Warriors overcome Wembanyama, Spurs for 4th straight win
Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry runs upcourt during the first half of the team’s NBA basketball game against the San Antonio Spurs, Sunday, March 31, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
SAN ANTONIO — Stephen Curry had 33 points and the Golden State Warriors held on to beat the undermanned San Antonio Spurs 117-113 on Sunday night for their fourth straight victory in the NBA.
With his family in town to celebrate Easter, Curry helped the Warriors overcome a sloppy start and finish 4-1 on its trip.
“I think Steph was really extra motivated to play well in front of his kids and (his wife,) Ayesha,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “He played a great game. There was a lot of pressure on him out there. (San Antonio point guard) Tre Jones does a really good job defensively, (but) he found a way to get free and hit some big shots.”
Curry was 12 for 23 from the field, hitting 7 of 15 3-pointer attempts, as the Warriors cling to the final play-in spot in the Western Conference — two games ahead of Houston after the Rockets’ home loss to Dallas on Sunday.
Spurs center Victor Wembanyama had 32 points and nine rebounds.
Steph and Wemby battled all night, with the Warriors taking home their 4th win in a row!
Steph: 33 PTS, 7 3PM, 8 AST
Wemby: 32 PTS, 9 REB, 5 AST, 4 STL, 3 BLK pic.twitter.com/oC4E88eGXL— NBA (@NBA) April 1, 2024
“He is a very, very, very, very special talent,” Warriors forward Draymond Green said. “I was just telling Trayce (Jackson-Davis) and those guys, I’m happy I had an opportunity to play against him now because they’ll have to deal with him a lot later and I won’t be in the league no more.”
Wembanyama was called for an over-the-back foul on what would have been his 10th rebound with four seconds remaining. Green made one of two free throws to seal the victory.
“Draymond was incredible tonight,” Kerr said. “That was a defensive masterpiece. The offensive board at the end with the (Brandin Podziemski) 3 was probably the play of the game. You can see when you watch that game, Draymond is a genius defensively.”
Green finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds.
San Antonio had a 7-0 run to cut Golden State’s lead to 113-111 with 59 seconds remaining. Klay Thompson responded with a 3-pointer.
Thompson finished with 13 points.
San Antonio was without Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan and Dominick Barlow due to injuries.
“It’s interesting because you look at their record and you expect them to get … I guess the narrative might be that they might lay down and quit,” Curry said. “But they, you know, they’re playing for confidence and, and, you know, just vibes. ‘I’m trying to finish the season strong’ and you’re playing free. So anytime we have separation, they were just responding.”
The Spurs turned to their bench with three of their top four scorers and nearly 50 points per game out. They responded in the first half.
Cedi Osman, Zach Collins and Sandro Mamukelashvili combined for 34 points, 15 rebounds and three assists in the first half. Osman finished with 18 points, Collins had 13 and Mamukelashvili had 10 points and 11 rebounds.
“I thought the group was fantastic,” San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. “You know, that’s what I just told them. They were great to have those three guys out and have the combinations that we had out there with the guys that hadn’t played too much. I’m just so proud of them. They’ve come a long way from the beginning of the year to now, to be able to play a team like that.”
Golden State opened the second half on a 14-0 run that included consecutive 3-pointers by Green and Curry for a 66-60 lead with 9:39 left in the third quarter. Wembanyama ended the drought with a reverse slam off an alley-oop pass from Jones.
The Warriors outscored the Spurs 37-21 in the third quarter, turning a 10-point deficit during the second quarter into an eight-point lead entering the fourth.
San Antonio set a franchise record for 3-pointers in a season at 941 after going 17 for 43. The previous record was 925 in 2022.
At 18-57, San Antonio has seven games remaining to avoid finishing with the worst record in franchise history — with the futility mark of 20-62 set in 1997.
NEXT SCHEDULE
Warriors: Host Dallas Tuesday night.
Spurs: At Denver on Tuesday night.
