Clippers at Warriors
The Golden State Warriors did what they needed to do by taking a game on the road to start their best-of-seven series against the Los Angeles Clippers. But it was the Clippers, who visit the Warriors for Game 3 on Thursday, who made the loudest statement in the first two games with a 138-98 demolition in Game 2. Golden State trailed wire-to-wire in that game and never got close in the second half as Blake Griffin asserted himself.
Griffin fouled out after only 19 minutes in Game 1 but set a playoff career high with 35 points in Game 2 despite joining the rest of the starters on the bench in the fourth quarter. It was the Warriors dealing with foul trouble to one of their key players as Klay Thompson had to sit early and never got into the flow before the game got away. The Clippers did a strong job in each of the first two games of taking Stephen Curry out of the game, and the All-Star guard only began to find a rhythm in Game 2 during the third quarter as the contest was already out of hand.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, TNT, Prime Ticket (Los Angeles), CSN Bay Area (Golden State)
ABOUT THE CLIPPERS: Griffin was the star but DeAndre Jordan (11 points, nine rebounds, five blocks) and Chris Paul (12 points, 10 assists, five steals) each had their moments, including an alley-opp from Paul to Jordan in the second quarter in which the center sailed high above Curry to slam it home. Los Angeles also got a big boost off the bench, which helped extend the lead in the second quarter and kept its foot on the gas in the fourth. “We wanted to make a concerted effort to change the game, and we did that,” forward Danny Granger, who led the reserves with 15 points, told reporters. “We came in, we played up-tempo, got some stops on the defensive end, and we pushed the lead from 10 to 21. I don’t think they got any closer after that.”
ABOUT THE WARRIORS: Golden State forward David Lee outplayed Griffin with 20 points and 13 rebounds in Game 1 but was held to 11 points and four boards in Game 2 as the Clippers made adjustments. Curry faced the same type of pressure in both games and is 3-for-13 from 3-point range in the series. “I was having trouble getting downhill, trying to put pressure on the double team,” Curry told reporters. “I didn’t get many shots early in the first half. Credit to them, they took it up another notch defensively. We came out with a sense of urgency, just nothing was clicking and we couldn’t make enough plays early to keep ourselves in it.”
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Paul was limited in practice by a right hamstring injury but plans to play in Game 3.
2. Jordan, who finished third in the NBA Defensive Player of the Year voting, has recorded five blocks in each of the first two games.
3. Golden State took both meetings at home during the regular season.