The Golden State Warriors were down 13 in the fourth quarter of a must-win game on Wednesday night. Their season was slipping away at Intuit Dome. Then Stephen Curry reminded everyone why this team is never truly out of it.
Curry scored 35 points on 12-of-23 shooting with seven three-pointers as Golden State erased a 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 126-121 in Wednesday’s play-in game. The Warriors closed the game on a 16-6 run and advance to face the Phoenix Suns on Friday. Win that game and a first-round series against the Oklahoma City Thunder awaits.
For a team that went 37-45 in the regular season and lost Jimmy Butler for the year in January, this was about as Warrior as it gets.
Curry Delivers When It Matters Most
GettyStephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors reacts against the LA Clippers in the second half of an NBA play-in tournament game.
The first half was not pretty. Curry managed just eight points on 2-of-9 shooting as the Clippers built momentum and took a 61-53 lead into halftime. Kawhi Leonard was gliding, Golden State’s offense was sputtering, and the deficit felt larger than the scoreboard suggested.
Then Curry turned it on.
He scored 16 points in a six-minute span of the third quarter, connecting on three three-pointers and refusing to let the Warriors fall further behind. The burst kept Golden State within striking distance entering the fourth. Still, the Clippers led 98-85 with under ten minutes to play.
What followed was vintage Curry. Al Horford hit three consecutive three-pointers to drag the Warriors back into it. Gui Santos’ layup trimmed the lead to one. Horford’s fourth three gave Golden State a 117-115 lead with just over two minutes remaining.
The Clippers answered to tie it at 117. Then Curry stepped back from 29 feet and buried the go-ahead triple with 50.4 seconds left. He turned and roared as Los Angeles called timeout. The building fell silent.
Golden State held on from there. Season extended.
Porzingis and Horford Deliver
GettyKristaps Porzingis of the Golden State Warriors.
Curry was the story, but he did not do it alone. Kristaps Porzingis turned in his best performance in a Warriors uniform, finishing with 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists on 8-of-12 shooting in 28 minutes. After weeks of shooting struggles and conditioning questions, this was the version of Porzingis Golden State envisioned when they acquired him before the trade deadline.
Horford, 39 years old, was nothing short of remarkable down the stretch. His four fourth-quarter three-pointers finished with 14 points and proved to be the difference in the comeback. Brandin Podziemski added 17 points and Draymond Green finished with seven points, nine assists, and four steals while hounding Leonard into a scoreless fourth quarter until the final 16 seconds.
The Clippers got 23 points from Bennedict Mathurin and 21 apiece from Leonard and Darius Garland, but could not hold a lead that felt insurmountable with ten minutes to play. It marks their first missed postseason since 2022.
Final Word for the Warriors
This team was written off before tip-off. Down 13 in the fourth quarter, they looked done again. Neither mattered.
Curry is back on a postseason stage and the Warriors are alive. Friday against Phoenix is next. One more win and this improbable run continues against the defending champions in Oklahoma City.
Nobody is counting them out anymore.
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