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Warriors avoid Georgia-type letdown, survive late charge from Nuggets

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OAKLAND–More than an hour and a half before the Warriors squared off with the Nuggets on Monday night, Golden State head coach Steve Kerr told reporters he needed to cut his pregame press conference short so that he could watch the first quarter of the College Football Playoff National Championship.

By the time the Warriors had created enough separation from the Nuggets on Monday, Kerr could have walked into the locker room and watched the end of the game.

It took until the end of the third quarter for Steph Curry and Golden State to open up a double-digit advantage over Denver, but once the Warriors found their stride, so did the Crimson Tide. Just as Curry knocked down a 27-footer to push the Warriors ahead by 14 with 56 seconds to play in the third, Alabama freshman quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was throwing the game-winning touchdown pass in overtime to clinch another national title.

If you missed the Warriors’ 124-114 win to catch a glimpse of the instant classic going down on the other side of the country or you’re a football fan in Georgia looking to read about a team that can hold onto a big lead (see Falcons, Bulldogs), Monday’s game featured another fantastic effort from Curry who poured in 32 points, nailed five three-pointers and dished out nine assists to lift Golden State past Denver.

Hours after earning the Western Conference Player of the Week Award following one of the most dominant eight-day stretches of his career, a slow start didn’t hurt Curry’s overall performance as he caught fire in the third quarter in the midst of a 22-8 Warriors’ run that followed a 69-69 tie with just under seven minutes to play in the frame.

By downing Denver on Monday, the Warriors also avenged their 96-81 home loss on December 23, a game that came during a three-week stretch Curry missed due to a sprained ankle. While Golden State was down a star point guard in that affair, this time around the Warriors were without forward Kevin Durant who missed his third straight game with a calf injury. Durant put a few shots up at Monday’s shootaround, but Kerr told reporters the 7-footer still doesn’t feel “quite right,” and that he won’t play until he’s completely healthy.

Without Durant, Golden State picked up its fifth straight win behind strong first half play from Draymond Green and Klay Thompson, who were each in double figures by the break.

Green picked up a double-double on Monday, falling five rebounds shy of a triple-double but still managing to lead the Warriors in assists. He had four dimes in the game’s first three minutes, setting the tone for a Golden State offense that scored at least 27 points in all four quarters against Denver. Green almost found himself in hot water for passing too much, though, as he turned down an easy slam dunk opportunity on a fast break in the middle of the fourth quarter to pass out to Curry who was open –yet missed– from beyond the arc. That error led to a Nuggets’ three-pointer on the other end of the floor that cut Denver’s deficit to nine, but a quick Curry bucket followed by two Curry free throw makes pushed the Warriors’ lead back to 13 and gave the point guard an even 30 points on the night.