Short-Handed Golden State Warriors Fall to Memphis Grizzlies in OT

November 20, 2013; Oakland, CA, USA; Memphis Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley (11) dribbles the ball against Golden State Warriors small forward Andre Iguodala (9) during the first quarter at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The losing streak grew to 12 games Wednesday night (to the Grizzlies), as the Golden State Warriors fell again. The big story of the night was the Grizzlies’ second chance points. The Dubs held them to sub 35 percent shooting and weren’t able to come away with the victory. How improbable! The Warriors lost in overtime 88-81.

The Warriors really felt the loss of Stephen Curry in this game, as his scoring could have been utilized in the third quarter, when they had nothing going. Still, the Warriors fought till the buzzer sounded, but ultimately, will look back on this game and think, “How did this one get away from us?”

In the first quarter, the Warriors were beating the Grizzlies at their own game. They pushed the tempo, scored a lot on the fast break and Harrison Barnes was leading the Dubs to some great play. The Warriors were surprisingly beating the Grizzlies 26-16 by the end of the first quarter.

In the second, it was more of the same. Memphis has never been known for its offensive game. In this particular game, however, the Warriors completely dominated them in terms of scoring in the first half. They were lucky to hold the Grizzlies to a very low shooting percentage, and thanks to some fast-pace play, the Dubs led by 10, 44-34 at halftime.

The third quarter, as you may have guessed, is where it all went wrong. The Warriors saw their lead dissipate to five, then two and all of sudden, the Grizzlies had grabbed a three-point lead. The Warriors, however, never gave up. They battled back and  Barnes, who finished with 16 points, got going a little bit and helped the Warriors step on the gas pedal to finish the quarter strong. They were outscored 25-13 in the third.

The fourth quarter was generally equal. Klay Thompson, David Lee, Andrew Bogut, Andre Iguodala, and Barnes all played for the last 10 minutes. In some scoring droughts for both teams, the Warriors found themselves in a back-and-forth game with plenty of lead changes. Suddenly, however, they had the ball with 5 seconds left, tied 75-75. Memphis’ defense, however, tightened up and the Warriors couldn’t get away a good shot.

For the first time in the season, the Dubs were headed to OT.

Here, however, they never found their offense. A couple of huge shot clock-beating jump shots from Tayshaun Prince buried the Warriors and their hopes of finally beating Memphis to snap their lengthy losing streak.

The Warriors’ next game is in Los Angeles to face the the Lakers.