Blending their own effective defense with Toronto's utterly inept offense, the Warriors on Friday rediscovered the art of the blowout.
Their 113-89 blasting of the Raptors at Air Canada Centre was the cathartic victory needed in the wake of a nationally televised loss to LeBron James and the Cavaliers the previous night.
Klay Thompson led all scorers with 25 points on 9-of-18 shooting, including 5-of-8 from deep. Four other Warriors scored in double figures, led by Stephen Curry's 22 points. Draymond Green put in 17 points and Shaun Livingston and Leandro Barbosa each added 1l.
So thoroughly did the Warriors control the game that everybody who dressed played at least seven minutes. Forward Andre Iguodala did not dress, as the coaching staff decided to give the veteran the night off.
The Warriors (45-11) took a 27-11 lead in the first quarter, as the Raptors shot only 5.3 percent (1-of-19) in the opening 12 minutes. Toronto came back and finished at 40.3-percent shooting overall.
The Raptors (37-21), who lead the Atlantic Division, were led by Terrence Ross' 18 points but lost their fourth consecutive game.
STANDOUT PERFORMER:
Everybody gets into the photo, with Thompson in the middle holding the ball.
Thompson led the scoring, but Green led energy brigade. He started fast, submitting 10 points and five rebounds while playing 11 minutes in the first quarter.
TURNING POINT:
The Warriors raced out to a 22-5 lead with 3:35 left in the opening quarter and never were seriously threatened after that.
The Warriors led by as much as 26 in the first half and as much as 41 in the second half. The Raptors never got any closer than 23 after intermission.
OF NOTE:
Warriors backup center Festus Ezeli was ejected, along with Toronto forward Tyler Hansbrough, with 4.5 seconds remaining in the third quarter. Both players got tangled up underneath the basket and later engaged a brief scuffle after Ezeli grabbed Hansbrough's neck.
INJURY UPDATE:
The Warriors made a pregame decision to give Iguodala the night off.
WHAT'S NEXT:
The Warriors head to Boston, where on Sunday (3 p.m. PST) they will face the Celtics at TD Garden.
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