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Warriors fall to 2-1 after blowout loss

By Carlos Murillo

May 22, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka (9) dunks past Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the first quarter in game three of the Western conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
May 22, 2016; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka (9) dunks past Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the first quarter in game three of the Western conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Golden State Warriors now trail the OKC Thunder 2-1 in the Western Conference Finals after suffering a blowout loss.

Once again, the Golden State Warriors have their backs against the wall.

After tying the series with a huge Game 2 win, the Warriors were blown out of the gym by the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 3 133-105. The Thunder now take a 2-1 lead and put the pressure on the defending champs.

It was all OKC, all game. From the beginning, Golden State couldn’t really get anything going. After only having a couple of his lightning-quick three-point attempts blocked all season long, Stephen Curry had an attempt rejected by Enes Kanter. On the other end of the floor, the Warriors didn’t have an answer. Kevin Durant repeatedly drove after getting a high screen from Steven Adams and got the best of Andrew Bogut every single time. The Warriors center picked up two early fouls  and the rim protection was all gone.

The Thunder have one of the best home court advantages in all of basketball and it played a huge role in this one. The energy level was high from the get-go. Golden State gave up an Andre Roberson three, a Russell Westbrook layup, and a Serge Ibaka dunk on consecutive possessions and the arena exploded.

The Warriors fell behind by double digits and the lead kept ballooning. They couldn’t get into any kind of rhythm as the whistles were blowing in the Thunder’s favor, including a few questionable ones. The game slowing down didn’t allow them to flow.

The most controversial and potentially series-altering play of the night happened in the second quarter. Draymond Green drove on Adams and came to a jump stop. Looking to draw the foul, he jumped into Adams. He tried to sell the contact and extended his leg, kicking the Thunder big man in the groin. While in real time it looked incidental, it looked awful in slow motion. He was assessed a Flagrant 1 and the league will surely take a look at it to see if they need to suspend the All-Star forward.

For the second time in this series so far, one team has won in a blowout. This game was about as one-sided as it can possibly get. OKC pushed the lead to as many as 41 points while Golden State had just a 2 point lead very early on. The Thunder won nearly  every facet of the game. They made 33 free throws while Golden State shot just 25. It just wasn’t close tonight.

The Golden State Warriors now must now play for their playoff lives on Tuesday in Game 4. Lose and the Thunder, whose confidence has steadily risen over the course of the postseason, become nearly invincible. Win and the Warriors can win the series by handling business at home.

Curry had 24 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists on 7/17 shooting. Durant led all scorers with 33 points in 32 minutes.

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