (6-10) at Chase Center.

For a team that has taken pride in their ability to play until the final buzzer despite double-digit deficits this season, the loss is especially bitter. The Thunder used a 21-5 run in the second half, punctuated by Chris Paul’s jumper, to give the Thunder a 9897 lead with 37 seconds remaining.

A Warriors team that had shown so much connectedness throughout the game came undone in the final seconds. After Paul’s go-ahead shot, forward Marquese Chriss committed a loose ball foul to give the Thunder the ball back with 22 seconds left. Then, after a messy offensive sequence, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander blocked guard Jordan Poole’s jumper, rejecting the buzzer beater’s chance of turning into a game winner.

Entering the game losers in nine of their last 10 games, Golden State was on track to earn its second win in four games.

Forward Glenn Robinson III scored 13 points in the first quarter to keep the Warriors in the game after falling into a ninepoint deficit early. Leading 59-53 at halftime, the Warriors then used a 12-2 run capped off by a Eric Paschall layup through traffic to take a 15-point lead with 6:38 left in the third quarter.

After the Thunder cut the lead to eight, Poole’s 30-foot jumper capped off an 11-4 run to extend the Warriors’ lead to 14 at the beginning of the fourth quarter. That’s when Oklahoma City’s run started, with the Warriors being outscored 26-14 in the final frame.

Ky Bowman scored a careerhigh 24 points in 39 minutes, although 21 of those points came within the first three quarters. His struggles in the fourth quarter (three points on 1-of-5 shooting) were symbolic of his team’s night, which ended the game missing 17 of their final 22 shots as the Thunder stormed back.

With just eight healthy players for the third straight game, the Warriors had three different players log more than 33 minutes. Robinson III finished with a team-high 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting to go with five assists. Paschall had 13 points and 10 rebounds. As a team, they assisted on 27 of 37 made field goals.

However, still missing Draymond Green (heel), the Warriors allowed their opponent to shoot better than 47% for the thirdstraight game.