Pelicans at Warriors
The Golden State Warriors spent most of Game 1 of their first-round Western Conference playoff series showing why they earned the top record in the regular season. The Warriors will try to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series when they host the New Orleans Pelicans for Game 2 on Monday.
MVP candidate Stephen Curry was phenomenal en route to 34 points in Game 1, but Golden State let a 25-point lead slip down to four before putting the finishing touches on Saturday’s 106-99 triumph. “We didn’t finish it off right,” Warriors center Andrew Bogut told the San Francisco Chronicle. “We know they’re young; they haven’t been in the playoffs in a number of years. They’re going to come out hungry, so we’ve got to finish teams off while we can.” Pelicans star Anthony Davis scored 20 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter but the gap proved to be too large. Davis could need to do even more in Game 2 if Tyreke Evans (knee) can’t take the court.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, TNT, FSN New Orleans, CSN Bay Area (Golden State)
ABOUT THE PELICANS: Evans was limited to 12 minutes on Saturday before leaving with a left knee injury suffered when he bumped knees with Warriors guard Andre Iguodala. Evans is scheduled to undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the injury, and New Orleans is likely to give more ballhandling responsibilities to Eric Gordon or increase Jrue Holiday’s minutes if he needs to be out of the lineup. Holiday has been on a soft minutes restriction since returning from a stress fracture in his leg on Apr. 10 and contributed five points and five assists in 21 minutes off the bench in Game 1.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS: Curry was on fire early in Game 1 and helped Golden State dominate the first half, culminating with a reverse layup while being fouled by Davis late in the second quarter. “Really felt comfortable out there from the jump ball,” Curry told reporters. “This is our third (playoffs) go-round for most of the guys in the locker room. You know what to expect. You know how important every possession is.” The Warriors got several strong performances on both ends, and Bogut and Draymond Green each recorded a double-double while helping to keep Davis from exploding in the first three quarters.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Warriors G Klay Thompson went 3-of-6 from 3-point range in Game 1 and is shooting 59.5 percent from beyond the arc in his last five games.
2. New Orleans G Norris Cole started the second half of Game 1 in place of Evans and finished with six assists in 34 minutes.
3. Golden State has won 19 straight at home.