Fighting fatigue on the second night of a back-to-back and brushing off some bumps and bruises, the Warriors dug deep Tuesday night for one of their better wins of the 2024-25 NBA season, beating the New York Knicks 114-102 at Madison Square Garden by outscoring them 67-47 in the second half.
This was a measuring stick win, a signature victory by its very definition.
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Steph Curry, to no surprise, stole the show under the bright lights of the Big Apple. Curry scored a team-high 28 points and was a game-high plus-23. The game’s greatest shooter was 10 of 21 overall, including going 5 on 9 on 3-pointers.
Draymond steals it, Steph splashes it 😴 pic.twitter.com/GjohjFEeYS
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 5, 2025
Jimmy Butler turned it on offensively, especially in the second half when he scored 13 of his 19 points. His 19 points were his most since his fourth game playing for his new team. The Warriors now are 9-1 in the 10 games he has played.
Jimmy Put-backs 💪pic.twitter.com/XQkSYHGfsz
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 5, 2025
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Brandin Podziemski also scored 19 points, and Buddy Hield had 15, including some timely threes on a night he only made three of his 10 tries.
Buddy sinks a 3 to end the third 💦pic.twitter.com/NhBZT3TCKP
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 5, 2025
Here are three takeaways from the Warriors improving to 3-1 on their five-game road trip.
3-Point Trouble
No team defends the 3-point line worse than the Knicks. The way the Warriors were shooting from deep, especially in the first half, it felt like New York had a forcefield around the arc. The Warriors attempted 23 threes through the first quarter and made only five, resulting in a 21.7-percent clip.
Just as concerning was who was trying to hit the majority of triples. Curry took three 3-pointers and only made one. Moses Moody also was 1 of 3. Podziemski tried four times, converting once. Hield, whose first responsibility is putting 3-pointers on the scoreboard for the Warriors, was 1 of 7.
Shooting 28.6 percent on threes in the first half wasn’t a problem against the 14-win Charlotte Hornets. But going ice-cold against the 40-win Knicks is a different story, putting the Warriors in an eight-point hole at halftime.
Finding more offensive variety in the second half, along with Curry catching fire, the Warriors in the second half went 8 of 14 (57.1 percent) on threes. It all started with an identity shift coming out of halftime.
Attack Mode
A message must have been sent at halftime. While the Warriors couldn’t buy a bucket from 3-point range, they began the second half staying away from the area. Finally, they went downhill and even started getting to the free-throw line.
The third quarter started with Curry missing a driving layup, but that didn’t deter him from attacking on the Warriors’ next offensive possession and making his way to two free throws. The next two times down the court, Curry decisively cut to the hoop for a layup and then looked like he was going to go straight to the basket, only to nail a mid-range jumper.
Steph starts the second half strong 👀pic.twitter.com/jWCcUvdGjj
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 5, 2025
Curry scored 14 of his 28 points in the third quarter after scoring eight in the first half. He did so by going 3 of 4 on 2-pointers, 2 of 4 on 3-pointers and making both of his free throws. Butler didn’t take a single free throw in the first half and then took four, making three, in the third quarter where he scored nine points.
After scoring seven fastbreak points in the first half, the Warriors were off to the races and scored 11 fastbreak points in the third quarter. They had 24 points in the paint in the first half, and 14 in the third quarter. After scoring four points off free throws in the first two quarters, the Warriors found five points there in the next 12 minutes.
The Warriors now are 32-4 when leading after three quarters. Overall in the second half, the Warriors had 18 fastbreak points, 26 points in the paint and 11 at the free-throw line.
More Steph Greatness
Once again, Curry reminded everyone what MSG really stands for whenever he steps foot on the Knicks’ home floor. Dating back to Feb. 28, 2014, Curry now has won 10 consecutive games at The Mecca.
Going into the fourth quarter, the Warriors led by one point. When Curry came back in with six and a half minutes remaining, the Warriors still held a one-point lead. Not even two minutes later, the Warriors led by 11.
The Knicks are a great team at home. They’re a great team in the fourth quarter. And by the power Curry possesses, the game felt over when Tom Thibodeau had to call a timeout with a little more than two and a half minutes on the clock and the Warriors again ahead by 11, holding all the momentum in their hands.
Draymond steals it, Steph splashes it 😴 pic.twitter.com/GjohjFEeYS
— Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) March 5, 2025
When the Warriors visited the Knicks for their annual trip last year, Curry had a 31-point, 11-rebound double-double where he made eight 3-pointers. Curry finished one assist shy of his third consecutive double-double on Tuesday night with nine assists and seven rebounds.
The show never stops with Curry, it only continues. The man taken by the Warriors one spot before the Knicks were on the clock in the 2009 NBA Draft continues to torture the team he always wanted to join 16 years ago.