Steph Curry, Warriors Stun Fans with Comeback Win to Eliminate Kawhi, Clippers in NBA Play-In
Add another legendary postseason performance to Stephen Curry's resume.
The future Hall of Famer led the Golden State Warriors to an incredible 126-121 comeback victory over the Los Angeles Clippers in Wednesday's Western Conference play-in tournament game at Intuit Dome.
It was a win-or-go-home contest, and the victors will face the Phoenix Suns on Friday for the right to be the No. 8 seed with a first-round matchup against the reigning-champion Oklahoma City Thunder.
Curry finished with 35 points on a sparkling 7-of-12 shooting from deep with one of the three-pointers breaking a tie in the final minute and giving the Warriors the lead for good.
It wasn't a one-man show, though, as Al Horford drained four three-pointers in the fourth quarter alone as Golden State overcame a double-digit deficit. Draymond Green also played stifling defense in the last minute with the game on the line, and Kawhi Leonard largely disappeared for the Clippers in crunch time.
Leonard scored 21, but his only points in the fourth quarter came on a last-minute dunk with the game mostly out of reach.
Social media had no shortage of reaction to the astounding turn of events:
That Curry, who was limited to 43 games this season, and Horford in particular were so dominant in the biggest moments was notable because their status was a major storyline coming into the game. In fact, head coach Steve Kerr told reporters the duo, along with Kristaps Porziņģis, were expected to be on a minutes restriction.
It was more of the same for a Warriors team that has dealt with injuries throughout the season, including an ACL tear for Jimmy Butler, and seemingly gave the Clippers an advantage.
Los Angeles didn't wait long to capitalize on that advantage, as it jumped out to a double-digit lead within the first four minutes of the game. However, the Warriors didn't go away throughout a first half that featured multiple lead changes and both teams trading runs.
Golden State did its best to build a wall around Leonard to cut off his driving lanes, but those efforts only went so far against the seven-time All-Star. It also created more openings for Darius Garland and Bennedict Mathurin, and they helped the home team overcome multiple spurts from the Warriors to build an eight-point halftime lead.
It didn't help the Warriors' cause that Curry was relatively quiet in the early going and even temporarily went to the locker room, but they had an answer for seemingly every Los Angeles run and remained well within striking distance into the second half with Porziņģis throwing down dunks and hitting from the outside.
It was also just a matter of time before Curry found his stroke, and he did just that with 16 points in the third quarter alone.
He unleashed a barrage of threes, including one which he turned into a four-point play, which only added to the back-and-forth nature of the game with Leonard leading a balanced attack on the other end.
Even with all of that, the game always felt like the Warriors were in desperation comeback mode. The fourth quarter was no different with Mathurin and Garland combining to push the lead back to double digits before the visitors came climbing back once again with Horford catching fire from deep.
This time, the comeback was for good.
Horford's three-point shooting set the stage for Curry to hit the biggest one, and he delivered like he has so many times throughout his career. If he can do so again on Friday against the Suns, the Warriors will be in the playoffs.
