|
 Curry was dazzling in the first half when he made all five of his
3-point attempts en route to 24 points. Curry recorded a
triple-double against Phoenix last Friday.
"He took it upon himself to make plays and establish a rhythm,"
Jackson said. "I love the way he competed defensively, also. He
certainly made plays for himself and for everybody else on the
floor.
"He's a guy we believe in. We're not going to tell him to stop
shooting. He's a guy who is having an all-time great year for
himself and has put himself in the class of elite players and it's
great to see."
Curry was stopped cold by the Cavs (10-20) in the second half. He
made just 2 of 12 shots from the field, 0 of 5 from beyond the arc,
after halftime.
However, Curry buried a 3-pointer with 13.5 seconds left in the
overtime period, which broke the Cavs' backs.
"It was certainly a big shot," Jackson said. "That's who Steph is.
He's one of the best in the world."
Cavaliers point guard Kyrie Irving may belong in the same class. He
came very close to matching Curry's output with 27 points and nine
assists. Irving has averaged 33.7 points in his last three games.
"(Curry is) a great player," Irving said. "We are the main guys on
our teams. It was a good matchup. I wish we could have come out with
a win."
The Cavs built a 17-point lead, 64-47, with 1:13 remaining in the
first half. However, they allowed the Warriors to score eight
unanswered points in the last 53.9 seconds to climb back to within
nine points, 64-55.
"It's tough to deal with," Cavs coach Mike Brown said. "We have to
do a better job closing quarters."
The Warriors outscored the Cavs in the third quarter 27-20, and
trailed by just two points, 84-82, entering the fourth quarter.
Forward Draymond Green's 3-pointer with 1:05 left in regulation
handed the Warriors a 99-96 advantage. It was his first field goal
of the contest.
Irving, though, buried a clutch 3-pointer over the 6-foot-7 Thompson
with 9.5 seconds left to tie the score at 99. "He hit a big shot for us," Brown said. "We called an (isolation
play), so there wouldn't be any other players running at him."
[to top of second column] |
The Warriors outscored the Cavs in overtime 9-5.
Golden State forward David Lee added 19 points before fouling out
with 3:31 left in overtime. He was scoreless in the first half.
Thompson added 16 points for the Warriors, while Green pulled down
12 rebounds.
It was the first leg of a seven-game, 13-day East Coast road trip
for Golden State. The Warriors lead the league in games decided by
four points or fewer (13). They are 6-7 in those games.
Guard C.J. Miles and forward Tristan Thompson each added 17 points
for the Cavs. Thompson and center Anderson Varejao each had 12
rebounds.
Cavs guard Dion Waiters had a game to forget. He had eight points,
five rebounds and four assists. However, he was 3 of 15 from the
field and committed five turnovers.
Warriors center Andrew Bogut inadvertently elbowed Irving on the top
of the head with 3:47 left in the first half. Trainers looked at
Irving on the bench, but he checked back into the game a few minutes
later.
"We feel we're close," Brown said. "We're right there. We competed
throughout course of the game.
"All these losses bother our guys. We have to stay at it. We're
competing enough to have a chance to win games." NOTES: The
Cavaliers clarified that C Andrew Bynum was not suspended
indefinitely. He was suspended for one game without pay. He was
suspended from team activities indefinitely. He is now being paid to
stay home. ... The trip to Cleveland was the first leg of a
seven-game, 13-day Eastern Conference road trip for the Warriors.
"If we don't do the things we're supposed to do, it could be very
challenging," Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. "We're a
defensive-first team. When you defend, your act travels." ... The
Cavs canceled the Andrew Bynum Fathead Tradeable they had planned to
give away on Sunday. ... Cavs C Tyler Zeller recorded season highs
in minutes (22) and rebounds (10) in the loss to Boston on Saturday.
"It's a process," Zeller said. "Hopefully, it's a quick process."
... Jackson misses former Golden State and current Cavs G Jarrett
Jack. "I can't put it into words what he meant to our team," he
said. ... Bynum's locker still had his name above it and still had
remnants in it, most notably a half a loaf of bread and some Skippy
peanut butter.
[© 2013 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2013 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
|
