Steph Curry’s legendary effort helps the Warriors take Game 4 in Boston
to even NBA Finals
Curry drops 43 points and Klay Thompson added 18 to help the Golden
State Warriors beat the Celtics in Boston.
>BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JUNE 10: Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry
(30) drives on Boston Celtics’ Robert Williams (44) in the second
quarter of Game 4 of the NBA Finals at TD Garden in Boston, Mass., on
Friday, June 10, 2022, at TD Garden in Boston, Mass. (Karl Mondon/Bay
Area News Group)
>BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JUNE 10: Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry
(30) drives on Boston Celtics’ Robert Williams (44) in the second
quarter of Game 4 of the NBA Finals at TD Garden in Boston, Mass., on
Friday, June 10, 2022, at TD Garden in Boston, Mass. (Karl Mondon/Bay
Area News Group)
By MADELINE KENNEY | mkenney@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
PUBLISHED: June 10, 2022 at 8:31 p.m. | UPDATED: June 11, 2022 at 3:22 a.m.
https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2022/06/10/steph-currys-legendary-effort-helps-the-warriors-take-game-4-in-boston-to-even-nba-finals/

BOSTON – Stephen Curry was so impressive in the Warriors’ 107-97 win
over the Celtics Friday night that an “M-V-P” chant broke out at TD
Garden when he shot free throws in the game’s final 10 seconds.

Curry put to rest any concern about his health from the moment he
stepped on the court as he put on a vintage showing in Game 4 of the NBA
Finals — scoring 43 points and grabbing 10 rebounds — as he willed the
Warriors to a victory to even the series before it returns to the West
Coast.

Curry outscored the rest of the Warriors’ starters by three points and
converted on seven of his 14 shots from beyond the arc in what was his
third highest postseason scoring output in his career.

Curry doesn’t rank his playoff performances.

“Just win,” he said after the win.

But Klay Thompson, who’s played 131 playoff games alongside Curry, said
his most recent outing might take the top spot of Curry’s postseason
portfolio.

“Probably No. 1,” Thompson said. “Steph played incredible.”

The lead flipped back-and-forth in the fourth quarter before the
Warriors, with the help of a 10-0 run led by Curry and Thompson, pulled
away for good. Thompson scored 10 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter.

Curry was again the best player on the court, despite straining his foot
while scrambling for a loose ball in Game 3. The Celtics smothered Curry
with double teams but he still found a way to score and make plays.

“Just stunning,” coach Steve Kerr said of Curry, a top candidate for
Finals MVP. “The physicality out there is pretty dramatic. Boston’s got
obviously [the] best defense in the league — huge and powerful at every
position, and for Steph to take that kind of pressure all game long and
still be able to defend at the other end when they are coming at him
shows you, I think this is the strongest physically he’s ever been in
his career, and it’s allowing him to do what he’s doing.”

With the Warriors playing from behind in the series for the second time,
Kerr opted to go small at the start, inserting Otto Porter Jr. in for
Kevon Looney as a way to spread the floor.

But the Warriors looked out of sync in the first three minutes of the
game before a fiery Curry helped get the team going.

After sinking back-to-back 3-pointers near the end of the first quarter,
which forced Boston coach Ime Udoka to call a timeout, Curry yelled at
Celtics fans before heading to his team’s huddle. He kept that same
animated energy throughout the game, pumping his fists and hitting his
chest.

“He wasn’t letting us lose, that’s what it boils down to,” Draymond
Green said. “You hear all the noise for a day or so, and I could tell in
his demeanor the last couple days, even after Game 3, that he was going
to come out with that type of fire. And he did, and we were all able to
follow it.”

Jordan Poole, who has struggled in this series save for the second half
of Game 2, found his offensive rhythm as he helped carry the Warriors at
the beginning of the second quarter when Curry was on the bench. Poole
hit back-to-back shots to open the second on a 5-0 run.

Poole finished with 14 points off the bench.

After the Warriors were bullied in the interior by the Celtics in Game
3, Golden State flipped the script Friday, outscoring Boston 38-32 in
the paint and 19-12 on second-chance opportunities.

Andrew Wiggins, who grabbed a career-high 16 boards, and Looney, who
added 11, helped Golden State to a 55-42 rebounding edge.

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Green again played like a shell of his former self while the home crowd
showered him with boos. In 32 minutes, he finished with eight rebounds
and eight assists while going 1-for-7 from the field for two points.

Kerr even pulled Green for a stretch of the fourth quarter, opting to go
without him for nearly four minutes. It worked, as Golden State turned a
four-point deficit into a three-point lead with him off the floor.

“I’m definitely never thrilled coming out of the game with seven minutes
to go in the fourth quarter in a must-win game,” Green said. “But, at
the end of the day, if that’s what Coach decides, then you roll with it.”

Jayson Tatum finished with 23 points, Jaylen Brown had 21 and Marcus
Smart added 18. Robert Williams III, who’s been playing through a left
knee injury, had 12 rebounds, two blocks and a steal.

Curry, Green and Thompson have now won a road game in 27 consecutive
playoff series, extending an NBA record that dates back to 2013.

The Warriors and Celtics are knotted up at 2-2 as the best-of-seven
series shifts back to San Francisco, with Game 5 on Monday.

The Warriors have been nearly unbeatable this postseason at Chase
Center, where they possess a 10-1 playoff record. Their one home loss
came at the hands of the Celtics in Game 1.