Warriors Open Second Half With Dominating Win: Golden State 132-Portland 95

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, right, gets ready to shoot the underhand shot against the Portland Trail Blazers forward Trendon Watford in Portland on Thu Feb 24, 2022 (AP News photo)

Warriors Open Second Half With Dominating Win: Golden State 132-Portland 95

By Barbara Mason

Thursday night the Golden State Warriors (43-17) took on the Portland Trail Blazers (25-35). Going into the All-Star break the Warriors had lost four of five games and badly needed this time off to re-group heading into the second half of the season.

Hopefully Stephen Curry will go into the remainder of the season the same way that he went into the All-Star game. It was raining three’s in the All-Star game for Curry and that’s exactly what they need to see in tonight’s game.

The rest that the team got in this break will undoubtedly benefit the Warriors as they look ahead to the post season. The Warriors will have their work cut out for them in this game. While the Trail Blazers are short-handed without Damian Lilliard and the trade of CJ McCollum they are still a dangerous team with Anfernee Simons the 2018 first round pick.

In the first quarter the Warriors began to pile up the personal fouls. They were having trouble containing Anfernee Simons and Josh Hart. The Trail Blazers took a 22-14 lead mid-way through the quarter which was cut short when the Warriors started to heat up.

Even though Portland was short-handed they did not look at all like the underdogs. The Trail Blazers were shooting at 72% looking very good offensively. It was not a great start for Golden State although they did make up a ten point deficit to trail by a single point after shooting 42%. Portland led after twelve minutes 32-31.

Going into the second quarter, the Warriors had turned a corner and gotten into a good rhythm. After a slow start the Warriors had taken the lead 40-35 in the opening minutes of the quarter. The Warriors had completely flipped this game leading by double digits 52-38 at 7:22.

The Trail Blazers were shooting at one point in this game at 72% but were having some real offensive trouble in the second quarter. Portland made a push at the end of the first half trailing 70-57 cutting a twenty point deficit to thirteen.

Curry had 18 points and ten assists in the first half. The Warriors were very aggressive in the second quarter. Jonathan Kuminga got to the free throw line ten times. The Blazers Anfernee Simons finished the half with 21 points.

The Warriors only had six turnovers and were playing some great defense. After shooting at 72 % in the first quarter, Portland finished the second half shooting 43%. The Warriors had taken control of this game at the half.

Portland is coming off a four game winning streak and they would be coming after the Warriors in the second half of this game. With 4:17 left in the third quarter the Warriors took their largest lead of the game 91-68.

After a very slow start, Andrew Wiggins came to the party with ten points in the quarter. The Splash brothers had 18 points apiece, leading after three 100-73. Off the bench Jonathan Kuminga had 15 points. Curry was right in the middle of every possession with 14 assists.

It was all Warriors in the second half. You could not have asked for more offensively and defensively from Golden State. They had 18 players in double digits. The final was 132-95.

Curry and Klay Thompson finished with 18 points each. Kevon Looney and Wiggins finished with ten points apiece. Another great game for the Warriors bench. Kuminga had 17 and Jordan Poole with 15 points.

This was a great way for the Warriors to start the second part of the season. They have a very challenging upcoming schedule and need to take it one game at a time.

Sunday afternoon the Warriors will be taking on the Dallas Mavericks. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:30 PM.

Golden State Warriors podcast with David Zizmor: Warriors have lost four of last five games visit Trailblazers who have won four straight Thursday

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) goes for a finger roll shot against the Denver Nuggets forward Jeff Green at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Wed 16, 2022. The Warriors face the Portland Trailblazers in Portland on Thu Feb 24th (AP News photo)

On the Warriors podcast with Dave:

#1 The Golden State Warriors (42-17) have lost four of their last five games what would you say were the key things to these loses and head coach Steve Kerr did say the All Star break did come at the right time.

