Warriors vs. Raptors: Score, Highlights, Reaction from 2016 Regular Season
Behind the two-headed attack of Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant, the Golden State Warriors defeated the Toronto Raptors, 127-121, on Wednesday night from Air Canada Centre.
Curry and Durant combined for 65 points, with Curry putting up a game-high 35 points.
It was enough to outduel Raptors star DeMar DeRozan, who was the most consistent within an inconsistent offense as he posted 34 points. Point guard Kyle Lowry added 24.
The schedule-makers weren't kind to the Raptors, who were just one day removed from dropping a 121-117 decision to the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night.
It even prompted head coach Dwane Casey to say that he would take the computer that created the schedule and "find it and break it."
The Warriors were also facing a tough stretch, as Toronto was the first destination of a four-game road trip that will include stops in Boston, Milwaukee and Indiana over a six-day stretch.
They were met with an aggressive Raptors team, though, as the hosts attempted to push the pace as much as possible, especially on the offensive end regardless of it being the second night of a back-to-back.
Coming at the Warriors with speed made it difficult for the visitors to set up their offense and get solid looks from three-point range.
It also helped the Raptors on the offensive side, as they pushed up the floor quickly to find open shots available.
But with an abundance of mid- to long-range shot attempts, the Raptors were playing a dangerous game with one of the best shooting teams in the league even though they were hot early on.
The Warriors combated the Raptors' game plan by forcing the ball inside with aggressive cuts to the hoop, which made Zaza Pachulia and JaVale McGee valuable assets to Golden State's offensive success.
Feeding them early and often under the basket, although they didn't light up the score sheet with a combined 12 points, a focus on the big men allowed open paths to the basket for the Warriors guards, via the NBA:
It kept them within reach as they had to contend with a mediocre performance from distance all night. Curry, Durant and Klay Thompson hit three three-pointers apiece, while the team shot just 36.1 percent from beyond the arc.
Thompson contributed 15 points to the effort but shot just 4-of-15 on Wednesday.
Durant used a hot 7-of-12 start to spark his evening, including this buzzer-beater to end the first quarter, via the NBA:
The Raptors still managed to lead for a majority of the first half, though, even when the shooting cooled off. Much of that had to do with their rebounding prowess.
Thirteen offensive rebounds created an abundance of second-chance opportunities, but fatigue from the back-to-back saw Golden State unleash a 21-4 run in the final minutes of the second quarter, which featured plenty of flash from the two-time reigning MVP, via the NBA:
The Warriors defense was just as stellar in the process of building a double-digit halftime lead, allowing 15 points in the second quarter as the Raptors shot 5-of-23 from the field.
Golden State led by as much as 19 in the third, but the Raptors got back to what gave them a lead early in the game and cut the deficit to single digits thanks to a 15-2 run.
But Curry and Durant proved to be too much to stop as they built another double-digit lead that carried the visitors to their fifth straight win:
They needed each of those points too, as the Raptors made one final push in the game's final minutes, embarking on a 16-4 run to make the final moments uncomfortable.
Still, the Warriors' road trip got off to a good start against their most difficult opponent of the stretch. If there were any dispute about Curry and Durant co-existing, Wednesday night's performance should do plenty to squash those notions.
For the Raptors, it might be difficult to take away any kind of moral victories after two straight losses, but they showed flashes of a team that could give contenders a run for their money over the past two nights.
That's where the positives end, as they picked up their third home loss of this young season.
Post-Game Reaction
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr might have been pleased with the win to start off the road trip, but there were still some things that bothered him, via CSN:
Durant echoed some of those sentiments, voicing his displeasure about Golden State's defense despite having such a solid offensive night, via CSN:
Casey had no problem with his team's heart, but did call into question their decision making after the game, via Doug Smith of the Toronto Star:
"When teams are trying to trick you and do things to you from a play or a style of play, on the switches, we’ve got to make sure we execute certain situations properly and not let teams trick us on the defensive end. And offensively, make sure we get the shot we want to get. We want to execute the offensive play to make sure we get the shot we want to get, and not what they force us into... I’d be shocked if we don’t come out and play hard and compete hard, but make sure we have the IQ part.
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The Raptors get an opportunity to rest up after a taxing two nights, but have to travel West in the process as they'll meet up with the Denver Nuggets on Friday night.
