
On a night filled with clutch shooting, the Warriors couldn't deliver the one that mattered most.
Kings forward John Salmons sank a twisting, off-balance jumper in the final seconds and Kelenna Azubuike's last-ditch three-point try rimmed out as Golden State fell in a 135-133 triple-overtime epic Wednesday. It was the Warriors' longest game since Nov. 23, 2004, when they beat New Orleans 115-109 in triple OT.
Jamal Crawford led the Warriors with 35 points while C.J. Watson added 26 and Azubuike and Anthony Morrow combined for 31 off the bench.
Crawford is known for his clutch shooting.
Watson, Azubuike and Morrow, not so much.
But the Warriors' eclectic foursome of guards all took their turns as crunch-time stars against the Kings.
With Golden State down by five points midway through the fourth quarter, Watson scored six straight to give the Warriors their first lead of the second half.
Enter Crawford, who followed with a three-pointer, and, like Watson, scored 10 points in the final period of regulation.
Then, in the first overtime, Azubuike stepped up. With the Warriors down by three with 14.1 seconds to play in the first overtime, he shook Kevin Martin and drilled a three-pointer to force a second extra frame.
And finally, Morrow came through in the second overtime, scoring six straight, by tipping in two shots and pulling up for a baby jumper.
Crawford led the Warriors with 35 points while Watson added 26 and Azubuike had 16 off the bench.
And yet, all their clutch shooting couldn't keep an old weakness from rearing its ghastly head. Foul shooting, a strong point all season at 76.3 percent - Golden State's best in six years - was horrid against the Kings.
The Warriors missed 16 of 41 free throws and shot them as if there was a marching band in their ears. Andris Biedrins was 2-for-6, lowlighted by a missed shot late in the fourth quarter that barely grazed the bottom of the net.
Corey Maggette, an 84 percent shooter, was 4-for-12 and clanked a key pair with the game tied and 31.1 seconds remaining in regulation.
Thankfully, Azubuike rebounded Maggette's missed free throw and, upon being fouled corralling the loose ball, sank his pair to give the Warriors a 105-103 edge.
Golden State was outrebounded 65-60 as coach Don Nelson went small for nearly the entire second half, with the 6-5 Azubuike or the 6-6 Maggette manning the power forward spot.
By the end the game, the Warriors were playing four guards alongside Ronny Turiaf, as Biedrins and Maggette both fouled out.
With Golden State falling behind by double-digits well before the end of the first quarter, the loudest cheers came when Martin slammed the Basketball directly against the side of the rim on a failed dunk attempt.
On a night that leading scorer Martin struggled mightily, the Kings frontcourt of Brad Miller, Jason Thompson and Salmons combined for 67 points and 57 rebounds. Miller finished with season-highs of 30 points and 22 rebounds.
Ugly losses The Warriors have struggled against the league's worst teams this year.The winning percentage for the Kings, Grizzlies, Wizards, Thunder and Timberwolves against the Warriors this season 7-2.The winning percentage for those teams against the rest of the league 39-145.Ugly losses NUMBERS GAME 3 Warriors ranked in the top 15 in three-point shooting: Anthony Morrow, C.J. Watson and Kelenna Azubuike
43.3 Average minutes for Jamal Crawford in the four games prior to Wednesday
3,000 Milestone for career field goals that Crawford passed against the Kings