2nd half sees no letdown — and no letup
SACRAMENTO — Enough Warriors fans made the 90-minute drive Sunday to Golden 1 Center for a road game to have a distinctly friendly vibe.
By the time Kevin Durant stepped to the foul line with 2:46 left, a predominantly yellow-andblue crowd rained down a familiar chorus: “WARR-I-ORS!” It was an early celebration for a 117-106 win over the Kings that helped exorcise the memory of Friday’s stunning collapse to Memphis.
Golden State blitzed Sacramento 39-22 in the third quarter, ultimately extending its NBA-record streak of regular-season games without back-to-back losses to 124. Those 12 minutes of dominance overshadowed a lackluster first half and improved the Warriors’ NBA-best record to 32-6.
“You saw the third quarter, (Sacramento’s)
legs got a little tired,” Durant said. “We were more physical, and we got out and ran. That’s the formula for us.”
It wasn’t long ago that interior defense was Golden State’s most glaring weakness. In frustrating DeMarcus Cousins (17 points on 4-for-11 shooting, seven turnovers) with a wave of double-teams Sunday, the Warriors reinforced how far they’ve come.
Durant (28 points, seven rebounds, six assists), Stephen Curry (30 points, six assists), Klay Thompson (18 points) and Draymond Green (nine points, 10 assists, seven rebounds) were their typically stellar selves. A role player in a starting lineup filled with All-Stars, Zaza Pachulia helped quell Cousins, chipped in 10 points on only five shots and corralled seven rebounds. It was his fourth consecutive game with double-digit points.
“He’s not going to be on any highlight reels, despite the fact that he’s leading the All-Star voting,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “He’s just a smart player. He’s in the right place, and he’s got good hands.”
Armed with the league’s most potent offense, the Warriors have hardly needed perfection to to sit atop the standings. Having a talent advantage each night has allowed Golden State to weather stretches of lackadaisical effort.
Friday’s overtime loss to Memphis, in which they squandered a 24-point, secondhalf lead, reminded the Warriors of the pitfalls of relaxing when leading big. It was so valuable that Green went so far as to say he was “thrilled” about the defeat.
Yet there the Warriors were Sunday, slogging through a lethargic first half against a sub-.500 team. They had little answer for Rudy Gay, who poured in 17 of his team-high 23 points before intermission, as they dug a 48-32 hole midway through the second quarter.
With 4:13 until halftime and Sacramento up 13 points, Cousins was whistled for his third foul. He stomped to the Kings’ bench, kicking and punching a chair to earn a technical, before he finally took his seat. With Sacramento’s petulant leader watching from the sideline, Golden State quickly cut its deficit to a single digit.
The third quarter got off to a rough start for the Warriors: After the Kings’ Anthony Tolliver hit a corner three, Darren Collison stole a Pachulia inbounds pass and netted another three to push Sacramento’s lead to 64-55. It was then that the Warriors ratcheted up the tempo, strung together stops and used a 22-3 run to build a 10-point cushion.
Late in the third, Durant blocked a Cousins jumper. The Kings’ two-time NBA All-Star was left shaking his head as Curry finished with the reverse layup on the other end. Without Cousins’ usual dominance, Sacramento couldn’t get back within striking distance as it endured its 13th straight loss to Golden State.
“You’re doing something right if he’s not happy,” Pachulia said of the disgruntled Cousins. “We take the credit as a team. It’s a team effort.”
Their club trailing by 16, Kings fans started filing toward the exits with less than three minutes left. A good chunk of the Warriors’ contingent waved farewell.