Warriors at Lakers
The last time the Golden State Warriors lost a game was at the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 4, before ripping off a nine-game winning streak that included a 149-106 demolition of the Lakers at home on Wednesday. The Warriors will try to avenge that road loss and sweep the home-and-home set for their 10th consecutive triumph when they visit the Lakers on Friday.
Golden State was still figuring out how to play together in that first meeting with Los Angeles but discovered a way to share the ball in the last nine games that culminated with a franchise-record 47 assists in Wednesday's triumph. "The 47 assists on (53) field goals is one of the greatest stats I've ever heard or seen," first-year Lakers coach and former Warriors assistant Luke Walton told reporters. "Unfortunately, it happened against us. To me, that's basketball at its best. It's unselfish play." Los Angeles was missing two of its young stars in forward Julius Randle (hip pointer) and guard D'Angelo Russell (knee), and at least Russell will miss Friday's matchup as well. The Lakers dropped four of their last six and are struggling on the defensive end with an average of 122.2 points allowed in that span.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, CSN Bay Area (Golden State), Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles)
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (13-2): Two-time MVP Stephen Curry went 0-of-10 from 3-point range in that Nov. 4 meeting, snapping a string of 196 straight games (including the postseason) with at least one 3-pointer, but went 7-of-12 from beyond the arc in Friday's rematch. The trio of Curry, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson outscored the entire Los Angeles team 81-78 through the first three quarters, and Curry added nine assists in the rout. Curry was in a bit of a shooting funk with a 5-of-27 effort from 3-point range over the previous three games but buried his first attempt on Wednesday and cruised through the night.
ABOUT THE LAKERS (8-8): Los Angeles' season is about the progression of its young players, and Russell will need to take a step back after receiving a platelet-rich plasma injection in his sore left knee. Russell, who will be evaluated in a week, is second on the team in scoring (16.1 points) and leads in assists (4.8). "It kind of caught me by surprise," Walton told reporters. "He was limping around in practice one day and we took him out because he wasn't running right, and they told me that his knee had been bothering him. ... Obviously, it got worse. But the timeline? I have no idea."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Warriors F Draymond Green suffered a corneal abrasion on Wednesday but is still expected to play Friday.
2. Lakers rookie SF Brandon Ingram scored a season-high 16 points on Wednesday.
3. Golden State reserve SG Ian Clark scored 21 points in 18 minutes on 7-of-8 shooting Wednesday.