Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors celebrates after he made a three-point basket against the LA Clippers late in the fourth quarter at Chase Center on October 21, 2021 in San Francisco, California. Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images/AFP
Stephen Curry capped a 45-point performance with two late 3-pointers Thursday night, allowing the Golden State Warriors to spoil a valiant effort by the Los Angeles Clippers in a 115-113 victory at San Francisco.
The contest was the Clippers’ season opener.
The Warriors, riding the momentum of an opening win in Los Angeles against the Lakers on Tuesday, trailed 107-105 before Curry bombed in a 31-footer for a one-point advantage with 1:54 to go.
Eric Bledsoe put the visitors back up by one on a layup with 1:44 left, but Curry nailed another 3-pointer with 57.7 seconds left. Golden State’s Draymond Green converted an Andre Iguodala assist into a clinching hoop with 11.6 seconds remaining, giving the Warriors a win in their home opener.
Ivica Zubac sank a free throw with 3.7 seconds left to get Los Angeles within two points. He intentionally missed the second, but the battle for the rebound went on long enough for the clock to expire.
Stephen Curry reached 25+ points and 5+ threes on 100% shooting from the field in a single quarter for the 2nd time in his career tonight.
The only other player to do this is his Splash Brother, Klay Thompson, in 2015. pic.twitter.com/qOLbySRouh
— NBA (@NBA) October 22, 2021
Steph Curry scored 25 points in the first quarter alone thanks to a perfect start from the field (9-for-9), from beyond the 3-point arc (5-for-5) and from the free-throw line (2-for-2). He wound up 8-for-13 from long distance and completed a double-double with a team-high 10 rebounds.
Andrew Wiggins contributed 17 points and Damion Lee 11 to the win. Green chipped in with a team-high seven assists to complement 10 points and six rebounds.
Paul George paced the Clippers with 29 points, shooting 5-for-11 on 3-point attempts. He also found time for team highs of 11 rebounds and six assists.
Bledsoe finished with 22 points while Zubac added 14, Terance Mann and Reggie Jackson 11 apiece and Marcus Morris Sr. 10 for Los Angeles. The Clippers made it interesting despite getting outshot 51.8 percent to 44.2 percent and outscored 45-42 on 3-pointers.
So @StephenCurry30 had a night…
💎 Named to #NBA75 before tip
🔥 25 1Q points on 9-9 shooting
🔥 45 in the game
🔥 Go-ahead triple to lift @warriors pic.twitter.com/98JFwH9lsA— NBA (@NBA) October 22, 2021
After trailing by as many as 19 points in the first half, the Clippers went up 98-90 on a Justise Winslow layup with 10:36 to play.
But Golden State, holding the visitors scoreless for the next 6:09, countered with 12 consecutive points to take a 102-98 advantage into the final 4 1/2 minutes, setting up the tight finish.
A wild first half featured Steph Curry’s flurry before the Clippers closed the second period on a 25-5 run to snatch a 67-66 advantage.
George had 22 points in the half, 13 of which came in the late rally.
Steph Curry led all scorers with 28 at the break.
The Warriors hit 15 of their 19 shots (78.9 percent) in taking a 44-27 lead after one period.