MINNEAPOLIS (Minnesota) • Minnesota Timberwolves interim head coach Sam Mitchell just shrugged his shoulders watching Stephen Curry make shot after shot.
The reigning National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player scored 46 points to lead the Golden State Warriors to a 129-116 win over the Timberwolves at Target Centre on Thursday.
Mitchell said his team played good defence. They contested shots. They put pressure on Curry.
It did not matter.
"You commit so much effort to try and slow Steph Curry down and he still scores (46) points," Mitchell said. "You sit there and wonder, if you don't do those things and you just try to play him conventionally, he might get 60."
It was the fourth time this season that Curry scored at least 20 points in a single quarter and his third 40-point game. He shot 15-for-25 on the night, including 8-for-13 from three-point range.
"He was decent tonight. He was OK," Warriors interim coach Luke Walton said of the guard with a smile. "He's just so dangerous. At any time, he can go on a 6-0, 8-0 run just off of transition and getting a steal and putting it up for three.
"He's always in attack mode."
At 10-0, the reigning champions are off to the best start in franchise history. The 1960-61 Warriors opened with 9-0.
"Definitely a good start to the season, best start we could have hoped for," Curry said.
"(We) just want to keep it going. We can still play better."
Guard Andrew Wiggins led Minnesota with 19 points. Centre Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds, and reserve forward Shabazz Muhammad added 16 points in 19 minutes.
Curry had 21 points after the first quarter and 25 at the half, as the Warriors looked to run away with the game early.
When he was on the bench, Minnesota pulled as close as 42-48 midway through the second but trailed 63-75 at the half. The 75 points scored by Golden State are the most by any team in a half this season.
Curry scored 10 more in the third, including back-to-back threes as his team pushed the lead to their largest of the night at 21 points.
Guard Kevin Martin started the fourth with a three-pointer to get Minnesota back within single digits, and the Wolves clawed as close as 99-104 before the Warriors pulled away late.
All five Warriors starters finished in double figures. Forward Draymond Green had 23 points to go with 12 assists and eight rebounds.
"We got some stops and crawled our way back into it," Mitchell said.
"Then, when you have Klay Thompson and (Andre) Iguodala and Harrison Barnes and Draymond Green, and all those guys, they spread the floor really well.
"They're just a very tough basketball team to defend because of all those shooters. You can't leave anybody open."
REUTERS
