Warriors clean up worst bad habits in dominant win over Hawks

Warriors clean up worst bad habits in dominant win over Hawks originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – The Warriors flew home from Los Angeles late Monday night feeling the sting of defeat made worse by the fact that they had poisoned their own water.

They responded by cleansing the toxins Wednesday night with a 120-97 rout of the ragged Atlanta Hawks before 18,064 at Chase Center.

There were some sloppy moments in the second half, but it wasn’t much of a contest. Golden State raced out to a 21-point lead with 86 seconds left in the first quarter, raised it as high as 31 and never let the Hawks get closer than 13 over the remaining three quarters.

What mattered to the Warriors – or least it should – is how they did it. They used the first half to reverse their worst tendencies of two nights ago, one being a consistent problem and the other occasional.

“I loved the first half. The first half was very aesthetically pleasing,” coach Steve Kerr said. “We let our guard down a little bit, especially late in the third quarter. The game got away from us a little bit.

“But the energy and the sharp play in the first half was really fun to watch. We’ve just got to keep building on that.”

Though it’s clear the Hawks’ defense doesn’t pose the kind of challenges the Los Angeles Clippers presented two nights ago at Intuit Dome, it was just as evident that Golden State is capable of healing itself when properly motivated.

After missing 10 free throws (9-of-19, 47.4 percent) Monday night – and failing to top 72 percent from the line in any of the last five games – the Warriors made 11 of their first 12 against Atlanta before trailing off badly in the second half and finishing 12-of-18.

“Guys have to keep working on it,” Kerr said. “It’s not something that I’m going to harp on. The guys know they’ve got to get the work in on their own. We’ll be all right. We’ll turn that around.”

Two nights ago, the Clippers scored 31 of their 102 points courtesy of Golden State’s 19 turnovers. It was the second consecutive game in which the Warriors offered their opponent 19 free…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/warriors-clean-worst-bad-habits-064604308.html

Author : NBC Sports BayArea

Publish date : 2024-11-21 06:46:00

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