Wednesday, February 13, 2019

NBA: Warriors shoot past Jazz with 4th-quarter rally


Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry bombed in a pair of 3-pointers apiece in a late flurry Tuesday night that allowed the Golden State Warriors to overtake the Utah Jazz, 115-108, in a battle of two of the NBA's hottest teams in Oakland, California.

The win was the Warriors' 16th in their past 17 games and gave them a 2-1 edge over the Jazz in a season series that saw the teams split games in Salt Lake City.

Utah lost for just the fourth time in its past 16 games.

The Jazz led by as many as seven points early in the fourth quarter and retained a 93-88 advantage with 8:41 remaining before the Warriors got their high-powered offense in gear.

Thompson began a 20-4, game-swinging run with 3-point and 2-point hoops, the latter drawing Golden State even at 93-all with 7:50 remaining.

After hoops by DeMarcus Cousins and Kevin Durant made it a 9-0 spree for the Warriors, Utah's Donovan Mitchell countered with a basket to narrow the Jazz's deficit to 97-95.

That's when Curry took charge, nailing back-to-back 3-pointers and then a layup in a personal 8-0 burst that opened a 10-point lead.

Ricky Rubio stopped the run with an interior hoop, but Thompson then connected from long range again, giving Golden State a 108-97 lead with just 3:51 remaining.

Durant (game-high 28 points), Curry (24) and Thompson (22) paced the Warriors, who wrap up their pre-All-Star break schedule at Portland on Wednesday night.

Cousins finished 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Andre Iguodala added 13 points for Golden State, which outshot Utah 49.4 percent to 47.1 percent from the floor.

Mitchell had a team-high 25 points for the Jazz, who had a two-game winning streak snapped.

Rudy Gobert recorded 13 points and 16 rebounds for Utah, while Rubio had 16 points, Derrick Favors and Royce O'Neale 13 apiece and Raul Neto 10.

The Jazz overcame a 14-point first quarter in which they made only five field goals to rally into the lead in the third period.

Utah trailed by as many as 11 in the first half but got within 47-44 by halftime and then took its first lead since the game's second minute on a 3-pointer by Mitchell with 4:39 left in the third quarter.

Utah's edge reached 91-84 on a pair of free throws by Neto with 9:51 remaining in the fourth quarter before the Warriors rallied.

source: news.abs-cbn.com