OAKLAND — Despite committing 20 turnovers, the Warriors bounced back after their heartbreaking Christmas Day defeat to Cleveland, edging the Toronto Raptors 121-111 on Wednesday night at Oracle Arena.
Golden State (28-5) has now gone 119 games without losing two in a row.
The Warriors nearly squandered a 42-17 first quarter advantage, letting the Raptors (22-9) get within five points with three minutes remaining.
Kevin Durant was dominant, finishing with a line of 21 points, 17 rebounds, seven assists and six blocks. Draymond Green also had a double-double, finishing with 14 points and 10 assists.
Curry had a nice bounce-back game after only attempting 11 shots against the Cavaliers, finishing as the leading scorer with an impressive line of 28 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
The Warriors have now beat the Raptors six consecutive times
Golden State stormed off to an 11-2 advantage to open the game, forcing a Toronto timeout just three minutes in. The Warriors extended their lead to 22-4, when Steph Curry and Durant knocked down consecutive threes with six minutes remaining in the quarter.
It wasn’t just the offense that was clicking. Golden State held the Raptors top ranked offense (heading into Wednesday that is) to 3-17 shooting to open the game.
Steve Kerr also made good on his pregame promise to get Steph involved in the pick-and-roll more often, running it four consecutive times late in the first quarter. The Warriors lead 42-17 after 12 minutes.
Toronto woke up a bit in the second, opening the quarter on a 19-6 run to cut the Golden State lead to 12. The Raptors were helped by eight Warriors turnovers. Golden State made up for their sluggish start to the quarter, with a blazing finish to the half, closing with an 11-2 run that included seven points from Durant.
The Warriors shot 74.4 percent in the first half.
Golden State continued their hot streak in the third quarter. The play of the night came with 4:18 remaining when Curry flicked a behind-the-back pass in transition for a Thompson three to give the Warriors a 95-75 lead.
The Warriors were outscored 70-62 in the second and third quarters, but still took a 17 point lead into the fourth.
Golden State nearly collapsed in the final quarter, when Toronto outscored the Warriors 22-10 in the first eight minutes, making it a five point game.
The Warriors play the second game of their five-game home stand Friday night, hosting Andrew Bogut, Harrison Barnes and the last place Dallas Mavericks (9-23).
