Steph Curry takes over to help Warriors beat Bucks in overtime – The Mercury News

SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors are down eight points and are on the verge of losing their fourth straight game with about two minutes left in regulation Saturday night.

But Stephen Curry did everything in his power to make sure that didn’t happen.

Curry scored 13 of his game-high 36 points in the fourth quarter and blocked a Bucks punt to force overtime, where the Warriors outlasted the Milwaukee Bucks 125-116.

Curry knocked down a trio of 3s and made a finger layup in the last two minutes of regulation to tie the game at 111. As the game clock ticked down, Curry negated Jrue Holiday’s layup attempt to get the ball into the Warriors’ hands with 1.9 seconds left.

After a timeout, what would have been a 3-pointer by Draymond Green hit the buzzer, sending the game into overtime.

Curry scored nine more points in the extra period as the Warriors snapped the East-leading Bucks’ three-game winning streak.

Two-time league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo lost his third straight game with sore hands, but it didn’t matter. The Bucks had a balanced drive on offense, with six players scoring 12 or more points, to overcome Golden State and give the defending champions their fourth consecutive loss.

Saturday was another slow burn for the Warriors. The only thing that kept them in the game was that the Bucks got off to such a bad start.

The Warriors came alive early in the third to take a 13-point lead, but lost steam as time went on. Then, it was the Bucks’ turn to attack. Milwaukee began to create separation in the fourth, going on an 8-0 run to open 100-92. But Curry turned on the turbojets from there and took control of the game.

The last time the Warriors were at the Chase Center, Klay Thompson said he wanted to secure a top-four finish so they could have home field advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

But after a disappointing 3-0 road trip, the Warriors are back fighting just to avoid play-in. Golden State moved up to sixth in the Western Conference standings with Saturday’s victory.

The Warriors will play the Phoenix Suns on Monday before hitting the road again for a five-city road trip. Warriors fans will have to wait another season to see Durant in action, as he is sidelined with a sprained ankle.