Steph Curry puts up 30 as Warriors dump Kings
Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors reacts after making a three-point shot against the Sacramento Kings during the first quarter at Chase Center on December 20, 2021 in San Francisco, California. Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images/AFP
Stephen Curry saved 15 of his game-high 30 points for the fourth quarter and Draymond Green recorded a triple-double Monday night as the shorthanded Golden State Warriors outlasted the even more short-handed Sacramento Kings 113-98 in San Francisco.
With Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole in health and safety protocols and the Warriors still without Klay Thompson and James Wiseman, Golden State used a 29-19 fourth quarter to pull out a win in a game they trailed late in the third period.
Tyrese Haliburton had a team-high 24 points for the Kings, who were without six players — including De’Aaron Fox and Davion Mitchell — for COVID reasons and Richaun Holmes due to an eye injury.
Returning from a five-game Eastern Conference trip, the Warriors led by as many as 15 points in the second and third quarters before the Kings rallied behind five Buddy Hield 3-pointers to go up 79-77 with 1:34 remaining in the third period.
Gary Payton II contributed five points, including a three-point play, to a 7-0 Warriors run to end the period, and the hosts gradually pulled away over the final 12 minutes thanks to Curry.
The league’s all-time 3-point king finished 4-for-12 from beyond the arc but 9-for-15 from inside en route to his 11th 30-point game of the season. Golden State has gone 10-1 in those games.
In his first home game since setting the all-time 3PM mark, @StephenCurry30 drops 30 PTS to lift the @warriors to the dub 🙌 pic.twitter.com/knTTy05PpF
— NBA (@NBA) December 21, 2021
Green put up 16 points, a game-high 11 rebounds and 10 assists in his first triple-double of the season and the second of his career against Sacramento.
Damion Lee chipped in with 18 points for the Warriors, who won for the 15th time in 17 home games. Payton and Otto Porter Jr. added 12 points off the bench, while a third reserve, Andre Iguodala, scored 10.
Led by Lee’s 7-for-8 success, the Warriors outshot the Kings 52.3 percent to 44.6 percent.
Haliburton completed a double-double for the Kings, who were playing the second night of a back-to-back, with a game-high 11 assists.
All five Sacramento starters scored in double figures, with Harrison Barnes going for 19, Hield 18, Chimezie Metu 16 and Tristan Thompson 10 to complement Haliburton’s 24. Thompson also found time for a team-high nine rebounds.
All of Hield’s points came on 6-of-13 shooting from 3-point range. Despite losing for the fifth time in their past seven games, the Kings outshot the Warriors 40.6 percent to 40.5 percent from beyond the arc.
