AP Photo/Jeff Chiu
The 11-1 Golden State Warriors have won seven straight games after beating the visiting Chicago Bulls 119-93 in San Francisco’s Chase Center on Friday.
Stephen Curry led all scorers with 40 points on 15-of-24 shooting (9-of-17 from three-point range) to lead a Warriors team that outscored the Bulls 63-33 over the second and third quarters.
He also passed Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Ray Allen for the most three-pointers made all time (including playoffs) with this second-quarter bucket:
Curry did so in 585 fewer games, per Shane Young of Forbes:
The Bulls’ starting lineup struggled mightily outside Zach Lavine (23 points, 10-of-17 shooting), combining to score just 29 points on 8-of-32 from the field. They played without center Nikola Vucevic (health and safety protocols).
The Warriors, who sport the league’s best record, lead the Western Conference by 2.5 games over the 8-3 Phoenix Suns. The 8-4 Bulls dropped a half game behind the Washington Wizards and Brooklyn Nets for first in the Eastern Conference.
Notable Performances
Warriors PG Stephen Curry: 40 points, 5 assists
Warriors SF Andrew Wiggins: 15 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals
Warriors PF Draymond Green: 9 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists
Bulls SG Zach LaVine: 23 points, 6 rebounds
Bulls PG Lonzo Ball: 5 points, 4 steals
Bulls SF DeMar DeRozan: 18 points, 5 assists
Warriors Blow Away Bulls in 2nd and 3rd Quarters
The Bulls got off to a great start, jumping out to a 24-14 lead before settling for a 29-23 advantage after 12 minutes.
Almost nothing went right for Chicago from that point forward as the Warriors ran the Bulls out of the Bay Area.
First, Andrew Wiggins scored eight points during a 10-2 second-quarter run that turned a 34-31 deficit into a 41-36 lead. This turnaround jumper punctuated the effort:
Wiggins came into this game on fire after dropping 35 points over his old team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, in a 123-110 win on Wednesday. His second-quarter effort proved to be the turning point in this contest.
Curry then took over in the third quarter, dropping 15 points and two assists as the Dubs outscored the Bulls 35-17 in that frame.
The two-time NBA MVP hit four three-pointers, including this one from the elbow for a 62-51 edge with 9:28 remaining in the third quarter.
Golden State continued to pour it on, and Curry added to that effort with this three for an 18-point lead:
In the second half, Anthony Slater of The Athletic wrote that the point guard had posted “pretty easy” 32 points on the night. The Warriors offense hummed after the first quarter with Curry at the helm. Plus, his shot was on point as usual.
“The ball enters the rim on Steph Curry jumpers with the same kind of precision and caution-for-water-disturbance that the best Olympic divers enter the water with—just barely a ripple of movement,” New York Times best-selling author Shea Serrano wrote.
Curry ended up adding eight more points, and Slater contributed these notes:
The Warriors had another stress-free fourth quarter, which was commonplace when the Dubs won five straight Western Conference titles (and three NBA championships) from 2015-2019.
This season is only 12 games old, but this year’s Warriors team looks championship-worthy even without Klay Thompson, who might be back by Christmas, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
If the five-time All-Star is anywhere close to his old form after missing the last two years due to injury, then everyone else might be playing for second this year.
Bulls Struggle Without Vucevic
Chicago did not fare well without Vucevic, who has had a down year by his standards (13.6 points per game, 39.5 field-goal percentage, 10.9 rebounds). Still, he’s a double-double machine that has helped turn the Bulls into an Eastern Conference contender.
Without him, Chicago struggled down low. Warriors center Kevon Looney had 10 rebounds in just 20 minutes, and the Bulls didn’t get much production from anyone who manned the paint.
But Chicago didn’t get much out of anyone outside of LaVine. DeRozan went 9-of-10 from the free-throw line but made just 4-of-13 field goals on a quiet night for the veteran. Ball was cold from three-point range (1-of-7) en route to a 2-of-11 evening.
LaVine didn’t have his best game either, committing seven turnovers and finishing the night without an assist.
Overall, Golden State outscored Chicago 52-38 in the paint, 18-7 on fast-break opportunities and 24-15 off turnovers. Credit goes to the Warriors for putting on a masterpiece here.
The Bulls either needed to play lockdown defense or go blow-for-blow with the league’s hottest team (and offense) to steal this one, and neither happened as the Warriors blew Chicago out.
What’s Next?
The Warriors will play the Charlotte Hornets on Monday at 7:30 p.m. ET in Spectrum Center, and the Bulls will visit Los Angeles to face the Clippers on Monday at 9:30 p.m.
