Warriors rally from 27 down to beat the Raptors

In Tuesday’s game against the Raptors, the Warriors didn’t seem like themselves until the fourth quarter. Golden State ended up winning by nine points, but they had to come all the way back after being down by as many as 27 in the third quarter—it was their biggest comeback in 10 years.

The Warriors came together as a team in the fourth. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson were off during the first half of the game—they combined for just 11 points. Once the second half began, Curry went off. He had yet another double-double, with 27 points and 10 assists, and Klay added 22 points in the victory. Golden State’s Splash Brothers scored 20+ points for the second straight game—before tonight, they only had 20 points in the same game three times ever.

It wasn’t just the splash brothers who contributed to the Warriors’ unexpected win. Harrison Barnes had 19 points, and David Lee contributed 18 points and eight rebounds. Once again, 18-year veteran Jermaine O’Neal played a large part in the Warriors’ victory—he ended the game with 11 points and eight rebounds, and the Warriors outscored Toronto by 30 points while he was on the floor.

In a postgame interview, Klay Thompson credited their victory to Jermaine O’Neal’s motivational halftime speech. He called it “one of the realest speeches I’ve ever heard”, and after Jermaine’s speech, the Warriors clearly stepped their game up. It took them a quarter to chip away at the Raptors’ lead, but in the fourth quarter the Warriors rallied.

The Raptors started the fourth with an 18-point lead, but Klay Thompson made four 3-pointers to fuel the unlikely comeback. Golden State was able to outscore the Raptors 42-15 in the fourth quarter, and ended the game with a 112-103 victory.

After their Tuesday night victory, the Warriors will look to start their three-game road trip with a win. They head to Texas on Friday to take on Dwight Howard and the Houston Rockets.