#2 What does it do for Stephen Curry and the team’s morale coming off the All Star game after Curry scored 50 points and shined during the mid season classic representing the Warriors.

#3 The Portland Trailblazers are coming off a 123-119 win over the Memphis Grizzlies (41-19) from last Wed Feb 19. The Blazers host the Warriors in Portland on Thursday night and have a four game winning streak.

Join David Zizmor for the Warriors podcasts each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Big night by Simons helps Blazers down Kings 103-88

Portland Trail Blazers guard Ben McLemore, right, and Sacramento Kings guard Tyrese Haliburton (left) go for the ball at the Moda Center in Portland on Sun Jan 9, 2022 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum
Sunday, January 9, 2022

Anfernee Simons poured in 31 points, Jusuf Nurkic nearly put together a triple-double, and the Portland Trail Blazers defeated Sacramento 103-88 Sunday night at Moda Center at the Rose Quarter in Portland.

It was the fourth straight loss for the Kings, while Portland snapped a two-game skid.
Nurkic scored 14 points, pulled down 16 rebounds and collected nine assists for the Trail Blazers. Nassir Little and Ben McLemore each added 13 points for Portland. Simons finished with seven 3-pointers.

Tyrese Haliburton led the Kings with 17 points and nine assists, followed by Alex Len with 16 points and 10 rebounds. De’Aaron Fox had 14 points, Harrison Barnes scored 13 and Buddy Hield scored 10 off the Sacramento bench.

The Trail Blazers never trailed in the contest. Simons, filling in for Damian Lillard, hit a 3-pointer at the 7-minute mark of the fourth quarter to give Portland a 90-70 lead, its biggest of the game.
Sacramento then went on a 10-2 run to pull within 92-80. Simons responded with another 3 to halt the Kings rally with 4:36 remaining.

Fox’s start was a game-time decision because he’s nursing a sore right shoulder. Maurice Harkness sat this game out due to a sore right ankle. Richaun Holmes and Damian Jones were absent from the Kings lineup due to health and safety protocols.

The Kings return home Monday to host Cleveland, the first game of a five-game homestand.

Warriors win 118-103 despite Portland’s fourth quarter bid

The Golden State Warriors Jordan Poole (left) and Stephen Curry share the thrill of a basket at the Chase Center in San Francisco against the Portland Trailblazer (AP News photo)

Warriors Win 118-103 Despite Portland’s Fourth Quarter Bid

By Barbara Mason

Every starter in the Golden State Warriors line-up had double digits against the Portland Trailblazers handing Golden State the 118-103 win. The bench was great chipping in 23 points handing the Trail Blazers yet another road loss.

Friday night the Warriors (17-2) tried to extend their nine game winning streak as they took on the Trail Blazers (10-10). The Warriors have not only won nine games in a row but all of them were by double digits.

After the rough start against the Sixers on Wednesday night, falling behind by nineteen points is not something that Head Coach Steve Kerr wants to see again anytime soon. Golden State was sluggish through the first half of that game and so tonight the team needs to start fast and finish the same way.

While it is impressive how the Warriors can dispose of teams after trailing by double digits it is not what any coach wants to see. Playing from behind the eight ball is not at all a comfortable position that any team wants to experience and the Warriors are doing it often.

The Warriors will be playing shorthanded but with the depth on this team it does not present any problems. Tonight Damion Lee, Andre Iguodala, Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody will not be playing in the game. Lee and Iguodala are out with injury and Kuminga and Moody will be taking the court in Santa Cruz.

The Trail Blazers have lost 18 of their last 24 games. They do play fast though and it will be tough to slow this team down. Damien Lilliard loves to play in the Bay Area being a native and actually averages 29 points per game so the Warriors will have to watch out for him. Portland lost their last game to the Sacramento Kings 125-121. The Warriors are heavily favored in this game.

Both teams had a fast start in the first quarter with Golden State taking a five point lead in the early minutes. The Warriors cooled a bit mid-way through the quarter but picked it up as the first quarter came to an end with Golden State leading by a single point 27-26.

