LOS ANGELES - The Warriors spent the first quarter looking lost and the second quarter looking like a completely different team.
That kind of whiplash set the stage for an improbable comeback that saw Golden State erase a 23-point deficit and beat the Lakers 112-95, a response that also wiped away last week’s season-opening loss. Steph Curry finished with 31 points, Brandin Podziemski added 21 and the bench delivered a huge lift as Golden State won for the third straight time.
Curry also passed Dominique Wilkins and now sits 18th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with 26,688 points.
The night was billed as a Luka Doncic-Yaxel Lendeborg showdown, but only one half of that duel really showed up. Doncic scored 37 points, while Lendeborg was held to six points on just three shot attempts. Early on, though, Doncic made sure everyone knew exactly how he felt about the matchup, piling up 21 points in the first quarter alone.
He hit five contested 3-pointers, including one that ended with him pointing toward the Warriors bench. The Lakers raced out to a 38-15 lead, and Golden State’s issues were obvious from the jump: nine turnovers in the opening quarter and little resistance around Doncic.
Then the script flipped.
Golden State answered with a 38-15 second quarter of its own, fueled by reserve guards De’Anthony Melton and Will Richard. Melton scored 13 in the period, and the Warriors’ zone defense bothered the Lakers enough to help swing the game back. Podziemski capped the half with a 3-pointer that tied things at 53.
The momentum kept tilting Golden State’s way after halftime. After Doncic and Reaves helped the Lakers rebuild a cushion, the Warriors finished the quarter on a 15-4 burst. Podziemski knocked down a 3-pointer and then sank two free throws to put Golden State in front, and the crowd erupted when Doncic picked up a technical foul.
Curry had his own moment midway through the third, pausing to stare at Luka Doncic sprawled on the court after a stepback jumper before burying the shot and reacting with mock surprise as he jogged back. Doncic answered with a 3-pointer, but by then the game had already tilted hard toward Golden State.
After the Lakers emptied their starters with 1:21 left, Curry and Podziemski waved their arms to pump up the crowd, and the building responded.
The Warriors’ bench was a major reason the comeback stuck. Golden State got only nine points from its non-Curry starters in the first half, but the reserves kept the team afloat with shotmaking and defense. Georges Niang hit all three of his 3-pointers after opening the season in an 0-for-12 slump, Melton buried three triples, and Richard’s defensive energy created problems for the Lakers.
Charles Bassey delivered one of the game’s best defensive plays when he blocked Walker Kessler, ending Kessler’s streak of 15 straight makes against the Warriors and sparking a fastbreak that ended with Lendeborg throwing down an alley-oop. Brandon Williams also gave Golden State a boost in the third, tying the game at 78 with a strong and-1 finish over Colin Sexton.
By the end, the bench had produced 50 points.
Turnovers were another ugly early storyline for Golden State. Steve Kerr talked before the game about the team’s mistakes with the ball and urged patience as the Warriors work through a new five-out system, but the first quarter was as messy as it gets. The Warriors turned it over nine times in that frame alone before settling in and finishing with 15.
The Lakers had turnover trouble too, coughing it up 20 times.
Golden State, now 3-3, will be off before hosting the Clippers on Sunday.
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