SAN FRANCISCO — The Golden State Warriors looked like the Warriors of a few years ago on Saturday. They resembled the teams that pummeled teams into submission with great shooting and won several NBA Championships.
The Chase Center in San Francisco was rocking as the Warriors beat the Memphis Grizzlies 142-112. With the win, the Warriors take a 2-1 series lead.
It’s not how you start
The Grizzlies would get out to a hot start as they opened the game on a 21-8 run in which they made six shots from deep. The Warriors would quickly adapt and take control of the game.
They would overcome the early 13-point deficit and take a seven-point lead into halftime; it would have been 10 points if Ja Morant hadn’t hit an insane half-court shot at the buzzer.
The Warriors would then use one of their classic third-quarter avalanches to take complete control of this game. They would outscore the Grizzlies 37-23 in the quarter and the lead grew to as much as 21 in the quarter.
The fourth quarter was more of a formality as the Warriors just grew their lead. When all was said and done the Warriors would take Game 3 by 30 points.
Steph Curry and Jordan Poole led the way for the Warriors. Curry scored a team-high 30 points and dished out six assists. Poole added 27 points and four rebounds off the bench. Both Curry and Poole were able to score at will all game.
To go along with Curry and Poole, four other Warriors finished with double-digit scoring figures. Klay Thompson (21), Jonathan Kuminga (18), Andrew Wiggins (17), and Otto Porter Jr. (13).
As a team, the Warriors shot a blistering 63.1% from the field and 53.1% from deep.
It was complete dominance from the Warriors. To go along with their great shooting numbers, they also outrebounded the Grizzlies 38-29.
Ja Morant scored a game-high 34 points and dished out seven assists. Morant’s big game was not able to negate the great team performance from the Warriors.
Morant exited the game with an apparent knee injury in the fourth quarter. That could be very important to how this series plays out. If Morant is unable to play, the Warriors will have a huge advantage.
Rookies answer call
With both teams dealing with players missing time, they had to turn to rookies in their starting lineups. With Gary Payton II out with an elbow injury, the Warriors inserted Jonathan Kuminga into the starting lineup. Kuminga became the youngest player to start in a playoff game at just 19 years old. He would finish with 18 points and two rebounds.
The Grizzlies turned to Ziarie Williams to replace Dillon Brooks in their starting lineup. Brooks was suspended for Game 3. Williams finished with seven points and four rebounds.
What’s Next?
Game 4 will be played on Monday in San Francisco. Memphis will look to tie things back at 2-2, while the Warriors will look to take a commanding 3-1 lead.
