Curry sparked a 14-3 run for the Warriors as the NBA champions overturned a 108-100 deficit with just over four minutes remaining in a pulsating battle at the Oracle Arena.
Stephen Curry scored 37 points as the Golden State Warriors fought back to defeat the Portland Trail Blazers 114-111 and take a 2-0 lead in their NBA Western Conference finals series on Thursday.
Earlier, the Trail Blazers had surged into a 17-point early in the second half only for the Warriors to hit back with a sustained points onslaught.
The Warriors erupted for 39 points in the third quarter to haul themselves back into the contest but Portland, led by Damian Lillard, refused to roll over.
BROTHER 🆚 BROTHER@StephenCurry30 (37 PTS) and @sdotcurry (16 PTS) square off in a thrilling Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals! #NBAPlayoffs
Game 3: Saturday (5/18), 9pm/et, ESPN pic.twitter.com/NZwngizzDI
— NBA (@NBA) May 17, 2019
A Meyers Leonard three-pointer put Portland eight points clear late in the fourth but Curry then seized control.
Three nerveless free throws from Curry edged Golden State into a 110-108 lead, before a three-pointer for Portland from Curry’s younger brother Seth made it 111-110 for the visitors.
Seth Curry hits from downtown then Kevon Looney put the @warriors up for good in Game 2!@warriors take a 2-0 series lead in the Western Conference Finals! pic.twitter.com/vd74ZmtHDT
— NBA (@NBA) May 17, 2019
Kevon Looney’s alley-oop dunk shot put Golden State back in front at 112-111 with 52 seconds remaining before a Draymond Green layup with 12 seconds left effectively sealed the win.
“We knew they were going to come out swinging,” Curry said.
"It was like back in Charlotte. … This will probably be one we'll have the film clip at home."
The Game 2 battle between Steph and Seth is staying in the Curry archives 💪 pic.twitter.com/MZcy72zc2H
— ESPN (@espn) May 17, 2019
“They gave us a great punishing. That third quarter was unbelievable. It was a true testament of everyone on the team.”
It was another huge performance from Curry, who has stepped into the void created by Kevin Durant’s injury absence to deliver back-to-back 30-point games in the opening two games of the series.
Curry finished with 37 points from 11 of 22 shooting, adding eight rebounds, eight assists and six turnovers.
💦 @KlayThompson pours in 24 PTS (4 3PM) in Game 2 to help lift the @warriors to a 2-0 series lead in the Western Conference Finals! #StrengthInNumbers
Game 3: Saturday (5/18), 9pm/et, ESPN pic.twitter.com/pMv188vhpP
— NBA (@NBA) May 17, 2019
Klay Thompson added 24 points while Green finished with 16 points. Looney (14 points) and Jordan Bell (11) also cracked double digits.
👏 @Money23Green stuffs the stat sheet with 16 PTS, 10 REB, 7 AST, 5 BLK as the @warriors edge Portland 114-111 to take a 2-0 series advantage! #StrengthInNumbers
Game 3: Saturday (5/18), 9pm/et, ESPN pic.twitter.com/IK0FgrjEZc
— NBA (@NBA) May 17, 2019
Warriors coach Steve Kerr admitted that his team, who are chasing a third straight NBA championship this season and a fourth in five seasons, had been fortunate to escape with the win.
“We stole that game,” a relieved Kerr said. “I thought they outplayed us for much of the night, the majority of the night. But we’ve been here before.
LIVE: @trailblazers/@warriors Game 2 Postgame Presser. #NBAPlayoffs https://t.co/jG2Wknb0l9
— NBA (@NBA) May 17, 2019
“I think our experience helped us. We’ve done this a few times before. But we stole it tonight for sure. They outplayed us.”
Kerr said the Warriors had been expecting a backlash from Portland following their win in game one on Tuesday.
"It's an incredible story to have two boys in the NBA."
Steve Kerr on the Curry family as Steph & Seth face-off in the #NBAPlayoffs. pic.twitter.com/7GKkPrdJy2
— NBA TV (@NBATV) May 17, 2019
“They’ve had two days to stew on the first game and make their adjustments. So we knew it was coming,” Kerr said. “We didn’t find our edge until the third quarter. But the NBA game is a long, long game.
“And with our team we always feel like we have a chance. And we kept playing tonight and we got it done.”
IMPROVED FORM
Damian Lillard didn't have to shift on Iguodala like that, just NASTY pic.twitter.com/Bvu8AG7MIE
— Chris Montano (@gswchris) May 17, 2019
Lillard led the scoring for Portland with 23 points while C.J. McCollum added 22 points.
Portland coach Terry Stotts took satisfaction from an improved performance after a heavy loss in game one on Tuesday, but admitted his team had squandered a chance to level the series.
Damian Lillard didn't have to shift on Iguodala like that, just NASTY pic.twitter.com/Bvu8AG7MIE
— Chris Montano (@gswchris) May 17, 2019
“It’s a lost opportunity, no question,” Stotts said. “We played a good game, we led for a good part of the game. We had a chance to win and we didn’t.
“You hate to lose a game but we showed that we can compete with them. It was a much better game than we played in game one. Now we’ve got to go and get two at home. We played better at both ends of the floor tonight and we’ve got to take that into game three.”
https://twitter.com/SportsWhatWeDo/status/1129230065638805504
Meanwhile the Warriors confirmed earlier that injured star Durant was ruled out of game three and four in Portland as he struggles to recover from a calf strain.