Warriors 103, Kings 94
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Guard Stephen Curry survived an awful shooting night to score 24 points, and the Golden State Warriors survived a dreadful shooting night Saturday at Sleep Train Arena to beat the Sacramento Kings 103-94 and remain the NBA's lone unbeaten team.
Guard Klay Thompson added 18 points, and canned a key 3-pointer to cap off a decisive 16-5 run by the Warriors (7-0). Guard Andre Iguodala scored 14 points, forward Harrison Barnes added 13 and center Festus Ezeli had 10 points and 12 rebounds for Golden State.
Forwards Marco Belinelli and Rudy Gay each scored 22 points for the Kings (1-6), and guard Rajon Rondo added a triple-double with 14 points, 15 assists and 12 rebounds.
The Kings have lost five in a row, including all four they've played without DeMarcus Cousins. The team's All-Star center sat out again with a strained right Achilles' tendon, and the Kings fell to 6-21 without him over the past two seasons.
Guard Darren Collision (strained left hamstring) also missed the game for Sacramento.
Curry struggled to his worst shooting night of the young season, but still canned a 3-pointer for the 80th consecutive contest, moving him past guard Michael Adams for the third-longest streak in NBA history. Curry is nine games shy of matching guard Dana Barros for second on the all-time list. Atlanta guard Kyle Korver holds the mark with 3-pointers in 127 straight games.
The reigning MVP missed his first eight shots from behind the arc, but his first 3-pointer was a key one. Curry's jumper from 27 feet put the Warriors ahead 81-79 with 5:43 to go.
Golden State missed 16 of its first 17 shots from beyond the arc and finished the night hitting just 8 of 39 from distance. The Kings helped them by committing 21 turnovers that led to 29 Golden State points.
Despite their shooting troubles, the Warriors held off two key Sacramento rallies in the second half. Belinelli's 3-pointer with 6:48 left in the third quarter capped the Kings' 23-7 run that spanned the second and third quarters and put Sacramento ahead 55-53. But Thompson answered with a 3-pointer to start a stretch of 14 straight Golden State points.
Forward Omri Casspi then hit two 3-pointers and Belinelli another as the Kings outscored Golden State 24-11 over the next seven minutes. Rondo's jumper from the wing put Sacramento ahead 79-78.
NOTES: The only other two Warriors teams to start at least 5-0 during the club's Bay Area era were last season's champions, and the long-forgotten 1994-95 club that began the campaign 7-1. That team then traded F Chris Webber to the Washington Bullets for F Tom Gugliotta and draft picks and finished 26-56, replacing coach Don Nelson with Bob Lanier along the way. ... With C DeMarcus Cousins (right Achilles' tendon) and G Darren Collison (left hamstring) out with injuries, coach George Karl used his sixth starting lineup in seven games. F Quincy Acy, who had played only four minutes in Sacramento's first six contests, started for the first time. Ten players have started games for the Kings. ... Warriors G Stephen Curry needs to make a 3-pointer in Golden State's next 10 road games to tie F Rashard Lewis (87) for the most consecutive road games with a 3-pointer. ... Kings rookie F Duje Dukan dressed for the first time this season for Sacramento. ... Warriors F Andrew Bogut (concussion) missed his sixth straight game.