Steph Curry has 26 points, Warriors create 26 turnovers in win over T-wolves
The "Warriors Postgame Live" crew breaks down Golden State's 111-85 win vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday at Target Center.
Steph Curry has 26 points, Warriors create 26 turnovers in win over T-wolves originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Video Transcript
A feel-good win for the Golden State Warriors.
They even up their record on this road trip.
And they blow out the Minnesota Timberwolves to snap their two-game losing streak.
Picking up their first win since Jimmy Butler tore his right ACL Monday night.
Miami Heat.
Stephen Curry making some history, Moses Moody rolling, and the Warriors are gonna come back tomorrow against the same Minnesota.
Team and try to repeat what they did tonight.
We welcome everybody to Toyota Warriors.
Postgame Live, with the Hall of Famer Chris Mullin, NBA champion Festus Ezeli.
I am Monta Ellis.
We mentioned a fast start.
Take care of the basketball.
Check, check, and the Warriors get a win.
I benched that, Monta.
Bench was out, and they were, They were alert the whole game.
I think the Warriors came out tonight, and their mentality was to win the physicality battle.
You saw them get 16 steals in the 1st half.
That gave them all the points that they needed.
Not shooting the ball particularly well, but the bench really came in and made their impact.
Felt.
De'Anthony Melton.
Every quarter this game, Monta was a different leader.
First quarter.
Moses Moody had 10 points.
Second quarter.
De'Anthony Melton had 10 points.
Third quarter.
Pods had eight points, Gee had seven.
Fourth quarter.
Steph Curry showed up and had nine points.
This is what the Warriors are gonna look like.
You gotta take some pressure off of Steph.
You gotta take advantage of that double team.
That Steph gets, and I thought the Warriors did that.
They found some new lineups tonight, and going to Minnesota.
Really, Minnesota really looked sleepy, except for Anthony Edwards... And Donte DiVincenzo.
Those are the only two players that showed up.
Tonight.
I thought the Warriors' physicality won this game tonight.
Yeah, we talked pregame about points off turnovers, and the Warriors won that battle 25-13.
They were plus 12, but they really dominated more than that.
They had got off to a good start, as you said, Monta.
Second quarter, towards the end of the half, Minnesota made a run... And looked like the Warriors didn't take advantage of the 16 turnovers in the 1st half.
But then the third quarter happened, and they dominated 38-17.
Yeah.
Just put together a great third quarter.
And as Fezzy said, to me, this is a great win coming off the Dallas loss.
Their first win since Jimmy Butler's injury.
Yep.
So, a good bounce-back win, a total team effort.
And then for the, for the Wolves, the the players that, that I was concerned about for the Warriors, basically were no-shows.
Yeah.
Jaden McDaniels, Julius Randle.
Mm-hmm.
Naz Reid was zero, and then Rudy Gobert.
Wow.
So the front line, which you- That's incredible... Would think that's what they were gonna take advantage of, they didn't even show up to the game.
It was really just Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo.
Naz Reid has been the Warriors' killer.
Goose egg tonight in 25 minutes for the T-Wolves.
The Warriors forced a season-high 26 turnovers, now improved to 21 and 5.
When they have fewer or the same turnovers as their opponent, they get the win, and Moses Moody had a lot to do with it.
He stopped by with Tim Roy and Glenn Ezubuke.
Well, Moses, you, you got off to a great start tonight.
The team got off to a great start, a lot of activity early on.
How much was that a key for this win?
Yeah, we came out hard.
We came out hot, just playing with energy, and the game usually rewards good basketball.
So, I think that was a result of that early on.
The beginning of both quarters, We, we started off hot and started off fast, set the tone for the rest of the halves.
You guys forced 26 turnovers.
That's wild, and had 25 points off those.
Turnovers.
I mean, w-w-was that part of the discussion, just trying to come out and get super active with your hands?
Did you expect them to maybe come out a little sluggish?
I think some of that is a testament to our coaching staff.
Assistant coaches, Rube, AV, I don't know who had the scout today.
Rube had the scout today, so just knowing the plays.
Knowing where the ball's gonna be and being able to anticipate it.
And was it a point of emphasis to get out and fast break before the defense is set?
Because you guys had 22 fast break points.
You guys found a lot of flow there before the defense was really set before they could really think defensively.
Yeah, yeah, I mean, that was a, that was something that happened.
I can't tell you our points of emphasis, 'cause we gotta be back tomorrow.
I can't give him no heads-up.
Hey, Moses, tonight, as all- throughout the season, The bench has been really good in terms of providing points and, and some energy.
You know, what's the status now for them?
Now that there's no Jimmy?
How important is that?
As important as ever.
We have a really good team all the way throughout the bench.
And I think that's a testament to that, saying anybody could be in and out of rotation.
And the second unit is, can, can contribute just like anybody else.
So, just coming out here and keep doing what everybody does.
It's every- do it, just, just.
And that's the mindset.
No, no drama.
Everybody, everybody good, everybody okay with the situation and... And, and, and coming out here, putting their best foot forward every time you step on the floor.
Moses, this is your seventh straight game in double-digit scoring.
Talk to me about your confidence level.
Where are you, where are you at with your game?
How are you feeling?
I feel good.
