Curry fires as Warriors thump Blazers

Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson dominated their matchup with Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, combining for 12 three-pointers and 62 points in the Golden State Warriors’ 116-94 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals on Tuesday night.

Game 2 in the best-of-seven series is scheduled for Thursday night, also on top-seeded Golden State’s home court.

Curry finished with a game-high 36 points and Thompson added 26 for the Warriors, who won a second consecutive game without star forward Kevin Durant, out with a bruised right calf.

Curry shot 9-for-15 on three-pointers, Thompson went 3-for-9 from beyond the arc and backup Quinn Cook mixed in two timely treys to quell the Trail Blazers’ last threat, pushing Golden State a game up on an opponent they dominated 4-1 and 4-0 in the 2016 and 2017 playoffs.

Lillard shot just 4-for-12 en route to a team-high 19 points, while McCollum added 17 for the Trail Blazers, who were facing a fresh team that had enjoyed three days off after eliminating Houston in Game 6 on the road Friday night.

The Warriors used a 13-5 burst to open the second half to extend a nine-point half-time advantage to 67-50. Curry had three triples in the run.

But Portland, who flew straight to Oakland after winning a decisive Game 7 at Denver on Sunday, refused to quit. Rodney Hood and Seth Curry drilled three-pointers in an 11-4 run that ended the period and gave the Trail Blazers hope at 77-71 entering the fourth.

The Warriors’ lead was just 79-73 before Cook hit his two three-pointers, helping Golden State go back up by 14, and the three-point discrepancy proved too much for the Trail Blazers to overcome.

Draymond Green complemented Curry and Thompson with a team-high 10 rebounds to go with 12 points for the Warriors, who shot 50 per cent from the field and 51.5 per cent (17-for-33) from three-point range. The Warriors outscored the Trail Blazers 51-21 on threes.

After having split the season series 2-2, the teams played on mostly even terms for the first 16 minutes, during which the Warriors managed just a two-point lead.

Consecutive hoops by reserve Jonas Jerebko, one a three-pointer, finally got the Warriors rolling, before Curry took over. He poured in 11 points in the final 5:29 of the half, helping Golden State take a 54-45 lead into the intermission.

Curry had 19 of his 36 points in the first half.

-Report by skysports