The Golden State Warriors played host to the NBA's best team in the league record-wise thus far in the Oklahoma City Thunder Tuesday night, looking to get a victory over the cream of the NBA. But a well fought second quarter by the W's, most notably by Monta Ellis, kept the Thunder in check, owning 59-57 halftime lead at the half at Oracle Arena.
The W's got started out hot, taking an early 8-0 lead right out of the gate, but a Kevin Durant buzzer-beating three to end the first quarter left the W's with a six point lead. But the W's went cold in the second quarter, watching Oklahoma City race out to a 10 point lead at one point, but finished strong to keep the W's only 2 points back at the half.
It truly was the Monta Ellis show in the first half, with No. 8 pouring in buckets from absolutely everywhere. Ellis finished the half with 30 points on 12-17 shooting (more than half the team's points), while Russell Westbrook did his best to keep up, scoring 18 on 7-10 shooting. Stephen Curry added 9 on 4-4 shooting from the floor, while David Lee added a solid six points, eight boards, and five assists.
Kevin Durant struggled from the floor in that first quarter but picked it up in bit in the second finishing with 11 points, while Nazr Mohammed and James Harden light it up for OKC's bench, dropping 8 and 11 respectfully.
the W's bench on the other hand was certainly out of sorts, especially with Nate Robinson's late scratch due to a groin strain. Klay Thompson committed two fouls in two minutes, Brandon Rush hit a three, and Ekpe Udoh led the Dubstitutes with six points.
Monta is hot, which means for an entertaining finishing down the stretch. Make sure to stay tuned.
For more on the Warriors, head over to Golden State of Mind. For the Thunder's side of things, check out Welcome to Cloud City.