LOS ANGELES (AFP) — Stephen Curry scored 29 points as the Golden State Warriors bounced back from their catastrophic defeat in Boston to rout the Milwaukee Bucks, 125-90, in the National Basketball Association regular season on Wednesday.
The Warriors suffered one of the most humiliating defeats in franchise history on Sunday, losing by a staggering 52-point margin in a 140-88 loss to the Celtics.
But the seven-time NBA champions came roaring back with a vengeance to blow past the in-form Bucks with an emphatic win at San Francisco’s Chase Center.
A revitalized Milwaukee had been unbeaten since the All-Star break, with an improved defense helping Doc Rivers’ team record six-straight victories.
Yet, the Warriors conjured a sublime all-round performance to keep the Bucks on the back foot almost from the outset.
The Warriors poured in 40 points in the first quarter alone and then added 38 in the second to lead 78-58 at halftime.
Although Milwaukee rallied in the third quarter, outscoring Golden State 23-15, the Warriors dropped the hammer in the final frame to cruise home.
“The nature of the NBA, you can get hit by a bus like we did in Boston and there’s a temptation to forget the body of work that we’ve put in over the last month-and-a-half and the identity we’re trying to create,” Curry said afterwards.
“For us to respond the way we did coming home was big. For us to be able to turn the page, play with conviction and confidence after a beatdown like that, it shows what we’re trying to build and who we are,” Curry added.
Curry received scoring support from Jonathan Kuminga with 20 points, while Trayce Jackson-Davis impressed with 15 points from the bench.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee’s scorers with 23 points, while Damian Lillard and Bobby Portis had 20 apiece.
The Warriors improved to 33-28 with the win to move into ninth place in the Western Conference.
The Bucks remain second in the East with a 41-22 record, eight games adrift of leaders Boston.
In other games around the NBA, the Orlando Magic extended their unbeaten streak to five games with a 119-109 defeat of the Washington Wizards on the road.
Franz Wagner (28 points) and Paolo Banchero (25) led the way for the Magic, who trailed by 21 points at one stage in the second quarter to snatch victory.
The Wizards, meanwhile, were left reflecting on their 16th-straight defeat — tying the franchise record. The Wizards remain rooted to the foot of the Eastern Conference with a league-worst 9-53 record.
