Final
Curry leads Golden State past Denver
Feb 10, 2012 - 6:06 AM Denver, CO (Sports Network) - Stephen Curry poured in 36 points, including six treys, as Golden State downed slumping Denver, 109-101, at Pepsi Center.Klay Thompson added 19 points off the bench, Dorell Wright had 15 points and Monta Ellis, one game after scoring a career-best 48 points, donated 14 points on 6-of-14 shooting. David Lee also reached double figures with 12 points and eight rebounds for Golden State, which snapped a two-game skid.
"It was a great performance by him (Curry)," said Golden State head coach Mark Jackson. "Just a spectacular night."
Aaron Afflalo led the way for the home team with 26 points, while Nene added 15 points and Ty Lawson chipped in with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Al Harrington also scored 11 and Kenneth Faried posted eight points and 10 rebounds for the Nuggets, who have dropped five in a row with four of those coming at home.
The Nuggets have Afflalo and Nene back in the fold from injuries, but are still missing leading scorer Danilo Gallinari, Timofey Mozgov and Corey Brewer.
The two teams traded blows in the first quarter with Curry's three pulling the visitors within 28-27 after one period. Golden State started the second quarter strong, taking a lead as large as 39-31 on the heels on a Rush three and Thompson jumper.
The Nuggets responded with the next eight points capped by Harrington's trey for a one-point advantage, and the score stayed close for the remainder of the half. Nene's slam in the closing seconds gave the home team a 51-47 margin at halftime.
Denver lost control of the game in the third as Golden State scored at will and held Denver in check. Curry and Wright drained back-to-back threes and Ellis connected on a tough fadeaway to cap eight straight points for a 61-53 game. After an Afflalo trey, Golden State scored the next 10 points, putting a stamp on an 18-3 scoring stretch with Curry's three-pointer for a 71-56 lead.
"It was horrible," Afflalo said when asked about the team's defense in the third quarter.
Afflalo was the only Nugget to score for nearly six minutes, but Denver hung around with Lawson's layup drawing the Nuggets within 71-63. The Denver defense, however, had no answer for the Warriors, who pushed out to an 80-65 lead on Nate Robinson's fadeaway jumper nearing the one-minute mark. Golden State took an 84-71 lead into the fourth period.
It didn't get better from there for the Nuggets. Lee rattled off a pair of buckets at one point for a 98-80 game, and Denver never seriously threatened throughout the final stanza.
Game Notes
Golden State had lost 10 of the last 12 matchups with Denver prior to Thursday's win...The Warriors also snapped a six-game skid in Denver....Denver made 43.5 percent of its shots, while Golden State made 51.9 percent of its attempts and 13 three-pointers....Afflalo was 5-of-8 from long distance, while the rest of the Nuggets were 4-of-16.
- GOLDEN STATE: 109
DENVER: 101
Final
Feb 9 11:23 PM - GOLDEN STATE: 84
DENVER: 71
End of 3rd
Feb 9 10:49 PM - GOLDEN STATE: 47
DENVER: 51
Halftime
Feb 9 10:06 PM - GOLDEN STATE: 27
DENVER: 28
End of 1st
Feb 9 9:35 PM - GOLDEN STATE: 0
DENVER: 0
1st Quarter - 12:00
Feb 9 9:14 PM
Related News
- Nikola Jokic, Purdue, and Caitlin Clark Highlight Sports Illustrated Today Mar 4
- Steph Curry Sets Another NBA Record Feb 15
- Warriors Reportedly Attempted to Trade for LeBron James Feb 14
- Report: Draymond Green Set to Return to Warriors After Indefinite Suspension Jan 14
- Warriors Lose Chris Paul as Draymond Green Returns Jan 7
- Warriors’ Jonathan Kuminga Has ‘Lost Faith’ in Steve Kerr Jan 5
- Don’t look now: Andrew Wiggins is reminding everyone he’s still around Dec 25
- Warriors nearly overcome Steph Curry’s struggles in 120-114 loss to Nuggets Dec 25
- How to watch Warriors at Nuggets Dec 25
- Highlighting Brandin Podziemski’s unprecedented feel as a Warriors rookie Dec 24
- How to watch Warriors vs. Trail Blazers Dec 23
- Player grades: Warriors vs. Wizards Dec 23