Explosive first-half sets up Golden State Warriors’ eighth-straight home win

An explosive first-half shooting display has provided the Golden State Warriors with their eighth-straight home win after a 123-112 victory over the Phoenix Suns at Chase Center on Monday night.

The reigning champions put on an offensive clinic over the first 24 minutes, then steadied in the second-half after the Suns quietened the raucous crowd and threatened a monumental comeback during the third period.

A 75-point first-half has lifted the Golden State Warriors to an important win over their pacific rival Phoenix Suns.

In a rare instance since coming back from the All-Star break, the Warriors made an ultra-hot start to stun the visitors in the opening period. Led by Klay Thompson’s 18 points in the first eight minutes, Golden State put up a mammoth 43 points in a scintillating first-quarter. According to WarriorsMuse, the Warriors’ 21-point lead was the most they’ve led by in any opening quarter over the last four years.

That lead extended to 25 early in the second and hovered around 20 for the majority of the period. Phoenix threatened a quick burst to close the half, though Thompson punctuated the opening 24 minutes with a high-arcing three over Devin Booker. That was his eighth of the half, giving him 33 points in a vintage shooting display. Golden State put up 75 points in one of their best offensive halves of the season, giving them a decisive 17-point advantage.

Yet that same offensive fluidity stifled in the third, allowing the Suns to storm back into the contest in brutal fashion. The Warrior lead was cut to just three less than eight minutes into the quarter, but they steadied slightly to regain a 10-point lead heading to the fourth.

While it was the Thompson and Stephen Curry show in the first-half, the under fire Jordan Poole found some much-needed rhythm in an impressive second-half. After the lead remained 10 halfway through the final period, five of Poole’s 15 second-half points came on back-to-back possessions to put paid to the Suns’ comeback hopes.

Another Curry three, his fourth, put the final nail in the coffin as Monty Williams emptied his bench with just under three minutes left and Golden State up 17. JaMychal Green and former Warrior Damion Lee got into an altercation late, but it didn’t distract from a solid Warrior win.

Thompson finished with 38 points on 14-for-23 (60.9%) shooting and 8-for-14 (57.1%) from three-point range. A quiet second-half and three missed free-throws was all that stood between the five-time All-Star and another 40-point game. Curry finished with 23 points, five rebounds and seven assists on an efficient 7-for-13 (53.8%) shooting and 4-for-6 (66.7%) from deep. Poole rounded out a dominant offensive game from the guard trio with 20 points and six assists.

The Warriors shot 54.2% as a team and 48.7% from beyond the arc, helping them to the win despite a -8 disparity in offensive rebounds. Golden State now moves to 36-33 on the season ahead of another important matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday.