Warriors go 8-0 on bad day for Curry

Golden State guard Stephen Curry watching from the sidelines in the game against Detroit. The Warriors can match their best start to a season (9-0) by beating Memphis today.
Golden State guard Stephen Curry watching from the sidelines in the game against Detroit. The Warriors can match their best start to a season (9-0) by beating Memphis today. PHOTO: EUROPEAN PRESSPHOTO AGENCY

LOS ANGELES • Stephen Curry endured his worst shooting night of the young National Basketball Association regular season, but his Golden State Warriors still notched their eighth straight win on Monday - 109-95 over the Detroit Pistons.

The reigning NBA champions are the league's only remaining unbeaten team, their 8-0 record just one shy of the club's best start - a 9-0 run to open the 1960-61 campaign when the Warriors were based in Philadelphia.

Curry connected on just seven of 18 shots to finish with 22 points - 12 short of his season average.

The Warriors held a slim 80-76 lead when reserve forward Andre Iguodala sparked a Golden State spurt with a dunk.

Back-up guard Leandro Barbosa and forward Harrison Barnes combined for 12 points in the 18-6 scoring run that saw the Warriors pull away.

The Warriors were buoyed by the return of Australian big man Andrew Bogut, playing his first game since suffering a concussion in the season opener on Oct 27.

The 2.13m centre scored eight points and pulled down 11 rebounds, combining with centre Festus Ezeli to harry and hinder Pistons centre Andre Drummond all night.

The marquee match-up of Curry, the NBA's leading scorer, and Drummond, the league's top rebounder, never really materialised.

Curry displayed poor shooting, while Drummond was hounded by Ezeli and Bogut all night.

"You have to give up stats for yourself," Bogut said of sharing the task of defending Drummond, who was held to 14 points and 15 rebounds in 35 minutes, a night after scoring 29 with 27 rebounds against Portland.

The Warriors will try to improve to 9-0 today when they visit the Memphis Grizzlies, who were edged out 94-92 by the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on November 11, 2015, with the headline Warriors go 8-0 on bad day for Curry. Subscribe