Warriors Recover From Loss, Ride Thompson’s Hot First Half to Game 2 Victory

Klay Thompson hasn’t been too consistent this postseason, but he has been a very good player in some of his better games.

Luckily for the Warriors, Game 2 was one of Thompson’s better games.

The shooting guard erupted in the first half, making 13 out of his 26 shots and scoring 34 points overall. 29 of those points were scored in the first half, and the Warriors led 62-43 at the break a a result. While the Spurs were able to climb back into the game, they couldn’t rekindle their Game 1 magic. As a result, the Spurs don’t have home-court advantage anymore.

San Antonio is now going to have to win at least one game on the road to win this series. Golden State has looked like the better team in both of its road games, and that’s because of Curry and Thompson. Curry took over in Game 1, and Thompson had his way with the Spurs in Game 2. Harrison Barnes scored 13 and Draymond Green added 10 for the Warriors, who received 25 from the rookie class and 56 from Curry and Thompson in Game 2.

Golden State won largely because of its 3-point shooting. The Warriors made 11 of their 23 3-point attempts, and Thompson made eight of his nine 3-point attempts. The rest of the team made just three of 14 3s, but Green made a crucial one to give the Warriors a nine-point lead and allow the Warriors to swing the momentum at a crucial point in the game. After Green’s 3 with 6:39 left, the Warriors halted the Spurs on defense and held on to win.

San Antonio didn’t shoot as well from beyond the arc, and that was a major reason why the Spurs weren’t able to take a 2-0 series lead. The Spurs made five of 21 shots from 3-point range and shot 39.3 percent overall.

And the Warriors? They shot 45.2 percent.

Now, the Warriors are coming home with the series lead. Golden State is 3-0 at Oracle Arena this postseason, as it won all three games against the Nuggets. If the Warriors can do the same thing against San Antonio, they will be playing in the Western Conference Finals. So far, the Warriors have played like a team who wants to be one of the last four teams standing, as they have dominated the Spurs.

No Spurs player with more than two shots made 50 percent of its shots, and while Tim Duncan and Tony Parker combined for 43 points it wasn’t enough. Curry has continued to take and make tough shots, and he and the Warriors will be hard to stop. So far, Golden State’s offense hasn’t been contained, and if it isn’t contained the Warriors will be playing for a berth in the NBA Finals.