The second quarter was very even and the teams were tied at 42 with under three minutes left in the half. Those final three minutes hailed the return of the three-pointer as Curry and Poole were able to score from downtown giving Golden State a 58-44 lead going into the third quarter.

The Warriors had done a great job containing Damien Lillard who had 8 points in the half. They had also scored 17 points off Portland turnovers. All five starters had scored in the double digits in this game extending their lead to 91-70 after three.

Portland really got on track in the fourth quarter and trimmed the Warrior 21 point lead to ten. Golden State was not finished yet and had to really work for this win. They came on strong in the final minutes of the game finishing on top.

Stephen Curry finished with 32 points followed by Andrew Wiggins with 25 points. The Warriors did a great job on Lilliard who had 16 points in this game. The high score for the Trail Blazers was off the bench—Anfernee Simons finished with 19 points.

Golden State will now travel down to the Southland Sunday to take on the Clippers in an afternoon game. They will be going for seven wins in a row. Tipoff is scheduled for 12:30 PM.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Kings face Lakers twice this week; First meeting tonight at Staples

Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard (0) dribbles to get past Sacramento Kings center Tristan Thompson (13) during Wed Nov 24, 2021 at the Chase Center in Sacramento (AP News photo)

On the Kings podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 In the last Sacramento Kings (7-12) the Kings De’Aaron Fox scored 21 points before being ejected from last Wednesday night’s game against the Portland Trailblazers (10-9). Fox got the boot with 6:06 left after getting back to back technical fouls.

#2 The Kings also had two players ejected and received six technical fouls it could have got the Kings in a lot of trouble and could have lost them the game but they played angry and got by the Blazers with a four point win.

#3 The Blazers Robert Covington got even frustrated when he threw his goggles near a referee and was ejected from the game. Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups said the game got a little bit chippy and said stay off the officials and said that they got a little bit off their rhythm.

#4 The Portland Trailblazers Damian Lillard said that they just couldn’t come up with the stops saying the effort was there but they were just one or two plays short.

#5 The Kings are in Los Angeles to take on the Lakers (10-10) the Lakers just got by the Indiana Pacers (8-12) in overtime on Wednesday night 124-116. In the overtime stanza the Lakers outscored the Pacers 12-4 to get the victory. How do you see this match up tonight at Staples Center?

Join Jeremiah for the Kings podcasts Fridays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings bench rally for 125-121 victory over Trailblazers, snap losing streak

Portland Trail Blazers guard Dennis Smith Jr. (10) isn’t going too far against Sacramento Kings center Tristan Thompson (13) as Thompson draws the foul at the Golden One Center in Sacramento on Wed Nov 24, 2021 (AP News photo)

by Marko Ukalovic

SACRAMENTO—Desperate for a win, the Sacramento Kings bench players rose up to the challenge.

Marvin Bagley III hit a three pointer with 30.5 second left in the game to ice a 125-121 victory over the Portland Trailblazers on Thanksgiving Eve at the Golden 1 Center.

Sacramento snapped its four-game losing streak and won its first game under interim coach Alvin Gentry since he took over the head coaching duties this past Sunday after the dismissal of Luke Walton on Sunday. Portland had its four-game winning streak snapped.

Buddy Hield led all Kings in scoring with 22 points on 6 of 15 shooting, including 5 of 11 from beyond the arc, off the bench. Davion Mitchell had a big fourth quarter scoring 12 of his 16 points in the winning effort.

Bagley III scored a season high 10 points off the bench as the Kings bench were responsible for 61 of the 125 points.

“I was happy for Marvin (Bagley III) and thought he played a really great game,” Gentry said.

Sacramento (7-12) got off to the fast start that has plagued them for the past month. A balanced scoring attack from the starting five had the Kings jumped out to a 20-12 lead, which included a 10-0 run in a three-minute period.

