The Warriors tied the NBA Finals with a 109-104 win in game 2 against the Toronto Raptors. The Warriors were down by as much as 12 in the first half of the game and went in to the halftime locker room down by five without holding a single lead. It seemed like Toronto had all the momentum going into the second half but Golden State went in to a new gear coming out of the locker room.
The Warriors started the third quarter on an 18-0 scoring run taking building a 72-59 lead and did not relinquish for the rest of the game. The Warriors were lead by Klay Thompson who scored 25 points, five rebounds and five assists in 32 minutes. Stephen Curry followed him with 23 points, Draymond Green had 17 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists falling one assists short of a triple double and Demarcus Cousins in his first ever NBA Finals start had 11 points 10 rebounds and six assists giving his team a much needed lift.
The win came despite the Warriors being hit by the injury bug in the game with Klay Thompson having to leave the game and not return in the fourth quarter with hamstring tightness. Fortunately for the Warriors, Klay Thompson told Yahoo Sports he expects to play in game 3. Kevon Looney, on the other hand, injured his collarbone in the first half and will not return in the NBA Finals.
As the series shifts to Oakland, there is a possibility that Warriors star forward Kevin Durant could return in either game 3 or 4. Durant has been out since a calf injury suffered in game 5 of the second round playoff series against the Houston Rockets.
The Toronto Raptors, in a losing effort, were led by Kawhi Leonard 34 points and 14 rebounds and Fred VanVleet who had 17 points. Ultimately, the Raptors hurt by bad shooting 37% from the field and 28% from three point range compared to the Warriors shooting 46% from the field and 38% from three point range.
Game 3 will take place on Wednesday in Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. If the Warriors are able to protect home court in games 3 and 4, these could possibly be the last two playoff games every played in Oracle Arena as the Warriors plan on playing their home games in a new arena in San Francisco called the Chase Center starting next season.
Sources: NBA, Yahoo Sports, Warriors Wire, Adrian Wojnarowski
