It took Stephen Curry a little while to warm up, but he finished with more than 30 points for the ninth straight game and the Warriors earned their first four-game win streak of the season.
Although Curry didn’t make his first 3-pointer until more than 10 minutes into the third quarter, the Warriors’ bench — led by Juan Toscano-Anderson’s career-high 20 points — helped keep them in the game until Curry was able to heat up and close out the Cleveland Cavaliers in Thursday’s 119-101 win Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
On the second night of a back-to-back following Wednesday night’s win in Oklahoma City, the Warriors got out to a slow start and an early 11-point hole. However, the reserves provided a boost with a 19-5 run to open the second quarter and handed the starters an 11-point lead by the time Curry checked back in midway through the period.
In all, Golden State’s bench outscored Cleveland’s 45-23 as Toscano-Anderson went 8-for-9 and added seven rebounds and three assists, Jordan Poole had 14 points and four assists and Damion Lee finished with 11 points and five rebounds. Andrew Wiggins, who helps anchor the second unit that starts the second and fourth quarters, finished with 23 points, six rebounds and six assists.
Curry didn’t drop in his first 3-pointer until there was 1:34 remaining in the third quarter and followed that with another 3-pointer on the next possession. He scored 12 of his 33 points in the third and the Warriors took a 10-point lead into the fourth. The Warriors (28-28) have now won five of their last six going into Saturday’s game in Boston.
While Curry’s scoring surge continues to impress, the story of the game was Toscano-Anderson. It wasn’t long ago that the 27-year-old forward was out of the rotation, but since James Wiseman’s injury, he’s seen more playing time and on Thursday had a career game.
In the fourth quarter, Toscano-Anderson tricked the Cavaliers defense with a fake handoff, slipped to the rim, pulled the ball behind his head and dunked with both hands before he confidently thumped his chest. It’s the sort of savvy play that has made Toscano-Anderson somewhat of a revelation this season, and helped support Curry on a night the two-time MVP needed it.
