Warriors Beat Cavaliers, Earn Split in Regular Season Series

The Golden State Warriors played like a team sick of losing to the Cleveland Cavaliers on January 16th, probably because they are indeed sick of losing to the Cavaliers. In last season’s NBA Finals, the Warriors had a 3-1 lead but lost three straight—including Game 7 on their home court in Oakland. Then on Christmas Day, the Cavaliers edged the Warriors 109-108 in Cleveland in the first regular season game between the two powerhouses.

This time Golden State got off to a fast start against Cleveland, and the Cavaliers were never in it. The Warriors led 78-49 at halftime on their way to a 126-91 blowout of the defending champs. Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 26 points, Kevin Durrant had 21, Stephen Curry chipped in 20, and Draymond Green had a triple double with 11 points, 11 assists, and 13 rebounds. Green was also called for a flagrant foul on LeBron James. Green essentially accused James of flopping, but the call stood.

This was the final regular season matchup between these two teams, who have the best records in their conferences. In the NBA, and for that matter the NHL, teams only play two games, home and home, against teams in the opposite conference so matchups such as this need to be savored. It would not be a surprise to see these two again in the NBA Finals for the third time in a row.