December 24, (THEWILL) – The Memphis Grizzlies appeared to have acquired a taste for handling the Golden State Warriors recently and demonstrated this in their Thursday night encounter, but the Warriors recovered late to avenge themselves, defeating the Grizzlies 113-104.
As is often the case, it was a vintage Steph Curry game. The Warriors’ superstar outplayed Dillon Brooks, who remains one of the league’s best defenders. But, Curry cranked on the shooting percentage afterburners after struggling with efficiency in recent games, scoring 46 points on 13-for-22 shooting, including 8-for-14 from three-point range.
Memphis got off the blocks on pace, taking a 10-point advantage in the first quarter and never looked back. However, the Warriors came back to cut that lead to one point at halftime. It made for a tight second period and GSW upped the ante that they went into the fourth quarter with a single-digit advantage.
They began the fourth by extending their lead and appeared to be on their way to a convincing victory, before Memphis stormed back to tie the game in the final minutes. It took a few key plays to put the Warriors back on top, and Golden State won 113-104 in a foul-filled, long-lasting final minute.
It was a game where Gary Payton II had a season-high 22 points on 9-for-16 shooting, including 4-for-7 from three-point range. The only two players in double figures for the Dubs were him and Curry, although everyone else contributed well.
With Curry initially on the bench, the Warriors’ offence went cold a few times, owing to the absence of the team’s secondary and tertiary scorers, Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins, due to health and safety procedures. Yet, even with those two players sidelined, Payton and Otto Porter Jr., who began in place of Poole and Wiggins, were up to the task of contributing, and the Warriors looked well-rounded.
They were sloppy at times, committing far too many turnovers, but they had plenty of assists and shot 47.5 percent from outside the arc. That was enough to beat a tenacious Grizzlies squad.
The Warriors improved to 26-6 on the season and will face the Phoenix Suns on Christmas Day.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
