On Wednesday night in Oakland, two-time MVP Steph Curry put the injury-depleted Golden State Warriors on his back — and they lost anyway.
The three-time champion pumped in a playoff career-high 47 points while also notching a team-high eight rebounds and seven assists but it wasn’t enough to prevent the Warriors from falling to the Toronto Raptors 123-109.
Steph Curry is the first player in history to have 45+ pts, 5+ reb, 5+ ast, & 5+ 3pm in a NBA Finals game.
His 47 points were the most in a Finals loss since LeBron’s 51 last season…#TORvsGSW #DubNation pic.twitter.com/BCLASpG1rd
— Sportsbook Review (@SBRReview) June 6, 2019
Only eight other players have ever scored more than 45 points in an NBA Finals game: Michael Jordan (3), Jerry West (3), Elgin Baylor, Rick Barry, Wilt Chamberlain, Allen Iverson, LeBron James and Bob Pettit.
Playing without stars Klay Thompson and Kevin Durant and rotation player Kevon Looney, the Warriors were not able to overcome a dominant team effort from the Raptors that saw all of Toronto’s starters score at least 17 points.
One of those players, point guard Kyle Lowry, was involved in an incident in the fourth quarter where he was shoved by a fan after diving into the stands after a loose ball. Lowry’s big night (23 points, five rebounds and nine assists) was somewhat overshadowed by the incident, especially after the fan was escorted out of the arena by security.
“There’s no place for that,” Lowry said. “He had no reason to touch me. He had no reason to reach over two seats and then say some vulgar language to me. There’s no place for people like that in our league.”
Fan pushes Kyle Lowry after he falls into the crowd
(via @ESPNNBA)pic.twitter.com/DYOWVAPym6
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) June 6, 2019
With the Warriors now trailing in the series 2-1, Game 4 will be Friday night in Oakland. It’s possible both Durant and Thompson will be back in the lineup for the two-time defending NBA champs.
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