Just let the game come to you.
Opportunity's gonna come, shots are gonna come, driving lane's gonna present itself the right things, when you play the right way, not try to force it.
So I think that's, that's how I, that's how I try to approach the game.
19 points and eight rebounds.
Moses, we thank you for your time.
And the most important thing now is stay warm on that walk to the bus.
Yes, sir.
Thank you.
I'll see y'all tomorrow.
Yes, sir.
Thank you, Moses.
How about this?
Minnesota had scored at least 100 points in a basketball game, 100 straight games.
That was the third-longest streak in NBA history.
Well, tonight they just scored 85-... As they turned the ball over, and they had six turnovers.
Excuse me.
Seven turnovers in the first six minutes of the game, as the Warriors got off to a hot start.
There in the first quarter.
Minnesota scores the first basket of the game.
Next thing you know, the Warriors have scored 14 straight.
Hot out of the gate, Fezzy, and we mentioned that in our pregame.
Tip: Get off to a faster start.
The Warriors, 27th in the league in points per game in the first quarter.
I, I love the point of emphasis for this game: ball movement.
Ball security.
Only 12 turnovers for the Warriors, and everybody was a threat on the floor.
You see Al Horford right there making a shot.
But that came from Moses Moody being aggressive, getting to the cup.
This is what you need right here from everybody.
You're not able to score, get a steal.
Hold the Minnesota Timberwolves to 38% from the field.
That's a way to also get a win on the night.
Yeah, these weren't just turnovers where you take- these were live ball turnovers that led to, direct layups for the Warriors.
Got them off to a great start.
As you said, Monta.
But this Moses Moody had a nice game.
They had so many great players, have good games off the bench across the board.
Total team effort.
31 assists, and you mentioned just 12 turnovers.
And that's on a night where they didn't really make shots.
To get 31 assists and shoot 42% from the field is an impressive number.
Once again, took care of the basketball.
This, this was a big win to me because of the tough Dallas loss.
And I think it's the first time they're feeling really good about themselves since Butler injury.
You have to grit it out.
20 steals?
20 steals.
That's the- that's a point of emphasis.
That's winning every loose ball.
That's being the physical team, especially in Minnesota, on their home turf.
That was a good way to start this, this, this back-to-back.
Yeah, you saw Brandin Podziemski with four steals, and a couple of those steals in the first quarter.
But our closing argument, presented by Walkup Law.
You need a champion, and that is the third quarter.
Winner- Warriors basically put a lid on this basketball game.
Outscoring the T-Wolves 38 to 17.
Fezzie, they shot 59% from the floor in that quarter, five of 11 from the 3-point line, 12 assists.
Meanwhile, the T-Wolves shot just 32% from the floor, and they were 1-7 from the three-point line.
I, I love seeing them get a stop.
Every stop, they ran on the, they ran on the, on the miss.
On the mats.
Paz was aggressive.
He had eight points.
Gee had seven points.
He came in.
There was actually a new wrinkle that Steve had.
Where he subbed Gee in for Draymond, and that action with him and Steph.
It actually looked really good.
Something to build on moving forward.
That's a good point.
And Bonzi, you know, Towards the end of the half, the Timberwolves cut it to one.
And they had 16 turnovers, and it looked like the Warriors had squandered some opps.
But they came out in the third quarter, won that third quarter 38-17 with ball movement.
We saw those wide-open shots.
So incredible third quarter to really put the game out of reach.
And it looked like they demoral- Now, I don't watch the Timberwolves that much.
They looked like they demoralized them.
Now, we, we mentioned pre-game, it showed up, and it was exposed big time with the 26 turnovers.
Lack of a point guard.
But they look like they got some deeper problems... Than missing a point guard.
Well, this game is interesting, 'cause this is the front of a back-to-back.
So for the Warriors, bouncing back tomorrow, De'Anthony Melton.
Al Horford, two people to watch out for if they're gonna play.
This is one of the things the Warriors are gonna have to juggle moving forward.
But they looked really good tonight.
Yep.
Talk about setting the tone in that second half.
The first six minutes of the third quarter, the Warriors had a 65 to 54 lead.
They came out of the gate 17 to 7 to increase that one-point lead they had at the half.
Then they end that frame with a 21 to eight run.
You can always tell the point of emphasis with the first play they run in the 2nd half.
The first play goes to Al Horford.
Steve Kerr, understanding that the bigs have to win their battle, too.
Now, I thought that gave the team a lot of energy.
The role players knew that they had to be aggressive to get this win, and talk about the bigs holding Rudy Gobert to what?
How many points?
Four points.
Four points.
You had Jaden McDaniels, Julius Randle with 11 points, but you have to shoot 11 shots to get those points.
Naz Reid with a goose egg.
That's the energy you need.
You need to be able to win games defensively, too.
Think about that: 18 points between McDaniels, Randle, Gobert.
And Naz Reid.
Well, you can't play well if you don't show up.
No doubt about that.
No doubt about that.
I mean, come on now.
These two teams will do it again, and how about this?
Every member of the Golden State Warriors played less than 30 minutes.
So well-rested heading into tomorrow's action against the Minnesota T-Wolves.
We'll hear from Steve Kerr on the other side, as the Warriors snap their two-game losing streak.
