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| Matchup |
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0-1 (0-1 HOME) |
vs | 1-0 (1-0 ROAD) |
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| Details |
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| May 18, 2016 |
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| Oracle Arena — Oakland, CA |
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| 6 p.m. PST |
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| TNT | KNBR 680 AM | ||||||||
| Blog Buddy: Welcome to Loud City | ||||||||
| Projected Starters | ||||||||
| Stephen Curry | G | Russell Westbrook | ||||||
| Klay Thompson | G | Andre Roberson |
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| Harrison Barnes | F | Kevin Durant | ||||||
| Draymond Green | F | Serge Ibaka |
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| Andrew Bogut | C | Steven Adams | ||||||
| Key Injuries | ||||||||
| None |
None |
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Team Overviews
The Warriors. We were expecting this. An offensive battle with one of the Western Conference's best, the Oklahoma City Thunder. We got ourselves one helluva battle Monday night that worked to OKC's advantage.
Golden State owned OKC in the first half, shooting over 50% with both Stephen Curry & Klay Thompson lighting up the boards. Russell Westbrook was held to 1-for-10 shooting and everything changed heading into the third. With Westbrook's travel call being the highlight of the night, the Thunder found a way to keep up with the Warriors who seemed to have lost their championship edge to close out the fourth. The result: A loss on our home court with the team now finding ways to make adjustments going into Game 2.
Warriors Fun Fact:
New FanShot: Curry is a top five celebrity "alongside Taylor Swift, Oprah Winfrey, Jimmy Fallon and Kate Middleton." https://t.co/hkKfKIukdX
— Golden State of Mind (@unstoppablebaby) May 17, 2016
The Thunder. We saw 2 different versions of the OKC Thunder in Monday's 108-102 win over the Warriors. The first half felt as if everything was going wrong for OKC. Turnovers, a struggling Westbrook and an offensive struggle. Than came the second half where the Thunder went fast and furious on Golden State with Russell dropping 19 points in the 3rd quarter. To top it all off, they hung in there and took advantage of the Dubs' fourth quarter shooting woes.
It was a well deserved win for OKC that took Golden State by surprise. The big question on everyone's mind is can the Thunder do it again and how will the Warriors react?
Key to the game: Stay focused.
The first half of the game was definitely ours. We went into halftime with a 60-47 lead and finished the game with a loss. Somewhere between the third & fourth quarter we lost our edge and the Thunder erupted with a huge comeback with a win. The plan tonight is simple, stay focused against this relentless team. Avoid turnovers and show up big in the 4th. Shooting 2 for 13 to start off the fourth won't help us close out any games.
Highlights/Predictions
- Steph, Klay & Draymond: Our big three is going to need to step it up a notch and get that championship mentality back to 100. Predicting a big night for all 3 of our fellas both offensively and defensively.
- Containing Westbrook & Durant is going to be a huge challenge. They put in enough work to take a win in game 1. With some serious adjustments on the defensive end, we've got the personnel to put the brakes on them, especially Westbrook who caught fire in the second half. Let's just make it happen.
- Coach Kerr: It's going to be very interesting to see what Warriors coach Steve Kerr does to rally our team. He's got a way with highlighting the team's success and encouraging them to learn from their mistakes. We'll be just fine going into Game 2.
- The Roaracle Crowd: It's tough losing at home considering what we've been treated to all season long. Monday was indeed a tough loss and we're going to need the Roaracle's energy back from all of it's fans. It ain't over so get insanely loud and let's go out there and support our Squad.
Win Prediction: I'm actually predicting another close game. Warriors win it 142-139 in double overtime.
ICYMI: (Posts from GSoM)
Warriors lose championship focus, Game 1 to surging Thunder
Westbrook on Curry: "He's not nothing I haven't seen."
NBA Playoffs 2016: Golden State Warriors vs. Oklahoma City Thunder regular season series review