Warriors Clinch 6th Seed, 50-Win Season Against Timberwolves
By Tej Kamaraju
Apr 14, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) reacts after being called for a foul against Minnesota Timberwolves guard Kevin Martin (23) during the second quarter at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
The Golden State Warriors, in the end, proved to maintain the advantage over the Minnesota Timberwolves Monday night, claiming the victory by a whopping score of 130-120. Stephen Curry scored 30 points for the third straight game – something that he’s never done in his entire career.
This is the first season that the Warriors have had 50 wins since 1993-94, and yet they still lie at the sixth seed, showing fans just how divided the two conferences are. Nevertheless, the Warriors are likely to play the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round, where they look to legitimize the rivalry.
Warriors tie a season-high with 130 points, defeating T'Wolves 130-120, giving them their first 50-win season since '93-94
— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) April 15, 2014
Fortunately for the Warriors, a lot of ups and downs in a game had them getting the final laugh, something they could not do the last time the Timberwolves visited. Getting off to a hot start, the Wolves devoured the Warriors in the first quarter with an early 18-4 lead. Things suddenly began to pick up, offensively speaking, for the Dubs.
Defensively, they allowed the most points in a quarter that they have all year at 42. They trailed by 14 at the end of quarter, and the Wolves were not done yet. Through the brilliant play of Kevin Love, who finished with 40 points and 14 rebounds, Minnesota stretched its lead to 19. Showing their resiliency, however, the Warriors battled and battled to keep chipping at the lead.
Pretty soon, Oracle was exploding as Curry drilled 3-pointer after 3-pointer. The only thing that kept the arena from losing its ceiling was a Curry miss at the end of the half, which would have given the Warriors a 1-point advantage. Still, after being down by 19 points, the Warriors trailed by just 2 at the break, outscoring the Wolves 34-22.
In the third quarter, no defense was played at all as the Warriors outscored their opponents 35-28. This is not very shocking considering the trend of the game. They maintained a five-point lead heading into the fourth quarter and it floated around there until they went into overdrive and made some tough shots.
The Warriors are going to miss Andrew Bogut. Fortunately for them, however, they have the passion, the firepower, and the defensive intensity, even without him, to upset almost any team. Plus, Draymond Green proved Monday night that he can be an offensive gem as well with 20 points and 12 rebounds.