OKLAHOMA CITY — Stephen Curry scored 36 points, and the Golden State Warriors held off a late rally to defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder 127-116 on Sunday night.
It was a double whammy for the Thunder as forward Chet Holmgren didn’t return after suffering a right hip injury in the first quarter. The injury put a damper on a matchup between two of the top teams in the Western Conference.
Jonathan Kuminga scored 20 points, De’Anthony Melton had 19 points and 10 rebounds and Andrew Wiggins added 18 points for the Warriors.
Golden State led by 30 late in the third quarter before the Thunder stormed back. A steal and dunk by Alex Caruso cut Golden State’s lead to six with 4:46 left before the Warriors regained control.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 24 points and Jalen Williams added 20 for the Thunder, who suffered their first home loss of the season.
Warriors: This version of Curry is what Oklahoma City fans have come to expect when he visits. The 36-year-old made 7 of 13 3-pointers and shot 13 of 23 overall and showed that when he’s on, his team is tough to slow down.
Thunder: Oklahoma City led the league in defensive rating partly due to the 7-foot-1 Holmgren’s ability protect the rim and cover for his teammates’ mistakes. Without him, the guards couldn’t gamble as much, and the Thunder weren’t as good defensively around the rim.
Oklahoma City cut its deficit to 116-108 before Curry hit a 3-pointer while falling to the ground with 3:23 remaining. The Warriors led by at least seven the rest of the way.
Golden State shot 50.6% from the field. It was the first time this season a Thunder opponent shot better than 50%.
Golden State visits Dallas on Tuesday, and the Thunder host the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
