Slow-starting Warriors heat up in second half to beat Magic, 104-99
SAN FRANCISCO — Andrew Wiggins scored a game-high 25 points, Steph Curry added 16 of his 24 in the second half and the Golden State Warriors overcame one of their worst offensive halves of the season to beat the Orlando Magic, 104-99, on Monday night.
Wiggins gave the Warriors their first lead of the game on their first possession of the second half, and Golden State went on to build a double-digit advantage with a 39-point third quarter, nearly matching its total from the first half.
It came down to the final 2 minutes, though, after Orlando pulled even at 90, and required a dagger from Moses Moody, who drained his third 3-pointer of the night from the corner with 1:07 remaining to secure positive end to an extended homestand.
By holding on, the Warriors clinched their first win in nine games when being held to 45 or fewer points in the first half.
Moody contributed 17 points — nine in the second half — while Kevon Looney led Golden State with six assists and a game-high 17 rebounds. In his first game since January 9, Draymond Green grabbed seven rebounds, dished out five assists and scored four points in 29 minutes.
Moody’s 3 was the Warriors’ seventh on 16 attempts in the second half (43.8%) after shooting 21.7% (5 for 23) from beyond the arc and 36.6% (15 for 41) from the field in the first half.
Closing out on Brandin Podziemski in the corner toward the end of the first quarter, Franz Wagner soared past the second-year guard and flew out of bounds, leaving him with a wide-open look and time to set his feet. Clank. That’s just how it was going for the Warriors in the first half — and all too often this season.
Ending the quarter in a 26-18 hole, they missed their first seven 3-point attempts, had one field goal 5 minutes into the game and went empty handed from the field for a separate stretch of nearly 5 minutes. They connected on only five of 23 attempts from the field (21.7%) and two of 14 from beyond the arc (14.3%).
It required three Curry free throws to reach 18 points, matching their third-worst first-quarter output of the season. But fast starts have been a season-long issue for the Warriors, who were already averaging the third-fewest opening-period points — 26.6 — prior to Monday’s effort.
Golden State trailed from the opening tip and didn’t hold a lead until Wiggins slammed home their first possession of the second half.
The Magic’s first-half advantage widened as far as 11 points, but the Warriors were able to claw all the way back from their slow start to even the score at 43 by the time they retreated to the locker room, tied for their sixth-fewest first-half points but also the sixth-fewest they had allowed.
Golden State had been held to 45 or fewer points in the first half eight times in 48 previous games this season and was 0-8 before waking up after intermission Monday night.
The win finished off a three-week stretch of nine games where the Warriors didn’t leave Northern California. They went (4-4 entering Monday), and now hit the road for seven straight away from home, beginning Wednesday in Utah in their final game before the NBA trade deadline.