This is just getting ridiculous now.
Stephen Curry hit 10 3-pointers, finished with 49 points, and led the Golden State Warriors to a 107-96 win over the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers. It was close in the fourth quarter when Curry began to light up the Sixers.
The Dubs trailed 82-81 when Curry re-entered the game with 6:54 left in the game. He scored 20 points over the rest of the quarter and hit some tough 3-pointers that helped preserve the victory for the Warriors.
Without Curry, Golden State would be one of the five worst teams in the league. Curry is averaging 41.8 points over the past eight games, leading the Dubs to a 6-2 record and cementing them in the play-in race.
“I don’t know what else to say, you guys ask me after every game what I think of Steph and his performance,” head coach Steve Kerr said, following the win. “Whatever I said last night, just use that again tonight. Because it’s the same thing every night: utter amazement at this guy’s skill level, heart, mind.”
There’s just something so special about watching Curry when he has nights like this. As soon as you see the defender gives him an extra inch of space, you’re expecting him to pull up a swish-a-shot from 30-feet out.
He’s the most entertaining player in the league right now. Although the Warriors aren’t a championship contender, having Curry in the postseason is a big win for the league. He captivates social media when he’s going off as he did against the Sixers in a way no other NBA player can.
Curry leads the league in scoring ESPN”s Real Plus-Minus stat and will be a force to be reckoned with in the postseason.
Steph Curry's updated April stats: 40.7 points per game on 55-50-91 shooting splits in 10 games. He's 72-of-143 from 3.
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) April 20, 2021
No team will want to play the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs. Curry is capable of stealing four games on his own, and if he keeps up this level of shooting, opposing squads will have their hands full.
The Dubs have been much better defensively over the past eight games. They’re giving up 4.3 fewer points per game than their season average and have been much more engaged on their own end. The Warriors gave Philadelphia fits with their pressure, but the 76ers were without Ben Simmons and Tobias Harris.
Andrew Wiggins had a solid outing for Golden State; he finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Draymond Green didn’t fill up the stat sheet but had a major impact on the win. He was the general of the defense and made several key plays down the stretch. While Kevon Looney hounded Joel Embiid all game and finished with 15 boards.
Steve Kerr on Draymond Green: "I think he's the best defender in the game today, because of what you have to do these days as a big."
— Brady Klopfer (@BradyKlopferNBA) April 20, 2021
It was a plodding start for the Dubs. They trailed 12-0 just over three minutes into the game.
But the Warriors began to come alive following the early deficit. Led by Curry, they were able to get things rolling on the offensive end and went on a 24-12 the rest of the way and went into the second on even terms with the Sixers.
The two teams stayed neck-and-neck in the second quarter. Golden State shot 51.3 percent in the first half, and Curry had 20 points at the break. The game was tied at 55-55 going into the third.
It remained close after the half. The Dubs played hard at both ends of the floor. Golden State held Philadelphia to five-of-20 shooting and only allowed 15 points in the period. Wiggins began to make some shots in the third quarter, helping the Warriors take a 75-70 lead in the fourth.
With the win, Golden State is 3.5 games up on the New Orleans Pelicans in the play-in race and sits just two games behind the Dallas Mavericks for the seventh seed in the Western Conference.
Led by Curry, the Dubs have turned the corner in recent weeks. They will wrap up their road trip with a matchup against the Washington Wizards on Wednesday.
Warriors vs. 76ers: Steph Curry scores 49, leads Dubs to win over Sixers - Golden State of Mind
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