Warriors:
Stephen Curry takes charge in the third quarter to help unbeaten Golden State run away from Memphis.
MEMPHIS — With 1:35 remaining in the third quarter, one of the Grizzlies’ ball boys accidentally almost wiped out the back of Stephen Curry’s legs with a mop. That’s seemingly the only way the MVP could have been stopped.
The Warriors’ point guard scored 17 third-quarter points, including two threepointers that were launched from a combined 69 feet, to lead his squad to a 100-84 victory over Memphis that tied the franchise’s best-ever start. The Warriors matched the franchise-best 9-0 overall start, set by the 1960-61 squad in Philadelphia, and the franchise’s all-time best road start, a 4-0 mark accomplished by both the 1972-73 and 1960-61 teams.
None of it would have been possible without Curry delivering another signature third quarter that turned a slop-fest of a game into his individual showcase. The Warriors had a season-high 23 turnovers and allowed Memphis (3-6) to trim a 15-point, first-half deficit to 57-56 with 3:37 left in the third quarter.
Then, Curry had seen enough. He scored 14 points in the quarter’s final 3:08, including two long-range threepointers that stirred memories of his 62-footer at the end of the third quarter in the Warriors’ Western Conference semifinals-clincher against Memphis in May.
Curry flipped a behind-theback dribble near midcourt, and despite being shoved from behind by Russ Smith, the MVP nailed a flailing, 29-foot bank shot with 2:26 on the clock. With 1.9 ticks left in the third, Curry one-upped himself: stealing a pass from Smith, racing past half court and launching a 40-footer that swished, to the dismay of the sellout crowd of 18,119 at the FedEx Forum.
“Steph being Steph,” power forward Draymond Green said. “That’s who he is, and that’s what he does. He came through for us in the big moment.”
Center Festus Ezeli said: “That’s the Steph that we always see. The kid is a competitor, and he’s got that other gear that he just shifts into near the end of the game.”
Shooting guard Klay Thompson said: “He’s one of the best players in the NBA, if not the best. He’s bound to explode at some point in every game.”
Curry finished with 28 points on 9-for-21 shooting, to go with five assists, five rebounds and five steals. Sixth man Andre Iguodala scored 20 points on 4-for-5 threepoint shooting, and small forward Harrison Barnes added 19 points and gutsy defense, including stretches at center.
“It was a lot of heart,” Curry said. “For H.B. to do what he needs to do on the offensive end and then also have to knuckle down and guard (Memphis’ bigs), he was all over the place. We’re versatile and everybody knows that each game is going to be different, so you have to step up and do what’s asked of you.”
The Warriors’ big men spent much of the night in foul trouble against the physical Grizzlies, who might have been a mite more chippy than usual because of the Warriors’ 50-point pummeling of Memphis on Nov. 2.
The Grizzlies got 26 points and seven rebounds from center Marc Gasol, 19 points and seven rebounds from power forward Zach Randolph and 15 points from small forward Tony Allen, and the Grizzlies seemed to have Curry bottled at the outset.
When the Warriors came out for their pregame layup lines, Curry couldn’t find a ball and then hit the bottom of the backboard with his first shot. The struggles carried into the game as Curry missed 10 of his first 14 shots.
But he made the shots when it mattered in the third quarter to maintain his squad’s run and put away a team that had been a consistent pest until last season. The Warriors have led by at least 14 points in each of their games this season and have beaten their first nine opponents by a combined 158 points — 12 shy of the all-time pace set by the 199697 Chicago Bulls.
“We’re just trying to win every game we play,” Curry said. “… It’s nice to keep doing things we’ve never done, but it’s all part of the process of getting better. For us, no one in this room gets complacent, so we’ve got enough motivation already.”
“Steph being Steph. That’s who he is, and that’s what he does. He came through for us in the big moment.” Draymond Green, on Stephen Curry’s 17-point outburst in the third quarter