Durant, Warriors slip past Suns
PHOENIX -- Kevin Durant scored 37 points and Stephen Curry added 28 as the Golden State Warriors held off the pesky Phoenix Suns 106-100 Sunday.
Klay Thompson had 14 points and Draymond Green had 13 rebounds for the Warriors, who trailed by as many as 13 in the first half before limiting the Suns to 43 second-half points.
Golden State had their biggest lead of the game -- seven points -- at 101-94 after a Durant alley-oop layup from Andre Iguodala with 1:19 left to play. however, the pulled back within two points on a Jared Dudley layup with 14.8 seconds to play.
Curry hit two free throws with 12.9 left, and the Suns didn't score again. Durant iced the game on two free throws with seven seconds remaining.
Golden State (2-1) has won two straight road games after losing their season opener at home to the San Antonio Spurs. The Warriors have won eight straight games against the Suns, their longest winning streak ever against Phoenix.
T.J. Warren had 26 points and Eric Bledsoe added 21 for the Suns, who have opened the season with three straight losses. Devin Booker scored seven points on 3-for 12 shooting and didn't score his first basket until the 8:13 mark of the third quarter.
Curry had 10 points in the first four minutes of the game, and a three-point play by Zaza Pachulia gave Golden State a 15-8 lead. Curry finished the quarter with 10 points.
Still, the Warriors missed 17 of 25 shots in the period, and the Suns dominated the final six minutes. Phoenix outscored Golden State 22-2 over a 5:20 span, and two Alex Len free throws gave the Suns a 30-19 lead.
Phoenix had an 18-2 edge in points off turnovers in the first half.
The Suns led by nine three times in the second period, the last time at 54-45 on a Bledsoe alley-oop dunk off a Brandon Knight feed. But Durant, who had 15 points in the quarter, had eight in the final 30 seconds with a 3-pointer, a 3-point play and two free throws with 1.6 seconds left to cut the Phoenix lead to 57-55 at the half.
Curry and Durant combined for 37 Golden State points in the first half, and Warren and Bledsoe teamed for 29 for the Suns.
Durant had seven points in the third quarter, and Curry gave the Warriors the lead back at 62-59 by sinking three free throws with 10 minutes left. The Warriors led by as many as six in the quarter and took an 81-78 lead to the fourth.
NOTES: Suns C Tyson Chandler grabbed a game-high 18 rebounds, giving him 9,175 for his career rebounds. He passed Hall of Famer Artis Gilmore (9,161) for 48th on the all-time list. ... Warriors G Patrick McCaw missed the game with a sprained left ankle. He hurt it Friday, coming down on the foot of New Orleans Pelicans F Anthony Davis. ... Suns SG Devin Booker played through a sprained right big toe, an injury he sustained Friday in Oklahoma City. ... The Warriors wore their "Run TMC" throwback jersey for the first time Sunday, homage to the days of Tim Hardaway, Mitch Richmond and Chris Mullin. ... Booker turned 20 years old on Sunday and drew praise from Warriors coach Steve Kerr: "People have compared him to Klay (Thompson) and I think that's an apt comparison. He's got great size, great shooting ability but the poise and competitiveness is there. He's going to be a star."