Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry (R) bumps chests with Draymond Green after driving another nail the Oklahoma City Thunder's coffin in the fourth period of game 7 of the NBA Western Conference Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California, on May 30 2016. File photo by Terry Schmitt/UPI
OAKLAND -- Golden State shook off a terrible shooting effort in the first half and the loss of forward Draymond Green to a technical foul to erase an 18-point second-half deficit and score a 120-117 win over the Washington Wizards.
The Warriors missed on 17 of 20 3-point attempts in the first half then lost Green when he and Wizards guard Bradley Beal got into a fight in front of the Washington bench with 19.5 seconds left in the first half.
Washington got the lead up to 18 points twice midway through the third quarter, but Steph Curry, who had been chilly throughout, knocked home two 3s and two free throws in the final 57 seconds of the third quarter to get the Warriors within 10, down 97-87.
Golden State erupted for 33 points in the fourth quarter, taking the lead for good on an Andre Iguodala layup off a Curry pass with 3:13 to go.
The Wizards had a chance to tie the game on an inbounds play with 01.1 left, but John Wall missed a 25-foot jumper with 0:04 to play.
Kevin Durant wound up leading the Warriors with 31 points and Curry added 20 to go with eight assists. Golden State was 7-for-18 from beyond the arc in the second half in mounting its comeback.
But the bench, with Kevon Looney's nine points, 16 from David West and eight more from Omri Casspi boosted the Warriors, most of that scoring coming in the second half.
The Wizards, who have now dropped their first two games on this West Coast swing with a stop in Sacramento yet to come, saw Otis Porter Jr. hit for 29 points and 10 rebounds with John Wall adding 20.
As good as the balanced Wizards offense was in getting out to a 67-53 halftime lead, the focus of the first half was the fight
The Warriors weren't going anywhere quickly in the first half against the Wizards until the final 19.5 seconds of the first half when Beal appeared to slap Green after both men were going for a loose ball. Beal got Green into a headlock before the two men could be torn apart.
Both sides were hit with technical fouls and both men were ejected. Green, whose jersey was torn in the back, threw his jersey into the crowd as he reluctantly left the court.
NOTES: Warriors F Draymond Green reacted sharply to Texans CEO Bob McNair referring to NFL players as "inmates." Wrote Green: "This sure does sound very Donald Sterling-esque. But I'm sure the fans pay to see him play and he's putting himself at risk of CTE by going out there every Sunday and giving 110%! Inmates? For starters, let's stop using the word owner and maybe use the word Chairman. To be owned by someone just sets a bad precedent to start. It sets the wrong tone. It gives one the wrong mindset." ... On the night the Warriors celebrated the legacy of Al Attles, the former player and coach was hospitalized and couldn't make it. Coach Steve Kerr, a huge Attles fan, was wearing an Attles-inspired retro suit from the 1970s, black with a huge pre-disco butterfly collar. "I know he'll be watching on TV," Kerr said before the game, "and I hope he's not offended by my suit." ... Rookie F Jordan Bell, who had played in each of the first five games, was inactive. Kerr said he wanted Bell to sit, watch and take in some of the nuance of the game. ... G Shaun Livingston took the game off to attend the funeral of Devin Harris' brother. ... Wizards G Bradley Beal said that a 3-1 record coming into Friday didn't mask that Washington was making too many defensive mistakes and had to turn that around. "We have to. It's beyond important," Beal said. "If we don't communicate, they're going to beat you by 30. It's not like we don't like each other. It's not like we have a problem with each other. It's just a matter of us just doing it. We know what we need to do. It starts with talking. It starts with leadership." ... Washington F Markieff Morris and G/F Sheldon Mac were out for the game.