The Cavaliers went into this game after losing 9 of their last 10 games and riding a 7 game losing streak. The Warriors were coming into this game after a rough loss to the Nets. This was a game where Andrew Wiggins was facing his old team who traded him away for Kevin Love. Kevin Love was out for the Cavaliers though. The Warriors were still missing both of their centers in this game but the Warriors got lucky because Andre Drummond who was averaging 13.5 rebounds was being benched because the Cavs were looking to trade him at the trade deadline. Though Drummond was out the Cavs still had JaVale McGee and Jarrett Allen to rebound and dominate down low. The Warriors did have a bit of an advantage in this game considering that this was the second game of a back-to-back for the Cavs. For the Cavs to win they needed to rebound well despite the fact that they were missing Drummond, force a lot of turnovers, and defend Stephen Curry. For the Warriors to win they needed to make sure not to have too many turnovers, rebound, and have a nice offense game. Would the Warriors be able to bounce back from their embarrassing loss to the Nets and get the win or would the Cavs snap their 7 game losing streak and get an upset win? To the game!
The Cavs won the tip which led to a Darius Garland layup after multiple defensive stops for each team. Those were also the first points of the game for either team. At 10:45 Andrew Wiggins made a 3 to give the Warriors the lead. At 8:42 Juan Toscano-Anderson made a 3 to give the Warriors a 6 point lead. At 4:22 Cedi Osman made a 3 to give the Cavs a 1 point lead. At 1:46 Stephen Curry made a 3 to tie the game at 29 points a piece. Then at 1:14 Steph made another 3 to give the Warriors a 3 point lead. With 27.3 seconds left in the quarter JaVale McGee tied the game at 32 with a nice putback layup. At the end of the quarter the Warriors and Cavs were tied at 32 points. In the first quarter the Warriors were outrebounded by 6 but had 3 fewer assists than the Warriors. The Warriors had 1 more turnover, 1 more foul, and 1 fewer steals than the Cavs. The Warriors shot extremely well in the first quarter with 57.1% from the field, 62.5% from downtown, and they didn’t miss a free throw. The Cavs shot decently too with 52% from the field, 28.6% from 3, and 80% from the free throw line. Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 16 points in the first quarter and Collin Sexton led the Cavs with 7 points. Both teams hoped to gain momentum and take the lead in the second quarter.
To start the 2nd quarter Damyean Dotson made a pullup jumper to give the Cavs the lead. At 11:09 Damion Lee made 2 free throws to tie up the game. From that point to around the 6 minute mark both teams went back and forth taking the lead. At 6:09 Garland made a layup to give the Cavs a 5 point lead. Then at 4:33 Kent Bazemore made a corner 3 in transition to give the Warriors a 2 point lead. At 2:25 Draymond Green drew a charge from Isaac Okoro who got injured while committing the foul. At 1:44 Curry made a 3 to give the Warriors a 7 point lead. With seconds to go in the half Steph made a 3 to give the Warriors a 10 point lead. At the end of the half the Warriors were leading 64-54. A 21-8 run for the Warriors near the end of the quarter helped them take a 10 point lead at halftime. Steph played very well for the Warriors in the first half with 24 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists. Draymond Green also played well with 4 points, 5 rebounds, 9 assists, and a steal. Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen played well for the Cavs in the first half with a combined 23 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal, and a block. In the first half the Warriors had 8 more assists than the Cavs which was good but they also had 9 fewer rebounds which was was an issue. The Warriors also had 1 fewer steals, 3 more blocks, and 4 more fouls than the Cavs. The Warriors kept shooting well with 54.5% from the field, 52.9% from 3, and they still hadn’t missed a free throw. The Cavaliers on the other hand were shooting 41.3% from the field, 27.3% from 3, and 81.2% from the free throw line. In the 3rd quarter the Warriors hoped to build their lead and take over. The Cavs hoped to tie the game and give themselves an opportunity in the 4th quarter. To the third!
To start the 3rd quarter Juan Toscano-Anderson made a layup to give the Warriors a 12 point lead. At 11:11Jarrett Allen made a layup to give the Cavs their first points of the quarter. At 6:41 Osman made a 3 to make it an 8 point game. Stephen Curry followed that up with a nifty layup to put it back up to a 10 point game. At 5:09 Mychal Mulder made a corner 3 to give the Warriors a 16 point lead. At 3:07 Juan Toscano-Anderson made a putback layup to give the Warriors a 21 point lead. At 1:11 Dotson made a 3 to make it an 18 point game once again. At the end of the third quarter the Warriors were leading 101-84. Stephen Curry was leading the Warriors with 36 points, 2 rebounds, and 6 assists. Draymond Green was also playing very well with 6 points, 8 rebounds, a career high tying 16 assists, a steal, and 2 blocks. Cedi Osman was leading the Cavs in points with 17 points. The Warriors were sharing the ball very well with 13 more assists than the Cavs after the 3rd quarter. The Warriors played good defense in the first 3 quarters with 1 fewer steals, 3 more blocks, and held the Cavs to 42.5% from the field, 31.8% from deep, and 83.3% from the free throw line. The Warriors on the other hand shot 55.2% from the field, 51.9% from downtown, and still hadn’t missed a free throw. One of the only downsides for the Warriors in the first 3 quarters was that they had 14 less rebounds than the Cavaliers. Both teams went into the 4th quarter looking to finish out the game well.
To start the 4th quarter Damion Lee got called for goaltending which gave the Cavs their first points of the quarter. At 10:46 Eric Paschall made a baby hook shot to give the Warriors a 17 point lead and their first points of the quarter. At 8:48 Andrew Wiggins slammed in a dunk to give the Warriors a 21 point advantage. At 6:40 Andrew Wiggins dunked a lob from Brad Wannamaker to make it a 26 point game. Throughout the rest of the quarter the Warriors stayed at around a 20 point lead. With 54.3 seconds left in the game Brad Wannamaker made a couple of free throws to give the Warriors a 21 point lead. The Warriors ended up winning 129-98.
Leo’s Courtside Commentary: Stephen Curry and Draymond Green both had amazing games with 36 points, 2 rebounds, and 6 assists for Curry and 6 points, 8 rebounds, 16 assists, a steal, and 2 blocks for Draymond. Every player who played in this game for the Warriors had a positive +/-. The leaders for the Cavaliers were Collin Sexton and Cedi Osman with 23 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, and 5 steals for Sexton and 17 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals for Osman. The Warriors ended up with 15 more assists, 10 fewer rebounds, 1 fewer steals, 7 more blocks, 3 fewer turnovers, and 1 fewer fouls. The Warriors also shot the ball extremely well with 52.3% from the field, 45.9% from 3, and 95.2% from the free throw line. The Warriors also did an amazing job defensively holding the Cavaliers to 38.9% from the field, 26.7% from downtown, and 80% from the free throw line. The Warriors and Cavs were tied after the first quarter but the Warriors were able to take over in the final 3 quarters. Overall, this was a great game for Stephen Curry and the Warriors taking home a nice win.
Out of LF 
Really great recap of a game I missed. Despite Curry’s terrific scoring it sounds like it was a full team effort for the Warriors and a great result. Thank you for such good reporting!
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