Curry and Podziemski Put a Finish on Golden State’s Rally

The Lakers’ first point of the fourth quarter arrived with 7:54 remaining. By then, Golden State had stretched an 85-80 lead to 96-80. Stephen Curry and Brandin Podziemski used the empty Los Angeles trips to finish a comeback that eventually produced a 112-95 Warriors win Friday at Chase Center.

The margin looked comfortable by the final horn. The opening did not. Golden State needed Stephen Curry’s shotmaking and Brandin Podziemski’s broader contribution to turn a dreadful first quarter into a win, which is a more accurate description of the night than a routine 17-point result.

Los Angeles opened the fourth without a point until Walker Kessler made a free throw with 7:54 remaining. Podziemski started the Warriors’ response with a layup at 11:46 and then made a step-back three at 9:40. Curry followed with an pull-up at 8:49 and a step-back three at 8:12. His technical free throw at 8:02 pushed Golden State ahead 96-80.

Curry finished with 31 points, converting 11 attempts out of 23 and making eight threes in 14 tries. His fourth-quarter scoring included a pull-up at 8:49 and a step-back three at 8:12, followed by another three at 6:57 after Austin Reaves had scored from long range. Golden State kept adding points through its leading scorer while the Lakers struggled to get their quarter started.

Podziemski made the comeback less dependent on a single scorer. He finished with 21 points, four threes, five rebounds, six assists, two steals and a block. His third-quarter work helped Golden State carry a lead into the final period rather than merely survive another Lakers push.

With 51.1 seconds left, he made a three to put the Warriors ahead 82-80. At 35.3 seconds, he stole Quentin Grimes’ pass. He then made both free throws with 32.2 seconds left, stretching the lead to 84-80 before Golden State finished the third ahead 85-80.

His fourth quarter continued the same mixed assignment. Draymond Green assisted Podziemski’s opening layup, while Podziemski later assisted Curry’s jumper at 8:49. At 4:35, Podziemski made another three, this one assisted by Brandon Williams, to make it 104-89.

The line is impressive, but the shape of it is more useful: scoring, passing, rebounding and defensive activity arrived together. Golden State did not have to ask Curry to manufacture every answer.

Still, the first quarter should remain on the Warriors’ internal review. Golden State scored 15 points while Los Angeles scored 38, and the Lakers’ largest lead reached 25. There was no gradual march toward control. The Warriors left the first quarter 23 points down, then fell 25 behind early in the second. The eventual margin hides how much ground they first had to recover.

Los Angeles supplied plenty of reasons to believe that hole could hold. Luka Dončić scored 37 points on 12-for-27 shooting, including 6-for-16 from three. Reaves added 21, Kessler had 13 rebounds and five blocks, and the Lakers won the rebounding battle 45-44. They scored 36 points in the paint. This was not an empty offense waiting to be rescued by one star.

Los Angeles’ lost possessions compounded the shooting problem. Reaves had eight turnovers, and the Lakers had 22 including team turnovers, compared with 17 for Golden State. The Warriors finished with 31 assists against Los Angeles’ 18 and made 22 threes in 46 attempts. Different players were contributing to the scoring, while the Lakers were giving away trips they could ill afford to lose.

The comeback therefore deserves credit without disguising the warning. Golden State received 16 points from De’Anthony Melton and 11 from Georges Niang, yet Curry still had to be brilliant when the Lakers’ offense stalled. The Warriors’ 15-point first quarter was not erased by the final margin; it was merely overwhelmed by a fourth in which Curry and Podziemski finally gave the offense dependable answers.

At 8:49 of the fourth, Podziemski supplied the pass and Curry made the pull-up. The possession increased an existing lead. That was a different job from chasing 25 points, and it was a job Golden State finally performed well enough to make the final margin look comfortable. The first quarter had been anything but.

Sources

NBA: official final box score

ESPN: game record and event timing