Jusuf Nurkic dominated the opening quarter for Portland (10-9) as he scored 14 points on 7 of 9 from the floor. Portland had two runs, a 12-4 and a 10-6 to end the quarter with a 36-32 lead.

Damian Lillard scored 12 of his 17 first half points in the second quarter including a 30-foot three pointer to power the Blazers offense in the second quarter.

De’Aaron Fox led Sacramento with 10 points of 17 first half points in the second quarter on four of five shooting.

Blazers power forward Robert Covington was ejected from the game with 49 seconds left in the game for throwing his goggles at an official.

The two teams put on an offensive showcase as they combined for 72 points in the second quarter as Portland had 71-69 lead at halftime.

The third quarter was the exact opposite of the second quarter with sloppy play and horrible shooting from both teams in the first nine minutes of the quarter. The Kings didn’t register its first point of the third quarter until 9:25 left when Harrison Barnes hit one of two free throws.

The Kings outscored the Blazers 24-21 in the quarter to take a 93-92 lead into the fourth quarter.

“We gotta have fun out there,” said Kings point guard Tyrese Haliburton. “We gotta get the crowd involved. I think that was big for us tonight.”

Lillard led the Blazers in scoring with 32 points on 7 of 18 shooting (but just 3 of 12 from beyond the arc) and 15 of 16 from the free throw line. Nurkic finished with a double-double, 28 points and 17 rebounds. Normal Powell had a strong game with 22 points on 50% shooting from the floor. Nassir Little chipped in with 16 points off the bench.

Fox, who was also ejected from the game for arguing with the refs, led the Kings’ starters with 21 points on eight of 13 shooting from the field, including four for four from the free throw line.

GAME NOTES: Sacramento finished 12-for-33 from beyond the arc. Portland was 12-for-33.

Barnes, who left the game with an injury, had X-rays taken after the game and were negative. “Our doctors are pretty optimistic that everything’s going to be fine,” said Gentry.

UP NEXT: Sacramento travel out to Los Angeles to take on the Lakers on Friday 11/26 at 7:30pm at Staples Center.

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Kings hoping to bounce back after losing 5 out of last 6; host Toronto tonight

Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox, right, tries force a loose ball from Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards at the Target Center in Minneapolis on Wed Nov 17, 2021 (AP News photo)

On the Kings podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 The Sacramento Kings (6-9) have lost five of their last six games and have fallen three games below .500. They lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves (5-9) 107-97 what has put the Kings off the track?

#2 The Kings De’Aaron Fox has stayed consistent leading the Kings in scoring Wednesday night with 28 points.

#3 The Kings defense had a hard time trying to defend the Timberwolves Anthony Williams who opened up in the fourth quarter scoring 16 of his 26 points in the final quarter to help Minnesota to a win.

4. The Kings Buddy Hield who scored 16 points off the bench and the Kings got 20 rebounds their most for the year but took a loss to the Timberwolves.

#5 The Toronto Raptors (7-8) have lost five of the last six games before facing the Utah Jazz on Thursday night. The Raptors who played in Portland on Monday night to a 118-113 loss to the Trailblazers (7-8) a five point loss. The Raptors tip off against the Kings tonight at Golden One set the stage for this one.

Jeremiah does the Kings podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Kings win preseason game in Portland 107-93

Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox (5) tries to get control of the ball as he’s defended by the Portland Trailblazers center Jusuf Nurkic (27) at Monda Center in Portland on Mon Oct 11, 2021 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum
Monday, October 11, 2021

With Davion Mitchell, Terence Davis and Harrison Barnes providing the offensive firepower, the Sacramento Kings emerged with a 107-93 NBA exhibition victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday at Moda Center at the Rose Quarter.

The Kings (2-0) jumped to a 25-17 lead after one quarter, extending that advantage to 55-48 at halftime. Sacramento scored 26 points in the third and fourth quarters.

