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 During an effort when Livingston's fellow reserves outscored
their Miami Heat counterparts 41-17, the veteran was hardly missed
Wednesday night.
The Warriors rode the long-distance shooting of guard Stephen Curry
and the all-around play of their bench while equaling their
25-year-old West Coast record with a 15th consecutive home win,
thumping the Heat 104-89.
"Depth is one of our strengths," said Warriors backup power forward
David Lee, a former All-Star. "Guys can get worn down. We've had
that here in the past."
Playing only 32 minutes because of the efficiency of the Golden
State backups, Curry had a game-high 32 points as the Warriors ran
their record to 13-0 against Eastern Conference competition this
season. "This is the beginning of the dog days in the NBA," Kerr said of the
four-week period leading into the All-Star break. "The newness of
the season is now over, and we are on this great run and we're not
even halfway through, and guys are tired. Every team is fighting it
right now."
Curry and backcourt mate Klay Thompson combined for four 3-pointers
and 19 points in the first quarter, during which the Warriors built
a 26-18 lead. The home team never looked back.
Golden State (31-5) led by as many as 19 in the second quarter and
only momentarily saw the advantage shrink to single digits in the
second half while coasting to its eighth straight win.
The Heat (17-22) played the second half of a back-to-back without
star guard Dwyane Wade, who sustained a hamstring injury Tuesday in
a win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Power forward Chris Bosh led Miami with 26 points.
"You never know what move to make when you have a guy out like
Dwyane," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, who gave rookie point guard
Shabazz Napier his first start. "(The new-look lineup) didn't work
tonight, and we'll see what we do the next game."
Curry, who bombed in eight 3-pointers and totaled 40 points when the
Warriors won 114-97 at Miami on Nov. 25, connected on seven of his
10 3-point attempts in the rematch as Golden State outscored the
Heat 39-18 from beyond the arc and 17-4 on fast-break points.
Thompson finished with three 3-pointers and 19 points. Guard Leandro
Barbosa and swingman Andre Iguodala each scored nine points, the top
totals among five Warriors reserves who scored at least seven
points.
Iguodala also led the Warriors with seven assists, while Lee and
backup center Marreese Speights shared team-high honors with six
rebounds.
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"We're pretty fortunate to have the guys that we do coming off the
bench," Kerr said of his fivesome of Lee, Barbosa, Iguodala,
Speights and shooting guard Justin Holiday in the planned absence of
Livingston. "A couple of All-Stars (Lee and Iguodala). Barbosa has
been Sixth Man of the Year and a big scorer. Mo Speights has been
one of the best bench players in the league this year. And Justin
(Holiday) has been fantastic.
"That's five guys that are playing at a high level who are not
starting. That's a luxury."
The Warriors shot 46.9 percent from the field and became the first
Heat opponent in five games to score at least 100 points.
"They make it tough," Spoelstra said of the Warriors. "Everyone
talks about their offense and how they shoot the ball, but their
defense does a real good job of keeping you on the sidelines and
keeping you from getting ball movement, and we suffered because of
that."
Small forward Luol Deng backed Bosh with 19 points. Center Hassan
Whiteside, making his first start in just his 15th game for the
Heat, recorded a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Napier contributed had 10 points and six assists.
The Heat saw their two-game winning streak end while falling to 2-2
on a five-game trip that ends Friday night in Sacramento. Miami won
eight of its previous 10 games in Oakland.
NOTES: Addressing the media before the game, Heat coach Erik
Spoelstra labeled SG Dwyane Wade's status as day-to-day and would
not rule him out of Miami's trip finale Friday at Sacramento. ...
Wade missed seven games in November with a hamstring injury. ...
Heat SG Tyler Johnson, signed to a 10-day contract Tuesday, suited
up for the first time Wednesday. The San Francisco Bay Area native,
who once attended a Warriors Basketball Camp as a youth, played the
final 1:44 and recorded his first two NBA points in front of family
and friends on a pair of free throws with 22.6 seconds left. ... The
Warriors completed their first season-series sweep of the Heat since
2007-08. ... The Warriors recorded their 100th consecutive sellout
at Oracle Arena. Only six NBA teams currently have longer sellout
streaks.
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