Warriors Rally In Fourth To Squeeze by Wolves

Feb 24, 2013; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves point guard J.J. Barea (11) shoots as Golden State Warriors power forward Carl Landry (7) defends in the fourth quarter at the Target Center. Warriors won 100-99. Mandatory Credit: Greg Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Talk about a nail biter! The Warriors,  however, knew what they were doing all along. When they dug themselves an early hole to get out of, they knew what they were doing.

Today, the Warriors started the roadtrip off with a much needed win to put their streak at 3. The smiles on their faces said it all: how did we get away with this one? On this afternoon, the Warriors barely escaped the Wolves by one, a final score of 100-99.

In the first quarter, the Wolves really tightened their defense and locked down. The Warriors, however, didn’t do the same. Players like Luke Ridnour, Ricky Rubio, and Alexy Shved were all making any shot they could possibly get. The Warriors found themselves down 16-6 just 5 minutes into the first quarter. A quick 2 fouls on Curry got the Warriors in some trouble that they would later be affected by. At the end of the quarter, the Wolves had outscored the Warriors 32-18, but had 24 points in the paint to the Warriors 0. Jarrett Jack had 11 out of the 18.

In the early second quarter, the Warriors were able to claw and scratch to within 9 points, but they already had 10 turnovers with 9 minutes left in the first half. When the Warriors caught fire, they played better defense and found themselves right back in the game at 46-40. Lead by Jarrett Jack, the Warriors rode that hot streak all the way to halftime, and were down just 55-52.

Starting the third quarter, David Lee and the Warriors picked up right where they left off. They outscored Minnesota by a lot to start the quarter, and grabbed their first lead at 60-59 behind a series of buckets scored by David Lee. From then on, however, the Wolves exploded offensively and the Warriors cooled off. Because of a faltering defense, the Wolves lead 81-76 at the end of the third.

The Warriors needed to have a huge fourth if they were to win this one! That they did. For the most part, the Wolves kept their distance at 4, while occasionally allowing the Warriors back into the game, but they never got any breathing room. Finally, Jarrett Jack hit a three point shot to put the Warriors up 96-95. Rubio’s layup afterwards gave the Wolves the lead back, but the Warriors weren’t done yet. Stephen Curry’s jumpshot put them up again. After Harrison Barnes missed his second free throw, Draymond Green got the biggest offensive rebound of the night.

Luke Ridnour’s fading floater was off the mark, and the Warriors escaped with the win.

Nightly Notables:

• David Lee scored 22 points and grabbed down 13 rebounds.
• Stephen Curry scored 18 points while dishing out 5 assists.
• Jarrett Jack scored 23 points and dished out 8 assists.
• Carl Landry scored 19 points, and pulled down 9 rebounds, one of his best games in a while.
• Klay Thompson scored just 10 points, but he fouled out late 4th quarter.