Category: Basketball

BOSTON (AP) — Nic Claxton had 18 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists for his first NBA triple-double and the Brooklyn Nets beat the Boston Celtics 113-105 on Friday night for their first victory in the NBA Cup in-season tournament.

Michael Porter Jr. scored 33 points, and Noah Clowney had 19 to help Brooklyn snap a nine-game losing streak against Boston. The Nets improved to 3-12 overall and 1-2 in NBA Cup play.

Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 26 points but was limited to 32 minutes because of trouble. Neemias Queta had 16 points and 12 rebounds as Boston dropped to 8-8 overall and 1-2 in the tournament.

The Celtics’ comeback bid was dealt a tough blow when Brown picked up his fifth foul with 5:52 remaining in the third quarter. Boston coach Joe Mazzulla challenged, but the call on the floor was upheld.

Brooklyn led 71-68 when Boston’s leading scorer took a seat. Brown’s absence was felt as the visitors regained the momentum behind a 17-4 run that helped Brooklyn widen its lead to 92-77 entering the fourth.

Up next

Nets: At Toronto on Sunday night.

Celtics: Host Orlando on Sunday night.

Different issue plagues Warriors after fixing turnover woes in loss to Blazers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – Warriors coach Steve Kerr during his pregame news conference Friday identified the greatest threat to the success of the team this season: Turnovers. When they commit fewer, they win. When they commit more, they lose.

“That’s our No. 1 concern at this stage,” he said. “Seventeen games in, it’s pretty clear what we have to do. If we take care of the ball, we win. If we don’t, we lose.”

Four hours later, in Game 18, at Chase Center for the first time since Nov. 9, the Warriors committed fewer giveaways than the Portland Trail Blazers – and, for the first time this season, lost.

Lack of size and interior muscle is an issue that has surfaced all too often this season, and they were the primary cause of the Warriors walking off the Chase Center floor with a 127-123 lashing that killed their homecoming buzz and dropped them back to .500.

“We know we’re small out there at times, but we got to play bigger than we are,” said Stephen Curry, whose game-high 38 points went for naught. “There were a lot of breakdowns and missed box outs because they had five out most of the time, with a 7-footer in there. Those possessions matter.”

Glancing at their opening-night roster, the smallest in the NBA, the Warriors had to expect there would be nights like this. Nights when they would pay a price for being relatively miniature compared to their opponent. When rebounds would be gone before the ball could drop low enough to reach their outstretched hands.

Nights, like this one, when they would outshoot their opponent from the field, and from beyond the arc, while committing fewer turnovers, and still come up short. Literally and figuratively.

Portland won the offensive rebounding war 21-9, the total rebounding war 52-32 and was plus-18 (28-10) in second chance points. Four Blazers snagged at least seven rebounds, with Robert Williams III hauling in a game-high 11, while Jimmy Butler III, with eight, was the only Warrior with more than six.

“They are an athletic team,” Kerr said after losing to Portland for the second time this season. “A couple of their guys are super athletic. They crash. They put a lot of pressure on us. That was the difference.”

It is exceedingly difficult to win when taking such a beating on the glass, though Curry indicated there is a path.

“Pretty much perfect basketball on the other end,” Curry said.

“But it’s still crazy that we were in a one-possession game with whatever with minute and a half (remaining) with that type of discrepancy. It’s like you play as hard as you want to, fly around, but the best offense and the most demoralizing thing for defense is 20 seconds of good defense, and then an easy put back or second, third opportunity.”

Though rebounding was the most statistical failure, and the most decisive, the Warriors also did a poor job of defending, particularly at the point of attack and when spread out by Portland’s shooters. Rookie guard Caleb Love, on a two-way contract, came off the bench to score a career-high 26 points, in the process draining six 3-pointers, several of which were wide open.

“We’re just not guarding nobody, from what I can tell,” Butler said. “And I haven’t been here long, but that’s never been the formula here.”

“You’re not taking anything away. You’re not taking the paint away. You’re not taking away layups, free throws, lobs, 3s. So, we don’t know where they’re going to get a shot from, but tonight they were getting whatever shot they wanted.”

Brandin Podziemski, at times tasked with point-of-attack defense, conceded that it did not go well for him or any of his teammates when given that assignment.

“Just too many straight-line drives,” Podziemski said of Portland’s freeway to the rim. “Obviously, they are a bigger team than us. So, when our big has to rotate over so many times, it leaves (it open) for lobs and offensive rebounds.”

