Stephen Curry, Warriors overwhelm Jazz
Stephen Curry scored 20 of his team-high 31 points in the third quarter and the Golden State Warriors overcame a double-digit deficit and the ejection of Draymond Green for a 123-114 triumph over the Utah Jazz on Saturday night in San Francisco.
Jimmy Butler III and Quinten Post added 15 points apiece for Golden State, which bounced back from a 37-point shellacking dealt them at home by the Oklahoma City Thunder one night earlier.
Lauri Markkanen led all scorers with 35 points for Utah, which led 58-48 with 2:25 left in the second quarter when Green received a pair of technical fouls and was ejected. Green, who rested on Friday against the Thunder, was disputing a non-call on what he thought was a 3-second violation on Utah's Kyle Filipowski.
Markkanen made both foul shots to make it a 12-point game, Utah's biggest lead of the night, before the Warriors responded to the Green dismissal with a 10-5 run to close the second period. De'Anthony Melton and Curry had 3-pointers in the burst that got Golden State back within 65-58 at the break.
Curry then took over the game in the third period. Held to nine points and two 3-pointers in the first half, he buried four long-range shots in the third period, including a pair from more than 30 feet.
His fourth bomb of the quarter came as part of a 9-2 burst that broke a 91-all tie and gave Golden State a lead for the rest of the night.
Curry, who sat out the Oklahoma City game with a sore left ankle, finished 6-for-12 from deep. Butler (illness) also missed that game. Post and Melton chipped in with three 3-pointers each against the Jazz, helping Golden State gain a 19-13 advantage in shots made from beyond the arc.
Melton totaled 13 points and Gary Payton II had 10 for Golden State, which won for the third time in its last four games. Payton also found time for a team-high eight rebounds, while Brandin Podziemski dished off a team-high eight assists to complement six points.
Markkanen shot 15-for-26, including 9-for-12 in a 21-point first half when Utah used 59% shooting to take its seven-point lead at the intermission.
Keyonte George chipped in with 22 points and a game-high nine assists for the Jazz, while Brice Sensabaugh had 12 points, Svi Mykhailiuk 10 and Kevin Love a game-high 11 rebounds to go with five points.
The loss was Utah's third straight.