Stephen Curry can only do so much. Before Friday night, the Golden State Warriors had been 5-0 when Curry scored 30 points or more. But that record received its first blemish after the Warriors lost to the Denver Nuggets, 114-104, at Ball Arena.
Curry led the Warriors (6-6) with 35 points on 14-for-23 shooting (5-for-11 from 3-point range) but few of those points were easy. It took dazzling dribble moves, miraculous fall-away 3-pointers and a non-stop motor to shake loose of Denver’s constant double-team.
Despite Curry’s effort, he did not get much help from a supporting cast that shot just 41.3% overall and a defense that gave up 54 points in the paint.
It was an exhausting night for the Warriors, who cut into Denver’s double-digit leads several times only to witness center Nikola Jokic (23 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists) and guard Jamal Murray (17 points, nine rebounds and six assists) make plays and pull away. After digging out of a 17-point hole in the second quarter, Golden State was within nine with 2:13 remaining, but Jokic’s layup put the Nuggets (6-6) comfortably ahead.
With Friday’s game in Phoenix postponed because of coronavirus-related protocols, the Warriors will play next on Monday, when they travel to Los Angeles to face the Lakers.
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