By Adrian Stewart Co
Golden State Warriors leaned on a strong second half rally to stun Los Angeles Lakers, 121-114, in the 2021-2022 NBA Season opener on Tuesday night (Wednesday at the Philippines) at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
Stephen Curry tallied triple-double 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, while Jordan Poole converted four triples to finish with 21 markers for the Warriors.
Nemanja Bjelica and Damion Lee contributed 15 markers each, while Andre Iguodala and Andrew Wiggins ended up with 12 apiece for Warriors sans Klay Thompson and James Wiseman.
Trailing for most part of the opening half, the Warriors slowly clawed its way back in the third quarter behind consecutive hits from Poole and free throws by Curry to come to within 83-85.
Triples by Poole and Lee to start the fourth quarter and inside hits by Iguodala and Bjelica surged the Warriors ahead at 100-92 but the Lakers quickly responded with hits from Anthony Davis to trim the deficit to 98-100.
But a three-pointer by Curry, five straight points from Bjelica and an outside basket from Wiggins gave Golden State its largest lead at 115-103 with over two minutes left.
LeBron James led the new-look Lakers with double-double 34 points and 11 rebounds, while Davis also ended with double-double 33 points and 11 rebounds.
In the first game, Milwaukee Bucks kicked off its title retention bid with a 127-104 domination over Brooklyn Nets at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Giannis Antetokounmpo tallied 32 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists, while Khris Middleton and Pat Connaughton chipped in 20 markers apiece for the Bucks.
BOX SCORE:
GOLDEN STATE 121 – Curry 21, Poole 20, Bjelica 15, Lee 15, Iguodala 12, Wiggins 12, Looney 7, Green 6, Toscano-Anderson 6, Porter 5, Moody 2, Payton 0.
LOS ANGELES 114 — James 34, Davis 33, Anthony 9, Westbrook 8, Bazemore 8, Bradley 6, Monk 6, Howard 5, Rondo 3, Jordan 2.
Quarterscores: 32-34, 53-59, 83-85, 121-114./ASC, WDJ