Thunder at Warriors
THE STORY: The road has been kind to the Oklahoma City Thunder, and that’s a good thing because they won’t see much of Chesapeake Energy Arena in the next few weeks. The Thunder, an NBA-best 7-2 on the road, begin a three-game trip starting Friday night at Golden State. In fact, eight of Oklahoma City’s next nine games will be on the road. “It is going to be tough,” star forward Kevin Durant said. “Since I've been here, we have handled being on the road pretty well, so we have to stay focused and take it a game at a time and we will be fine.” Oklahoma City is 55-36 on the road the past three seasons, third-best in the NBA. The Warriors snapped a three-game losing streak Wednesday with a 101-93 victory over Portland thanks to Stephen Curry’s best game of the season. The oft-injured guard scored a season-high 32 points and was 6 of 8 from 3-point range.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, FS Oklahoma (Thunder), CSN Bay Area (Warriors)
ABOUT THE THUNDER (15-3): Until Kendrick Perkins failed to block a shot Wednesday, the Thunder was the only team in the league to have two players with a block in every game this season. Forward Serge Ibaka has a block in 31 consecutive games, the longest streak of any player in the league. He is third in the NBA with a career-best 2.61 blocks per game. Oklahoma City is 8-0 this season when Ibaka has at least three blocks.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (6-11): Perhaps the best news from Curry’s performance Wednesday was that he had no pain in his right ankle even while playing 38 minutes and shooting from a variety of spots. “He picked them apart in pick-and-roll situations,” coach Mark Jackson said. “When they didn't play him, he came off as a scorer. ... He ran the point guard position while scoring 32 points. He got what he wanted and took control of this game.”
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Golden State is 12-3 in its last 15 home games against Oklahoma City.
2. Former Thunder reserve guard Nate Robinson has averaged 11 points and five assists since signing with the Warriors on Jan. 4.
3. The Warriors will try for just their second win against a Western Conference team in eight games.