Warriors make a statement, crush Nets on national TV

For the better part of one half, the Golden State Warriors and Brooklyn Nets played the type of ultra-close, back-and-forth affair that everyone anticipated. The Warriors, holding the league’s best record and one of the top MVP candidates in Steph Curry, made their mark. The Nets, the championship favorites in many people’s eyes and also having one of the top MVP candidates in Kevin Durant, made their mark back, usually staying one step ahead.

It was exciting, tense, dramatic.

It was close.

And then, just like that, it wasn’t.

The Dubs ended the first half on a bang, with a run that culminated in Andrew Wiggins making a pair of threes on both sides of a two-for-one, including a buzzer-beater that gave the Warriors a five-point lead at the half.

And it carried right into the third quarter, with Golden State scoring 14 unanswered points spanning the second and third quarters.

They were just getting started.

Golden State dominated the third quarter, as they have so many times this year. And they did it in every possible way.

They outscored Brooklyn 35-18 in the third frame. Curry made impossible shot after impossible shot. Gary Payton II played highlight reel defense. Draymond Green was absurd. Curry hit the bench early with foul trouble and the Warriors managed to expand the lead, despite Durant and James Harden being on the floor.

There was even another buzzer-beater, this time courtesy of Andre Iguodala.

And the defense? Almost not suitable for work.

It was a 22-point lead going into the fourth quarter, and it never felt competitive after that. Both teams turned to their subs, and the Dubs cruised to a 117-99 win. Curry finished with 37 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block, on 12-for-19 shooting, including 9-for-14 from distance. He needed just 29 minutes to accrue that stat line.

Wiggins finished with 19 points on just 11 shots, while Jordan Poole chipped in 17, and Green had 11 points, 6 rebounds, and 8 assists.

It moved the Dubs to 12-2 on the season, and was a far cry from when the Warriors lost to the Nets 125-99 to start the 2020-21 season less than a year ago. That time the Warriors showed that they weren’t yet ready; this time they affirmed their spot as one of the NBA’s elite.

Statement made.

Join the postgame Twitch stream to talk about the Warriors win: