KLAY Thompson broke out of his slump in a big way as he dropped 18 first-quarter points to spark the Golden State Warriors’ rout over the undermanned Dallas Mavericks, 116-95, at the Oracle Arena on Wednesday (Thursday, Manila time).
Thompson hit his first seven shots to build a 19-point lead after the first 12 minutes of play and the Warriors never looked back the rest of the way.
Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Draymond Green knocked down two three-pointers each in the second quarter to continue the Warriors onslaught and take a 67-36 lead at the half. But Harrison Barnes, in his return to Golden State after signing with Dallas, teamed up with Dwight Powell and Seth Curry to help the Mavs cut down the deficit to 13, 65-78, near the end of the third quarter.
The Warriors restored order early in the fourth as Curry scored nine points in the period and the Golden State bench preserved the blowout win.
Durant led Golden State with 28 points, while Curry and Thompson added 24 and 20, respectively. Draymond Green finished with a double-double of 16 markers and 10 boards for the Warriors, winners of two straight games to bring their record to 6-2.
Barnes had 25 points to lead Dallas, who also played without four key players in Dirk Nowitzki, Deron Williams, Andrew Bogut, JJ Barea and Wes Matthews. Justin Anderson and Powell added 16 and 14 markers, respectively, in a losing effort for the Mavs (2-6).
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