The final score of Golden State’s 136-111 win over Portland Sunday doesn’t tell the full story of an entertaining shooting duel between Steph Curry and Damian Lillard. The pair went back and forth, exchanging made shot after made shot. Curry finished the game with 39 points, shooting 62 percent from the field, including 69 percent from beyond the arc; Lillard posted 38 points on a lower overall shooting percentage (48 percent) and went 4-of-9 from three-point land.
Still, this was a fun matchup between two of the top scorers in the league with a little bit of a backstory. Curry is the current hometown hero while Lillard grew up in the Oakland area. It’s understandable if Sunday’s game meant a little bit more to Lillard.
That, and he was on fire.
“He wanted his team to win the game and I wanted my team to win the game,” Lillard said afterward (via CSN Bay Area). “There for a second, it was just, we went at it for a little bit.”
With 8:01 left in the third period, Steph and Dame exchanged baskets for a long time. Lillard hit a step-back three-pointer, then Steph hit a little step-back jumper from 13 feet. Lillard followed with a reverse layup and Steph came right back with a three-pointer. Then, Lillard hit a finger-roll and Steph hit one more three. After Maurice Harkless went the charity stripe for the Blazers, Dame hit a reverse layup and another three-pointer, which alternated with another pair of Steph triples. Just an exhausting back-and-forth battle between two of the finest shot-makers in the Association.
“It was quite a show,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr added. “Both guys had it rolling… it was something to watch when they both got hot at the same time.”
You can check out the highlights from the game in the video above. The good news is there’s potential for Curry and Lillard to meet again in the playoffs when the stakes are even higher. Imagine, if you will, as many as seven more opportunities for this.
(Via CSN Bay Area)
