Warriors erase double-digit deficit to beat Pelicans
Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) blocks a shot by New Orleans Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday (11) in the first half of an NBA basketball game in New Orleans, Friday, Oct. 20, 2017. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
NEW ORLEANS — Klay Thomspon scored 31 points, Stephen Curry added 28 and the Golden State Warriors easily erased a 15-point first-half deficit en route to a 128-120 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night.
Kevin Durant added 22 points and a career-high seven blocked shots for the Warriors, who won for the first time this young season after dropping their opener to Houston. New Orleans is still looking for its first victory after two games, shooting well early in both games before fading in the second half.
Anthony Davis had 35 points and 17 rebounds for the Pelicans, while fellow big man DeMarcus Cousins had 35 points and 14 rebounds.
The teams combined for 34 3-pointers, with the Warriors hitting 18. Thompson was 7 of 12 from deep.
After trailing by double digits much of the fourth quarter, the Pelicans pulled as close as five points on Cousins’ 3 with about three minutes to go. But Thompson responded immediately with a 3, and Golden State remained comfortably in control from there.
New Orleans stormed in front early, thanks to eight 3-pointers in the first quarter. The period closed with a long 3 by each team. Draymond Green hit from 31 feet as the shot clock ran down, then Davis beat the horn from 30 feet, turning after the shot to face the crowd and pound the palm of his right hand into his chest.
Davis’ shot put the Pelicans up 39-26, and New Orleans led by as many as 15 when Cousins’ free throw made it 57-42 half way through the second quarter.
Golden State then closed out the half with a 19-7 flourish, capped by Durant’s 3 that made it 64-61 at halftime. That turned out to be the beginning of a 26-7 run that gave the Warriors their first lead in the third quarter.
TIP INS
Warriors: Curry reached 3,927 assists during the game, passing Tim Hardaway for second place on the franchise’s assists list. … Durant scored two points and blocked two shots by Tony Allen during a short stretch in which he played with only one shoe after the other had fallen off right before he hit a layup. … Green finished with 10 points and was assessed a technical foul by official Karl Lane after shoving Cousins in the second quarter. … Golden State turned it over 11 times in the first half. … David West, who was New Orleans’ first-round draft choice in 2003 and spent his first eight NBA seasons with the franchise, received polite applause after scoring his first points on a mid-range jumper. He followed that up with a 3-pointer shortly after and finished with 11 points.
Pelicans: G Ian Clarke had 14 points, while Jrue Holiday and Jordan Crawford each added 13 from the back court. … Coach Alvin Gentry was assessed a technical foul by official Ed Malloy in the second quarter, shortly after Green’s technical. … The Pelicans announced that C Alexis Ajinca would miss four to six weeks following successful bilateral knee injections to treat patellar tendonitis. … New Orleans shot 50 percent from 3-point range in the first half, hitting 11 of 22, but only 42.9 percent (3 of 7) on free throws.
UP NEXT
Warriors: At Memphis on Saturday night.
Pelicans: At the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.
