In an hour of great need, the Warriors longed for somebody to rise up and deliver Thursday night. Nobody did.
After taking a roundhouse to the gut with the confirmed loss of Stephen Curry hours before tipoff Wednesday night, the Warriors were blasted off the floor, 114-91, by the Mavericks at American Airlines Center in Dallas.
Playing without their floor leader for the first time this season –- Curry has a bruised left leg -– the Warriors (29-2) took their most one-sided loss since the Steve Kerr coaching era began 19 months ago.
[POOLE: Now without Curry, Warriors’ depth being pushed to limit]
Five Warriors scored in double figures, led by Ian Clark’s 21 points, followed by Marreese Speights and Andre Iguodala, each of whom put in 12. Draymond Green scored 11 points and Klay Thompson totaled 10, each on 4-of-15 shooting.
In addition to the loss of Curry, the Warriors also were playing without center Festus Ezeli, forward Harrison Barnes and guard Leandro Barbosa. That the Warriors played with four of their rotation players out of action surely contributed to a 42-point first half that was their lowest-scoring half of the season.
Meanwhile, the Mavericks (19-13) were punching countless holes in the Warriors defense, which allowed a season-high-tying 14 3-pointers on a season-high 51.9-percent shooting. Point guard J.J. Barea poured in 23 points to lead Dallas.
STANDOUT PERFORMER
The honor on this night goes to . . . no one, as everybody in a Warriors jersey contributed to this loss.
Clark came the closest, exploiting a meaningless fourth quarter to score a season-high 21 points.
TURNING POINT
After cutting the deficit to six (27-21) at the end of the first quarter, the Warriors were outscored 16-5 to open the second quarter as Dallas took a 43-26 lead with 7:10 left in the half.
The Warriors were in catch-up mode for the remainder of the game, trailing by as much as 30 and never getting closer than 11.
INJURY UPDATE
Warriors: G Stephen Curry (L leg injury) was ruled out 90 minutes before tipoff. C Festus Ezeli (L big toe) was ruled out earlier in the day. F Harrison Barnes (L ankle sprain), G Leandro Barbosa (L shoulder sprain) and F Kevon Looney (R hip surgery rehab) are not with the team.
Mavericks: G Deron Williams (L hamstring strain) was ruled out early Wednesday afternoon.
WHAT’S NEXT
The Warriors return to action Thursday night, when they face the Rockets at Toyota Center in Houston. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:05 p.m. PST.
