The Golden State Warriors grinded out a tough, ugly 91-86 road win in Oklahoma City Sunday night. With this win, the Warriors extend their current winning streak to five and end a ten-game losing streak in Oklahoma City.
Stephen Curry got off to a hot start in the first quarter, making four of his first seven shots, including 2 three pointers and totaling 12 points, three assists, and two rebounds. The Warriors looked poised to take advantage of a depleted Thunder lineup. However, injuries derailed the chemistry and made this a much closer contest than it should have been. Andrew Bogut was ruled out in the first quarter due to an orbital contusion, and Leandro Barbosa also had to leave the game due to a knee sprain. Both players are considered day-to-day, and hopefully they can play in the team's next game.
Marreese Speights willed the team to victory and stepped up when the team really needed him most, scoring 28 points and pulling down seven rebounds off the bench and provided a spark to a team that shot the ball 35 percent from the field.
The Thunder was led by Reggie Jackson, who almost totaled a triple-double, scoring 22 points, grabbing 11 rebounds, and dishing out eight assists. Serge Ibaka chipped in with 15 points and totaled five blocks. The Thunder battled through four quarters and did not let the Warriors pull away, as they kept it close until the last whistle.
Both teams shot under 35 percent for the game. The Warriors lacked the constant ball movement that we have grown accustomed to seeing from them. They tended to post up more for isolations rather than moving the ball around and finding the open man. However, the shots were still not falling tonight regardless of their ball movement woes. The Splash Brothers only totaled five points during the entire second half, and the Warriors really showed off their depth when they needed everyone to contribute minutes in order to get the big road win.
The Thunder will look to snap this current six-game losing streak Wednesday, November 26, at home versus the Utah Jazz. Meanwhile, the Warriors will look to continue their winning streak and keep rolling on the road Tuesday, November 25, against the Miami Heat.