DENVER — Thursday was a good a time as any for the Golden State Warriors to get their first win against the Nuggets. Denver arrived early Thursday morning from Sacramento on the second leg of a back-to-back.
Willed by a 34-point game from Steph Curry, the Warriors pulled out a gutty 113-102 win on Thursday night at Ball Arena. It was the Warriors’ first win against Denver this season.
Denver’s fatigue was no advantage for a frazzled Warriors team in the first half. Led by Nikola Jokic, Denver owned Golden State in the paint. Into the third quarter, the Nuggets led by as many as 14 points as an aggressive Warriors defense broke down quick.
With Jokic off the floor in the third quarter, Curry decided to take matters into his own hands. Down seven with five minutes remaining, Curry strung together 18 points with three 3-pointers in the quarter. A return to his old rotation helped inspire the key Curry flurry — he played the entire quarter with the Warriors up four heading into the fourth.
The tide shifted back to Denver when Jokic returned, tying it at 98 with five minutes remaining in the fourth. Curry found enough open lanes to keep the Warriors’ scoring going. Jordan Poole hit back-to-back 3-pointers in the remaining minute to extend the Warriors’ lead to eight with 36 seconds remaining. Poole finished with 21 points and four 3-pointers.
The Warriors defense amped up the pressure and forced a handful of turnovers in the final minutes to preserve a tight lead.
