Golden State Warriors hold edge over Portland Trail Blazers
Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson dominated their highly anticipated match-up 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 yesterday morning (Singapore time).
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 due to a bruised right calf.
Curry shot nine-for-15 on three-point attempts, Thompson went three-for-nine from beyond the arc.
Back-up Quinn Cook mixed in two timely treys to quell the Trail Blazers' last threat, pushing Golden State a game up on a team they dominated 4-1 and 4-0 in the 2016 and 2017 play-offs, respectively.
Lillard shot just four-for-12 en route to a team-high 19 points. McCollum added 17 points for the Trail Blazers, who were facing a fresh team that had enjoyed three days off after eliminating the Houston Rockets in Game 6 on Saturday.
The Warriors' lead was just 79-73 at the start of the fourth quarter, before Cook hit his two three-pointers, helping Golden State go back up by 14. The three-point discrepancy proved too much for the Trail Blazers to overcome. Portland will travel tothe Oracle Arena for Game 2 tomorrow. - REUTERS
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now