The Warriors entered the game ranked 29th in number of turnovers per game and 22nd in rebounding. They committed 14 turnovers, to 21 for Portland. They plugged that leak.

Only to have another one bite them in the backside.

It has been that kind of season for Golden State. And probably will be if the current roster is unable to overcome the areas, and there are several, in which it is deficient.

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What we learned as Steph Curry, Warriors stall late in NBA Cup loss to Blazers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

BOX SCORE

SAN FRANCISCO – Home is where the heart is. Pulses raced inside Chase Center on Friday night, racing up and down whichever way the game went. 

Warriors fans, for the first time this season, exited the building with broken hearts from a 127-123 loss against the Portland Trail Blazers.

The Warriors led 97-94 through three quarters, and then were outscored 33-26 by the Blazers in the fourth. 

Weaknesses were exposed for the Warriors, particularly in their lack of size and point of attack defense. They were beaten in rebounding 52-32, which included 21 offensive rebounds for the Blazers and a lowly nine for the Warriors. That kind of ownage led to 28 second-chance points by the Blazers, a whopping 18 more than the Warriors. 

Steph Curry led the Warriors with 38 points and nine 3-pointers, giving him his most points in a loss this season. The Warriors now are 3-3 when he scores 30 or more points. 

Jimmy Butler did a bit of everything with 20 points, eight rebounds and five assists, and Brandin Podziemski scored 20 points off the bench for the Warriors. 

Another first for the Warriors (9-9) was winning the turnover battle but losing the game. They never could pull away quite enough, and the Blazers (7-9) kept coming. 

Here are three takeaways from the Warriors’ first home loss of the season, extending their losing streak to three. 

Steph’s Sizzle Wasted

Drool began forming at the corner of Curry’s mouth whenever Blazers big man Donovan Clingan guarded him at the 3-point line. Clingan is essentially a foot taller than Curry at 7-foot-2. He sure isn’t as fleet of foot as him, though.

Somehow, Portland’s defense kept letting that matchup happen in the second quarter. Curry kept taking advantage of that decision, too. After a five-point first quarter, Curry made five 3-pointers in the second quarter while playing just six minutes. 

Back home and getting to enjoy a day off, Curry exploded for 18 points in the second quarter on a perfect 6 of 6 from the field, including making all five of his tries from deep. 

Curry came back down to earth in the third quarter, scoring four points. He then scored nine big-time points in the fourth quarter. Each one felt bigger, and it still couldn’t equal a win.

BP Brings Scoring Punch

For the second time this season, Podziemski reached 20 points Wednesday night in the Warriors’ short-handed loss against the Miami Heat. He also needed 19 shot attempts to get there, making only six shots. Podziemski was much more efficient and in control against the Blazers. 

With Curry up to 23 points at halftime, Podziemski was right there alongside him. Jimmy Butler wasn’t the Warriors’ second scoring option. Podziemski was, scoring 15 first-half points on just five shot attempts. 

Podziemski hit the 20-point mark with a minute and a half left in the third quarter. He had taken just seven shots at the time. 

Whether it was shooting threes in the flow of the offense or forcing his way to the free-throw line, Podziemski was much more decisive Friday. That’s everything for him. His 10 free-throw attempts were a season high, as were Podziemski’s eight made free throws.

Make The Whistle Your Friend

Defending without fouling always will be key to the Warriors’ two-way success. Within the first seven minutes of the game, however, the Warriors already had been called for seven fouls. The Blazers in the first quarter were whistled for four fewer fouls than the Warriors and took five more free throws than them. 

Lesson learned. 

Instead of watching the Blazers walk to the charity stripe, the Warriors were the ones enjoying their time there in the second quarter. A total of five Warriors shot free throws in the second quarter, going 11 of 14 as a team. They got the Blazers in the bonus early, giving the Warriors a halftime advantage of two more attempts than them and three more makes. 

It was a back-and-forth battle of fouls and free throws for the two teams. The Warriors were at 18 fouls and 24 free throw attempts through three quarters, and the Blazers, going into the fourt,h had been called for 21 fouls and taken 22 free throws. 

Both teams were called for 25 fouls. The Blazers, though, took two more free throws than the Warriors and made one more than them. The Warriors dropped to 3-7 when their opponent makes more free throws.

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