Steph Curry Scores 53 vs. Pelicans: Stats, Highlights and Twitter Reaction
Stephen Curry laughs at championship hangovers.
After dropping 40 points in the Golden State Warriors' season-opening win over the New Orleans Pelicans and pouring in 25 in Friday night's victory against the Houston Rockets, the NBA's reigning MVP exploded for 53 points in a 134-120 win over the Pelicans on Saturday.
| 53 | 17/27 | 8/14 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 4 |
According to Basketball-Reference.com, Curry became the first player since Dwyane Wade in 2009 to drop at least 50 points and nine dimes in a game, and his third-quarter performance stole the show.
While New Orleans scored 26 points as a team in the third, Curry scored 28 by himself. According to Elias Sports Bureau (via GSWStats), Curry's 28 third-quarter points were the most by a player in a quarter since teammate Klay Thompson dropped 37 on the Sacramento Kings last season.
"Give that man MVP already," Warriors forward Marreese Speights said following the win, per ESPN.com's Ethan Sherwood Strauss.
NBA.com/Stats offered a look at Curry's shot chart:
Curry's performance prompted the Brooklyn Game's Devin Kharpertian to suggest a frightening prospect:
CBS Sports' Matt Moore put Curry's dominance into perspective:
If this is just the beginning, the rest of the NBA is in for a long season. Curry and the Warriors haven't skipped a beat since hoisting the Larry O'Brien Trophy in June, and somehow the reigning MVP looks more confident than he did a season ago.
Golden State will host the defensively inclined Memphis Grizzlies at Oracle Arena on Monday night, but if Curry's play over the past week has been any indication, Tony Allen and Co. will have a hard time slowing him down.
