Kobe klay

The Golden State Warriors were back at Staples Center tonight, but this time they faced the Los Angeles Lakers. The crowd was excited to see Kobe Bryant, but the Warriors were the superior team. They got out to an early lead and never relinquished it. Klay Thompson had a monster game and the Warriors once again put well over 100 points on the scoreboard. This wasn’t much of game, but it’s a pre-season game, so it’s expected. In case you missed the game, here’s a quick recap:

First Quarter:
The Warriors got out the gate fast and started off hot. You can tell Klay Thompson came out with a purpose, especially with his match-up against Kobe Bryant, he started the game with two quick three point shots. The Warriors built up a comfortable lead, but the Lakers got some quick turnovers and easy buckets. Overall, the defense was shaky on both ends, but the Warriors finished the quarter with a good lead. Klay finishes the quarter as the game’s leading scorer hitting three 3-point buckets and sinking both free throws. This start was the complete opposite of what we saw against the Clippers on Tuesday night. At the end of the first quarter, many knew this would become a high scoring affair; the Warriors led 35-27.

Second Quarter:

The Lakers and their crowd came out stronger in the second quarter. Both teams had their second units on the floor. The matchup to watch was Lakers’ rookie Julius Randle against Draymond Green. After the Lakers trimmed it down to six, Kerr sent Andre Iguodala and Klay Thompson back in the game. Short there after, Curry and Bogut checked into the game. Green showed his range with a corner 3, pushing the lead back to eight. Thompson continued to score at will. Midway through the second, Kerr brought back all of his starters. With all the starters back on the floor, they took over the game within a matter of two minutes. They got the lead back up to double digits. After one half, the Warriors’ lead is 18 and Thompson led all scorers with 20.

While the Lakers went with their starters, the Warriors made a swap between Harrison Barnes and Iguodala. The Lakers came out strong and they were able to cut the lead to 12. The Warriors didn’t do a good job defensively and turnovers were a problem. Second chance opportunities began to continuously hurt the Warriors. Jeremy Lin attacked the Warriors defense and hit a pretty nice finish. Curry took it personally, and on the ensuing possession, Curry splashed a step-back three-pointer which took back all of the momentum. After a Jordan Hill layup, the Warriors’ back court took over offensively. Thompson connected on a floater and another three while Curry cleaned up a missed Kuzmic layup with another three-ball before the Lakers called time out.

 

Fourth Quarter:

With the blowout and the win sealed, Kerr has released most of the bench to see the floor. Aaron Craft, Mitchell Watt, Marreese Speights, Jason Kapono, and Justin Holiday finished the fourth quarter for the visiting Warriors. All these players drew light or no playing time on Tuesday. Tonight, James Michael McAdoo and Leandro Barbosa rode the pine the whole game. In the end, Thompson and Curry’s offense and barrage of threes were too much to overcome. The Warriors easily picked up the W in another high scoring game with the game finishing at 120-105.