Starters for Warriors Shine in 101-92 Win Over Wizards

December 8, 2012; Washington, DC, USA; Golden State Warriors power forward David Lee (10) celebrates on the court against the Washington Wizards in the fourth quarter at Verizon Center. The Warriors won 101-97. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

The Warriors got the win tonight, but that wasn’t the main story. In a very physical game, Cartier Martin tripped Stephen Curry, who rolled his right ankle gruesomely, once again, sending him to the locker room. This looked pretty bad, but luckily, Curry was able to walk on it with only a slight limp. There’s no update on his ankle yet, but Golden Gate Sports will keep you updated. Curry did enough with 35 points to get the Warriors the win tonight against the Wizards, who had just beaten the Lakers.

In the first quarter of this game, the Warriors came charging out of the gates, were shooting the ball well, and playing good defense. This always seems to happen against teams like the Wizards. They were playing so well, in fact, that they opened an 8-0 lead. Their smart play got some open looks right underneath the basket, and they continued to dwell on the hot start. With two minutes left in the quarter, the Warriors lead 24-12. At the end, it was a 29-17 Dub lead.

Entering the second quarter, the Warriors were shooting the ball at 57%, scorching the Wizards. Behind some questionable calls for the ref’s, however, the Wizards were able to slowly inch their way back into the game in the early-going. The lead was even cut to 8, 35-27 with 6 minutes left in the second. An offensive explosion from the “Splash Brothers”, however, put the Warriors up double digits again, and the lead was up to 21, thanks to a 15-2 run. At halftime, the Warriors lead 58-40. The Wizards shot a mere 33% from the field in the first half.

It was your typical blowout game, right? This one was a little different, actually. The third quarter started dreadfully, and the Wizards continued to cut the lead down. It was a 10 point game when the biggest call of the contest occurred. Because of a little scuffle with Klay Thompson, John Wall picked up his second technical and was thrown out. He reportedly said that he was going to ‘KO’ Klay Thompson. Can’t do that.

After this, the Warriors continued to thrive offensively, and despite a little bit of a scare, Andrew Bogut found his offensive game. The Warriors were up 82-64 at the end of the third quarter.

In the final period of play, the Warriors once again let Washington reenter the picture, cutting the lead to 10. Despite some valiant efforts of the Wizards, Stephen Curry was too much for them. Then, however, he was injured, and forced to leave the game with a standing ovation. The Warriors went cold after that, but Washington had run out of time.

My Three Stars:

1. Stephen Curry: 35 points, 13/18 shooting, 8 assists

2. David Lee: 11 points, 15 reboudns

3. Cartier Martin: 23 points, 6/9 three point shots