DETROIT — Steph Curry’s 34 points led the Warriors to a 120-109 win over the Detroit Pistons on Monday night in the latter half of a back-to-back.
Curry got off to a hot start, scoring 16 points on 4-of-5 from 3 in the first quarter to tie a season high for one frame. It propelled the Warriors to a strong start that gave them an eight-point lead heading into the second half.
He finished shooting 7-for-17 from three and 12-of-26 from the field. Curry, the Western Conference Player of the Week, notched his fourth 30-point game of the season. Klay Thompson had 17 points, mostly hitting from the mid-range while going 8-for-16 from the field
“Both made big shots, and I liked our defense down the stretch,” coach Steve Kerr said. “We got a bunch of stops…and Steph’s on-ball defense was fantastic.”
Chris Paul scored a season-high 17 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, going 6-of-9 from the field. He finished with six assists, five rebounds and no turnovers. Paul’s 29 assists with no turnovers in four games off the bench makes him the only Warriors reserve to ever accomplish this since individual turnovers were first tracked in 1977-78, per Elias.
“Knocking shots down just just adds to what he’s already doing,” Kerr said. “But six assists, no turnovers, he’s up to 62 assists, six turnovers (in the season). I mean, that’s insane.”
The Warriors outscored the Pistons 52-32 in the paint and owned the boards, outscoring them 26-10 on second-chance points.
With Pistons’ starting center Jalen Duren a late scratch due to injury, former Warrior James Wiseman played some unexpected minutes behind starter Marvin Bagley II. Golden State went at the former No. 2 overall pick, and Wiseman, who went scoreless in 11 first-half minutes, didn’t return for the second half.
The Warriors finish off this road trip on Wednesday in Denver, where they’ll play the reigning champion Nuggets before heading home to play the Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder.