Mitchell led the Kings with 20 points and four assists in 32 minutes. Davis netted 17 points off the bench, and Barnes had 16 points in 22 minutes. Chimezie Metu collected seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and nine points.

16 Kings players saw action in the contest; with Marvin Bagley III, Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Tristan Thompson all held out by coach’s decision.

Guard Anfernee Simons led the Blazers (0-1) with 24 points, followed by Dennis Smith Jr. with 18 points (and seven assists) and 10 points by Marquese Chriss. Greg Brown III led Portland with nine rebounds off the bench, followed by eight boards from Jusuf Nurkic.

The Trail Blazers used 11 players, with Robert Covington and Damian Lillard held out for rest. Portland had six players inactive for the game due to injury or illness.

Sacramento plays one more exhibition game in Portland on Wednesday, Oct. 20, before returning home on Friday, Oct. 22, for its regular season home opener at Golden 1 Center against the Utah Jazz.

Golden State Warriors podcast with Barbara Mason: Langston the latest to receive waivers from Warriors; Wiseman to return against Portland Friday

The Golden State Warriors center James Wiseman is expected back this Fri Oct 15, 2021 at the Chase Center in San Francisco for the pre season game against the Portland Trailblazers after rehabbing from knee surgery from April (USA Today file photo)

On the Warriors podcast with Barbara:

#1 The Golden State Warriors have waived guard Langston Galloway who was averaging 3.3 points per pre season game. Langston wasn’t providing enough offense to the Warriors liking and was cut from the team.

#2 Langston also had a low average of rebounds with 3.7 and assists 1.7 although he had very limited time to try and prove himself averaging 8.8 minutes a game.

#3 Klay Thompson showed he still had game after coming off two seasons of injuries with a pair of mighty one handed throw downs in practice at the Warriors facility. Thompson is expected to take the next two pre season games this Tuesday and Friday off before seeing action in the first regular season game.

#4 Barbara, from what you’ve seen how ready for the regular season is Thompson we know it’s been two seasons and that last NBA Finals vs. Toronto since Thompson has played a complete game.

#5 Last April 15th center James Wiseman underwent surgery for a right meniscal tear the Warriors report that Wiseman is making progress during rehab and soon will be taking shooting practice and other on court plays. Wiseman will be observed and it’s to be determined when he will return.

Join Barbara for the Warriors podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sacramento Kings podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Kings looking real good in pre season

Expect the Sacramento Kings De’Aaron Fox to contend as one of the top scorers each night for the Kings. The Kings head to Portland for more pre season basketball against the Trailblazers on Mon Oct 11, 2021 (file photo CBS)

On the Kings podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 The Sacramento Kings (2-0) are looking pretty good so far with pre season wins over the Phoenix Suns (1-1) and the Los Angeles Clippers (1-1). They handled the Suns on Oct 4th with a 117-106 win and they defeated the Clippers in LA on Wednesday night 113-98. You had a chance to attend how do they look on each side of the ball?

#2 Once again the Kings don’t have to go as far as relying on De’Aaron Fox who led with 23 points on Wednesday night against the Clippers. He’s no doubt going to be the difference maker this season.

#3 The Kings Terence Davis scored 15 points finishing second in scoring tell us from what you saw of him in exhibition action how he’ll impact the offense?

#4 Talk about head coach Luke Walton whose gone through the grinder to try and win games and his own personal experiences. It’s early, it’s only pre season but there is a different feeling this season that the Kings could be competitive and certainly can be much better.

#5 The Kings head to Portland to face the Trailblazers (0-1) on Mon Oct 11th. The Blazers took a beating from the Golden State Warriors 121-107 on Wednesday night. The Blazers Damion Lillard scored 19 points and he could be a force, Jeremiah tell us how you see this match with the Blazers on Monday night?

Jeremiah Salmonson does the Sacramento Kings podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com