For just the third time in their dynastic run, Steve Kerr and the Golden State Warriors were down 1-0 in a playoff series heading into Sunday night. The Warriors fell at the hands of a historic shooting performance from Derrick White and Al Horford in Game 1, and needed to bounce back quickly.
Once Boston and Golden State both held a moment of silence to recognize victims of recent gun violence, it was off to the races for Game 2 of the NBA Finals.
Curry dominated early and often in Game 2, with shots and assists that left the Boston defense baffled.
With Curry humming early, this left plenty of opportunity for the rest of the Warriors cast to make their mark on Game 2, and they did. Draymond Green had nine points, and Klay Thompson, Kevon Looney and Andrew Wiggins all finished with 11 points on the night.
But, even with the Warriors playing much cleaner in Game 2, Golden State only led by 2 at the half. Jayson Tatum was significantly better on Sunday night, and his scoring kept the Celtics in reach during the first half.
And then came the fabled third quarter. Anyone who has watched the Golden State Warriors during their dynastic run knows that Curry and company are even more flammable in the 3rd quarter.
During their incredible run in the third quarter, Curry, Poole and the Warriors outscored the Celtics 35-14, while keeping their foot on the gas and making impressive shot after impressive shot.
After the game, Green spoke on how important that quarter was to Golden State.
“It was definitely an attitude adjustment," Green said. "They are who we thought they were. So we knew we had to keep our foot on the gas pedal and not let up, and we did that."
Up 23 after their explosive third quarter, the Warriors carefully coasted to a 19 point win in Game 2. Steph Curry followed up a 34 point Game 1 performance with a 29/6/4 statline and a 24 +/- on Sunday night.
One of the biggest reasons for the Warriors success was the return of Gary Payton II to the Warriors lineup. Payton provides an incredible defensive presence that allows Golden State to run in transition, which led to 19 turnovers forced and 33 points off of those turnovers.
Even after improving the Warriors on both ends of the floor, Payton found a way to compliment Curry on his two-way presence.
“Steph is a two-way player. He does a lot on the defensive side. He's in the right spots at the right time, and that’s huge for us," said Payton.
Golden State improved their play on both sides of the ball, and the Celtics three point shooting came down to earth. The veteran Warriors team was not going to let Boston walk into their new Chase Center and steal two games on the road.
"I thought everybody was more engaged," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said following Sunday's contest. "It was pretty obvious, just our level of force and physicality was ramped up quite a bit, and it had to be."
With a 107-88 win in Game 2, the Warriors head to Boston with a chance to make some noise. Boston is only 5-4 at home in the playoffs this year, so Curry and company have a real chance to steal back home court advantage.
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