The Sports Xchange
Nov 25, 2017
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Stephen Curry poured in 26 of his game-high 33 points in a second-quarter flurry Friday night, propelling the Golden State Warriors to a 143-94 thrashing of the Chicago Bulls.
The Warriors eased to the win, their fifth without a loss following a defeat this season, despite Kevin Durant sitting out with a sprained ankle and Draymond Green on a scheduled night off.
Green is expected to play, but Durant remains questionable, when the Warriors conclude a rare consecutive-night home sequence Saturday against New Orleans.
Coming off a 2-2 trip that included an emotional 108-91 loss at Oklahoma City on Wednesday, Golden State led just 44-43 in the fifth minute of the second quarter before Curry exploded.
The former two-time Most Valuable Player had two layups, two 3-pointers and two free throws while contributing 12 points to a 14-0 Warriors burst during a 3:24 stretch that opened a 58-43 advantage.
The Warriors went on to lead by as many as 23 in the quarter as Curry completed the 21st 20-point quarter of his career and the third 30-point half. He left the court for the intermission with 31 points.
Curry single-handedly outscored the Bulls 26-21 in the second quarter.
Klay Thompson had 29 points and Nick Young came off the bench to add 17 points in 19 minutes for the Warriors, whose 49-point margin of victory was their largest of the season.
Backup Jerian Grant had a team-high 21 points for the Bulls, who went winless on a four-game Western swing.
Four other Bulls scored in double figures, including rookie forward Lauri Markkanen, who totaled 14 points despite missing 12 of his 16 shots.
The Warriors outshot the Bulls 58.2 percent to 35.4 percent from the field en route to their highest point total of the season.
The Bulls have split the two-game season series with the Warriors in two of the past three seasons.
NOTES: The Warriors held their 35th consecutive opponent below 50 percent shooting. The Bulls were 12 of 22 (54.5 percent) in the first quarter, but then just 12 of 51 (23.5 percent) in the second and third quarters. ... The Warriors outscored the Bulls 81-34 in the second and third quarters. ... Warriors coach Steve Kerr joked before the game that he was starting rookie PF Jordan Bell for resting PF Draymond Green to allow the former Oregon standout a shot at revenge on Bulls rookie PF Lauri Markkanen, whose Arizona club beat the Bell and the Ducks 83-80 in the Pacific-12 Conference Tournament final last March. Bell finished with seven points in his first NBA start.