Steph Curry struggles in 24-point blowout loss to Kings, fails to clinch playoffs
The Golden State Warriors and Steph Curry faced retaliation on Tuesday night as the Sacramento Kings secured revenge with a 118-94 victory.
In the initial stage of the matchup, the Kings seized an early advantage and maintained their momentum throughout. With a resounding performance in Sacramento, the Kings overwhelmed the Warriors, who concluded their season in disheartening fashion.
In an uncharacteristic turn of events, Klay Thompson remained silent, failing to score against the Kings with a 0-of-10 shooting performance from the field, including 0-of-6 from beyond the arc.
Despite Thompson's struggles, Golden State found sparks of vitality from their young duo, Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody. Kuminga contributed 16 points, matched by Moody's 16-point performance off the bench. Nevertheless, their collective efforts fell short in the end.
On Tuesday, the Warriors found themselves unable to contain Keegan Murray, who amassed an impressive 32 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field. The sophomore forward from Iowa ignited from beyond the arc, sinking eight 3-pointers against the Warriors.
De'Aaron Fox contributed significantly with 24 points, six assists and four rebounds, propelling the Kings to a commanding 24-point victory over the Warriors.
With this win, the Kings advance to face the New Orleans Pelicans, where they have an opportunity to secure the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference playoffs. A victory would set up a matchup against the No. 1 seed, OKC Thunder.
Golden State Warriors and Steph Curry fail to secure playoffs for third time in last 5 seasons
Golden State's defeat marked their exclusion from the playoffs for the third time in the last five seasons, with two eliminations occurring in the Play-In Tournament.
The Warriors struggled throughout the game, committing 16 turnovers – Steph Curry had six of his own – while also conceding 15 offensive rebounds and allowing an excessive number of open 3-pointers. Their performance starkly contrasted with the dominance of the dynastic team that clinched four titles between 2015 and 2022.
Golden State and Curry managed to narrow the gap to just one early in the third quarter. However, Sacramento swiftly countered with a decisive 19-5 run, propelled by a pair of crucial 3-pointers from Ellis, extending their lead back to 15 points.
Sacramento faced a challenging regular season against New Orleans, ending with a winless record of 0-5. This marks the first time since the 1983-84 regular season and playoffs (where the Kings went 0-8 against the LA Lakers) that they have experienced such a prolonged streak without a victory against a single opponent.
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