Stephen Curry poured in 37 factors, Brandin Podziemski added a career-high 28, and the Golden State Warriors held off the Los Angeles Lakers 123-116 on Thursday evening, extending their win streak to 4 in what could possibly be a preview of a first-round playoff matchup.
Podziemski nailed eight 3-pointers, whereas Curry linked on 4 of 11 makes an attempt from past the arc, contemporary off a 52-point efficiency, together with 12 3-pointers, in Memphis on Tuesday.
LeBron James led the Lakers with 33 factors and 9 assists, whereas Austin Reaves contributed 31 factors, together with 9 3-pointers. Rui Hachimura added 24 factors, and Luka Doncic scored 19 however missed all six of his 3-point makes an attempt.
In the closing minutes, Doncic’s basket introduced the Lakers inside 105-99, however Curry and Podziemski responded with back-to-back 3-pointers. James and Reaves answered with their very own long-range photographs, however the Lakers couldn’t shut the hole, falling quick by seven.
James and Curry traded scoring runs within the third quarter, when the Lakers closed inside eight after trailing by 16 within the second quarter. James had 12 of the Lakers’ 14 factors early on. Curry ran off 13 in a row after which made three free throws to ship the Warriors into the fourth main 88-77.
Jonathan Kuminga added 18 factors and 9 rebounds off the bench for Golden State, which beat the Lakers for the primary time in 4 video games this season. The Warriors’ final win in L.A. got here a 12 months in the past.
Warriors: They closed a six-game journey – tied for the longest of the season – with a 4-2 file. They stay in a decent battle to carry onto a top-six seed and keep away from the play-in match with six video games left.
Lakers: James went over 11,000 factors as a Laker on a 3-pointer within the second quarter, changing into the tenth participant in franchise historical past to take action.
Reaves made a 3-pointer popping out of a timeout to depart the Lakers trailing 121-116 within the closing seconds. But Doncic fouled Curry, who made each free throws.
The Warriors gained without having Jimmy Butler, who had 11 factors on 4-of-7 taking pictures. He had been averaging 17.3 factors per sport and had 27 in opposition to Memphis.
Both groups full back-to-backs on Saturday. The Warriors host Denver, and the Lakers host New Orleans.
Source: www.dailysabah.com