Golden State muscles past Denver 118-113 for 3-0 lead
DENVER — The Golden State Warriors proved they’re good counter punchers, withstanding a fired-up Denver Nuggets team that finally took the fight to them instead of the officials and each other.
Stephen Curry and Jordan Poole scored 27 points each, Klay Thompson made six 3-pointers on his way to 26 points and the Warriors muscled past the Nuggets 118113 Thursday night to take a 3-0 lead in their playoff series.
“It’s a Poole party!” Thompson hollered as he interrupted Poole’s post-game television interview.
Draymond Green added a key steal from Nikola Jokic, who finished with 37 points and 18 rebounds, in the final minute and the Warriors closed on a 9-2 run to put the Nuggets on the cusp of elimination.
“We played great down the stretch on both” ends of the court, Thompson said.
Andrew Wiggins hit a secondchance 3-pointer to put Golden State ahead for good 112-111, and Green, who played the final four minutes with five fouls, came up big by poking the ball away from Jokic
with 40 seconds left.
“For Draymond to battle him all night and to make that play in the end was just a huge part of the win,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
Golden State can sweep the series Sunday in Denver.
After two blowouts in San Francisco, Nuggets coach Michael Malone said, “I know that this sounds weird because it was a loss and there are no moral victories, I get that. But we gave ourselves a chance tonight. We didn’t do that in Golden State. We put ourselves in a position late to beat a very good basketball team.”
After the Nuggets bickered with each other on the bench and Jokic got ejected for hollering at an official in Game 2, they stuck together and stayed in this game until the end.
“I love how we fought tonight,” said Malone, who challenged his team to replicate that effort Sunday: “Are we going to roll over? Are we going to fight like hell and send this back to Golden State?”
DeMarcus Cousins said Malone needn’t wonder.
“I’ve been a fighter my whole life. I know how I’m approaching it,” Cousins said. “And I expect everyone else in that locker room to do the same. … I’m a fighter, I’ll go out swinging.”
The Nuggets were in control for much of the second half, but after Jokic’s finger roll layup put Denver ahead 111109 with 3:20 left, the Warriors turned away Denver on six straight possessions while pulling away.
Aaron Gordon added 18 points for the Nuggets, who lost for the seventh straight time in the postseason. The other six losses were by an average of 16 points.