PHILADELPHIA _ Steph Curry's two first quarter airballs served as an omen for the brutal shooting night ahead for both Curry and the Warriors. Curry took 11 3s and made zero. The team took 29 3s and only made six.
But even in an NBA world gone 3-crazy _ a renaissance led partly by Golden State _ you can still win in other ways. The Warriors did on Monday night in Philadelphia: 119-108, grunting their way to an NBA-best 50th win of the season.
Draymond Green, the lowest percentage 3-point shooter of the Warriors' four All-Stars, was the catalyst in this grind-out game, shaking off a rough week for his best performance in the past half-month.
After a sluggish Saturday night against the Nets, Green returned with his usual energy in Philadelphia, sparked, in part, by some trash-talking from Sixers youngster Richaun Holmes, never a good idea if you want Green to remain in a slumber.
Green, like Curry, also airballed a first quarter 3. But soon after, he squirted free on one of those lethal pick-and-rolls with Curry, catching and thundering in a dunk. Minutes later, he beat the Sixers down the court for a breakaway dunk after a defensive stop.
Holmes, who played well all night, threw down a nasty one-hand alley-oop in the second quarter and then blocked a Draymond Green shot soon after, letting Green know about it as the ball sailed out of bounds. Green bounced back to return the trash-talk and, from there, was the game's most impactful player, getting in passing lanes, setting up dunks and even hitting a shot.
Green finished the night with 14 points _ his first time in double-digits in the past seven games _ plus 11 assists, six rebounds and five steals. The Warriors outscored the Sixers by 22 points in his 37 minutes. Green capped the win with a corner 3 in the fourth quarter, one of the six the Warriors actually made, and then a drive and dunk to put the Warriors up 108-97 with four minutes left.
But this wasn't a win dominated by a singular Warrior star. Plenty of other chipped into the old school effort. Zaza Pachulia and David West, both in their third game back from injuries, were particularly impactful.
Pachulia scored a season-high 16 points in his 15 minutes, completely outplaying former third overall pick Jahlil Okafor. Pachulia scored on Okafor with a series of surprise drives and then stoned Okafor on the other end.
And when it wasn't Pahculia terrorizing Okafor, it was West. After an up-and-down first quarter, West stabilized things to start the second quarter, stripping a couple drives, taking a charge and working his way to the free throw line. The Warriors outscored the Sixers by nine in West's first four minutes.
But they could never separate too much because they couldn't hit enough shots. Curry stepped into a number of wide open looks, but continued to clang, not hitting even a single three for only the third time in the past 211 games.
It didn't matter though because the Warriors played just enough defense, bulldozed their way to a monster amount of free throws (39 attempts, including 29 in the second half) and made enough plays down the stretch to hold off the Sixers.
