A 26-12 Golden State run ignited by 10 points from Thompson and eight by Curry was answered by a LeBron James-sparked 10-2 Cleveland run that put the Cavaliers ahead 83-81.
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Golden State made an NBA Finals record 17 3-pointers on the way to beating the Cavaliers 108-97 in Game 4 to take a 3-1 series lead Friday night. Curry went 7-for-13 from the three-point line; the Cavaliers went 6-for-25 as a team.
Aside from Game 4, Stephen Curry has looked more like a water boy from the amount of time he has sat on the bench in this series.
96-86 Warriors with Game 4 running out for the Cavs.
Stephen Curry scored 38 and Klay Thompson 25 for Golden State as the “Splash Brothers” got back in their groove after struggling through the first three games of the series.
“He doesn’t have the size and strength to dominate a game physically so he has to dominate with his skill”. However, LeBron James and Co. didn’t do enough to contain Curry, Thompson or Harrison Barnes, who made four 3s and added 14 points. The North Carolina rookie also saw three minutes of action to start the fourth period.
After missing the final three rounds of the postseason in 2015 because of a dislocated shoulder suffered in the close-out game of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against the Boston Celtics, Love came into this year’s playoffs with a point to prove. You could see it at the end of the game when he got into it with Draymond Green and Curry. Curry scored 38 points, hit 7/13 from downtown and looked like the real MVP on Friday night. That’s 2 wins and 5 losses in NBA Finals.
Steph Curry and the Warriors found themselves trailing the Cavaliers at the end of the first half by 5 points, 50-55.
“At any moment, the guy can just turn into an uncontainable player”, Warriors guard Andre Iguodala said.
Bogut had one block, set screens for his guards and altered numerous cavaliers’ shots. This game was superb through the first three quarters, seesawing back and forth, with 15 lead changes and 11 ties.
Saturday afternoon, the National Basketball Association notified the Warriors that it was examining the play to determine whether it warranted a flagrant foul. “He wanted so badly to break out”, said Warriors coach Steve Kerr. The Warriors have gone long stretches without a traditional big on the floor, which should open things up for LeBron James’ penetrations, Kevin Love’s post scoring and Tristan Thompson‘s offensive rebounding. James was going to the paint, Irving dropped 16 points in the 1st quarter, Thompson and James crashed the boards, and perimeter defense was sensational. Replays that surfaced after the game seemed to show Green strike James in the midsection. Play continued as the two big men started to jaw at one another.
He was scoreless and had just one rebound from 10 minutes. The Cavs are good, but the Warriors are just better. “We’ve got to come back anyway, so why not come back and play?” If the doctors say he can play, then he’ll play – but it wouldn’t seem likely that the Cavaliers will get away from what worked Wednesday. It wasn’t major, centering on whether a foul should have been called, but it outlined James’ frustration.
His second ring in 2013 with Miami came when the Heat needed to win two elimination games in the finals to oust the San Antonio Spurs in what became a dramatic seven-game matchup, highlighted by Ray Allen’s overtime-forcing 3-pointer with 5.2 seconds left in Game 6. “Being a guy with pride, a guy with three kids and a family…some things just go overboard… and that was it”.
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That may be the one sliver of hope for the Cavs, who trail, 3-1, in the NBA Finals and need to pull off the next-to-impossible to win their first-ever title.
