SAN FRANCISCO -- The Trail Blazers had played the Warriors as close as anybody this season, losing twice by four points each time. That wasn’t the case Saturday when Golden State shrugged off a sluggish start and beat Portland going away, 126-106, to extend their winning streak to five games, matching the Dubs’ best stretch this season.
It was the usual suspects for Golden State again.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Stephen Curry scored 27 points, 10 coming in the second quarter and 11 in the third when the Warriors built an 11-point lead.
Klay Thompson continued his recent run of solid games with 28 points and six 3-pointers. Brandin Podziemski nearly had his first triple-double and finished with 15 points, 10 rebounds with seven assists.
Golden State has defeated Portland at Chase Center in seven consecutive games dating to 2021.
Other performances worth noting: Chris Paul had 11 assists and only one turnover. Trayce Jackson-Davis had his string of consecutive double-doubles snapped but he still had a solid stat line: 13 points, five rebounds, and three assists.
Golden State Warriors
Playing the second half of a back-to-back, the Warriors came out slow despite Steve Kerr resting his starters for most of the fourth quarter a night earlier against Washington.
After Golden State’s second unit helped stabilize things, Curry returned in the second quarter and made a three-point play then followed with his second 3 of the game to put the Warriors ahead 50-41.
The win pushed the Warriors (15-14) back above .500 heading into a rough stretch of games at Denver on Christmas Day followed by home games against Miami, Dallas, Orlando and another clash with the Nuggets.
Here are three takeaways from the Warriors' win over the Blazers:
Second unit provides another spark
The Warriors continue to get big play out of their second unit. In particular, Podziemski, Jackson-Davis, Jonathan Kuminga, Moses Moody and Dario Šarić. Podziemski was a plus-25 during his time on the court and anchored a second unit that provided stability on both ends that seemed to be missing when the starters were in.
When the Warriors won their championships, they always got major production from the bench guys. This year is shaping up to be much of the same
Shutting Grant down
Jerami Grant is Portland’s second-leading scorer and was riding a nice shooting streak coming into the game before the Warriors combined to keep him in check. Thompson, Kuminga and Curry all took turns defending Grant, who scored 17 points on 5-of-12 shooting. Grant was held to two points in the fourth quarter.
Looney does it all
Kevon Looney has seen his playing time cut almost in half in recent games, primarily due to the progress and production the Warriors have been getting from Jackson-Davis. Against Portland, Looney didn’t do much scoring (six points) but still made himself a big factor with 11 rebounds and seven assists.