The Warriors started the game looking like they were going to crush the Pelicans. They went into the half with an 18 point lead after a huge run. The first half and much of the third quarter was all about the Warriors as they were making everything they shot and playing outstanding defense. They were forcing a lot of turnovers which caused them to have a lot of fast break points. They looked like they were worlds above the Pelicans, but late in the third quarter, when the Warriors had a 25 point lead, the tides started to turn.
The Pelicans started to mount a big comeback. They slowly started to chip at the Warriors lead, and with about 4 minutes left they brought the lead down to 10 points. The comeback surge was led by the Brow, Anthony Davis. Davis lead the team, scoring 20 fourth quarter points and shooting 7-10. With 24 seconds left, the Pelicans were down by seven with Klay Thompson going to the line. Klay, shockingly, missed both free throws, and after the timeout by the Pels, with 20 seconds left, Eric Gordon hit a two-pointer to bring the lead down to five. Then, after Klay Thompson went to the line hitting one out of two free throws, Anthony Davis made two free throws and the Pelicans were down 103-99 with 8 seconds left. This is the smallest the lead would get for the Warriors. The Pelicans would not score the ball again, and the final score of the game was 106-99 with the Warriors on top.
Stephen Curry lead the Warriors today, scoring 34 points and recording 3 steals. For the first time all season though, he missed three free throws shooting 4-7 from the line. The Warriors uncharacteristically did not shoot well from the free throw line at all tonight, shooting 21-34 from the line. In a word, Steph Curry said his teams free throw shooting was “awful” after the game. Klay Thompson scored 21 points today, but he missed 3 of 4 free throws in the last-minute of the game. Both Draymond Green and Andrew Bogut recorded double-doubles in the victory.
The Pelicans star player, in his first playoff game ever, Anthony Davis, scored a game-high 35 points, pulled down 7 rebounds and he also blocked 4 shots playing solid defense.Quincy Pondexter dropped 20 points in the game, with 9 rebounds and 6 assists.Norris Cole played great off the bench, although his stats don’t show it. Cole played tough, hard-nosed defense against the Warriors, and he lead his team in +/- at +12.
The Warriors and Pelicans had a great contest in game one, but the Warriors came out on top today. They play game 2 on Monday.
