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Warriors Push Past Kings

The Warriors extended their winning streak to six games after defeating the visiting Sacramento Kings 114-100 on Friday night. Stephen Curry led all players with 27 points and a season-high 12 assists. Draymond Green added 23 points and eight assists of his own, while JaVale McGee came off the bench and just missed a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds. With the victory, Golden State improves to 58-14 on the season.

GAME LEADERS

The Warriors entered Friday’s game having won 15 of the last 17 meetings between the two sides, and they’d continue their recent dominance over the Kings with a sound team effort. Golden State swiped 14 steals and forced 21 turnovers in the contest, and utilized their passing attack to carve up Sacramento on the other end.

The Kings were the stronger team out of the gate, racing out to a 14-9 lead just under five minutes into the game. That’s as large of a lead as they’d hold for the entire night, however, as the Warriors reeled off seven-straight points to take a 27-20 lead at the end of the first quarter, and the Dubs would remain in front for the rest of the game.

Golden State took their first double-digit lead of the night when Draymond Green scored at the 6:18 mark of the second quarter to increase the advantage to 44-34. They’d build it up to 12 points in the remainder of the frame, but Sacramento closed the quarter on a 6-2 burst to pull within 57-50 at the half. Of the Warriors’ 24 first half field goals, 21 of them came by way of an assist.

The Warriors scored the first five points of the second half to rebuild a 12-point advantage, and they’d go on the break the game open in the remainder of the third quarter. Aaron Afflalo cut the deficit to 69-60 on a three-pointer with 7:52 left in the frame, but Green followed a Stephen Curry jumper with back-to-back three-pointers to put Sacramento in a deep hole. Another 6-2 Golden State burst in the final 75 seconds of the third quarter gave the Warriors their largest lead of the entire night at 92-72 heading into the fourth and final frame. The situation could have been quite different if not for the Kings’ carelessness with the basketball, as Golden State held a 33-4 advantage in points off turnovers after three quarters.

Stephen Curry hadn’t played in the fourth quarter in any of the Warriors’ previous four games, but he’d break that streak when he re-entered the game with 6:07 remaining and Golden State holding a 99-88 lead. Sensing Sacramento was seizing momentum, Curry responded by scoring the next nine points of the game, all by way of three-pointers, to put the game out of reach. He’d return to the bench at the 2:43 mark, and Golden State’s reserves would finish out the eventual 114-100 victory.

With the win, the Warriors improve to 58-14 on the season. They’ll attempt to push their winning streak to a seventh game when they host the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.