Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals followed the same script as the three regular season matchups between the Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder - except OKC didn't blow their fourth-quarter lead this time.
Kevin Durant's 26 points and Russell Westbrook's all-around dominance (plus some shot shooting from Dion Waiters) helped carry the Thunder to the 108-102 win, handing Golden State their first home loss of the playoffs.
Golden State was able to take control of the game in the first quarter, using a 9-2 run to take a seven-point lead. That lead ballooned to as many as 13 points in the first half, as the Warriors led 60-47 going into the break thanks to a buzzer-beating three from Stephen Curry:
Stephen Curry beat the halftime buzzer with a DEEP three! #NBAPlayoffs #OKCvsGSW pic.twitter.com/Kl968R5Oyv
— Chat Sports (@ChatSports) May 17, 2016
The Warriors were able to maintain a sizeable lead throughout much of the third quarter, but Oklahoma City reeled off a huge 24-8 run of their own to take a four-pont lead early in the fourth.
Oklahoma City has able to build that lead to as many as eight, but then went extremely cold from the field. Golden State went on a 7-0 run as Durant missed seven straight shots for the Thunder, then Steven Adams hit a pair of free throws to end the drought. Another late jumper from KD sealed the victory over OKC.
Big shot by @KDTrey5. https://t.co/hj4nzenHLn
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 17, 2016
The biggest reason why Golden State wasn't able to pull off the comeback was because of some cold shooting of their own. They went just 1/10 from three-point range in the fourth quarter.
Westbrook had another monster game with 27 points (24 in the second half), 12 assists, six rebounds and seven steals, while Durant added 10 rebounds to his 26 points. Adams (16 points, 12 rebounds) and Serge Ibaka (11 points, 11 rebounds) also had big double-doubles. Waiters finished with 10 points off the bench.
Curry's 26 points were a team-high for the Warriors, and he also finished with 10 rebounds and seven assists. Klay Thompson (25 points) and Draymond Green (23 points) helped to carry Golden State offensively as the rest of the team combined for just 28 points.
Game 2 will be on Tuesday at 9:00 pm ET on TNT.
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