SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — With the NBA all-time 3-point leader Stephen Curry relegated to cheering while sidelined by a hamstring injury and sporting a gray sweatsuit on the bench, the Golden State Warriors struggled to establish their long-range game Saturday night.
They didn’t make a shot from deep in the first half, but led 42-40 anyway.
Golden State missed its first five tries from beyond the arc before Buddy Hield connected 35 seconds into the third quarter. The Warriors came into Game 3 against Minnesota with a playoff-leading 135 3-pointers. Golden State made 6 of 11 3s in the third quarter to go ahead 73-69.
Going without a 3-pointer in the first half, it marked the first time the Warriors hadn’t hit at least one 3 in any half of a playoff game since the second half of a 112-99 loss in Game 2 of the first round against Dallas in 2007. The Warriors finished 4 for 20 in that one.
It was also the first time they went without a 3 in a first half of a playoff game in the play-by-play era, since 1997. Two other teams this postseason have been held without a 3 in the first half — Minnesota in Game 1 of this series and the Boston Celtics in Game 5 of their first-round win against Orlando. No team had done so the previous six postseasons.
The Warriors also became the first team to lead a playoff game at halftime despite making no 3s since the Toronto Raptors in Game 3 against the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2017.
Curry strained his left hamstring early in Game 1 at Minnesota and is scheduled to be reevaluated Wednesday.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
Janie Mccauley, The Associated Press
