After a balanced and rigorous start to the game on both sides, the Pelicans defense took over. She causes several losses of balls, forces difficult shots, and passes a 16-2 to the Warriors to finish the first quarter (36-25)!
Steve Kerr’s men try to regain their early intensity, but every good defensive possession is wasted by an offensive rebound or a quick loose ball. The size, scope, and hardness of the Pelicans bother them and Trey Murphy’s third 3-pointer throws a chill in the Chase Center (50-36). Tempers flare between Brandon Ingram and Draymond Green, and the Pelicans take the opportunity to end the half on a 13-5 to return to the locker room at +17 thanks to a 9/14 at 3-points (63-46) !
The Warriors get angry
Golden State returns to the field with other intentions as evidenced by their 8-0 to start the third quarter (63-54). Klay Thompson, Stephen Curry, and Anthony Lamb each hit the mark from afar to continue to catch up, but the Ingram-Murphy duo stabilized the Pelicans (85-74). Willie Green’s men are patient against the Warriors box on Ingram, but three straight 3-point baskets from Stephen Curry revive the game (89-85).
Golden State continues its momentum. Curry and Poole push the tempo even further and nine points from the second named launch a 20-9 that put the Warriors in front for the first time since the first quarter (105-98)! Trey Murphy has stopped the bleeding, the Warriors are untouchable. Behind Draymond Green, the defensive intensity is increased tenfold and on the other side the Curry – Poole duo chained the winning shots to increase the gap to +10 (113-103). The Pelicans will not recover and the Warriors regain control of sixth place.
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
– The Pelicans’ near-perfect first half. Willie Green’s men landed in San Francisco on a mission. Focused, tough, and ruthless, they walked on the Warriors in all areas of the game. Their defense caused 14 loose balls to give them a +18 advantage on the counterattack. They took 8 offensive rebounds to be +7 on second chances. They finished the half at 9/14 from 3-pointers and 50% on shots. Only their 10 lost balls and 17 points from Stephen Curry allowed the Warriors to be only -17 at the break.
– The Warriors used the 3-point shot to get back into the game. The Warriors had taken only fourteen attempts from afar for six successes, a good 43% success rate. It was, however, too little to put pressure on the Pelicans defense. In the third quarter, Steve Kerr’s men regained their identity. Much less static, they made a point of taking more shots from afar. They finished the 3rd period 8/18 from afar to win the quarter 39-26, and this fear of 3-pointers multiplied the Pelicans’ errors to open the racket for them.
– 74-46 in the second half for Golden State! Everyone has their dream half in this decisive match in the race for the playoffs. With the wind in their sails after the third quarter, the Warriors did even better in the final period. If the 22 points of the Jordan Poole – Stephen Curry duo were decisive, it was the burst of defense that made the difference to asphyxiate the Pelicans. On the verge of expulsion at the end of the first half, Draymond Green delivered a demonstration on this side of the field both in commitment and in execution. Behind him, the Warriors limited the Pelicans to 20 points in the last quarter, 9/22 on shots including 0/7 for the Ingram – McCollum duo.
TOPS/FLOPS
✅ Stephen Curry. The Warriors star limited the break in the first half before scoring 22 of his 39 points in the second half to put his team back in the game. He also took 8 rebounds, issued 8 assists, and intercepted 3 balls to make up for his 4 ball losses.
✅ Jordan Poole. The sixth man scored 13 of his 21 points in the last quarter to drive the point home and restore the advantage to his team.
✅ Trey Murphy III. The Pelicans winger confirms his good run with 21 points at 4/6 from 3-point range.
✅ ⛔ Draymond Green. On the verge of going off the road in the first half, Green was able to channel his frustration to dominate the second half. He finished with 8 points, 12 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, and plenty of defensive action that doesn’t show in his stat line.
✅ ⛔ Brandon Ingram – CJ McCollum. Aggressive and patient for three quarters, the two players scored 41 points in three quarters but remained silent in the last quarter against the Warriors wave.
⛔ Jonas Valanciunas. Too low on pick and roll, the Lithuanian pivot was turned on by Stephen Curry in the third quarter time and could not stay on the ground in the last quarter time.
THE FOLLOWING
Golden State (40-37) : reception of the Spurs on Thursday.
New Orleans (38-38) : trip to Denver on Thursday.
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