NBA Finals 2022: Steph Curry, Warriors use gigantic 3rd quarter to blowout Celtics, even series

Stephen Curry didn’t play in the fourth quarter – and didn’t need to.

The Golden State Warriors routed the Boston Celtics 107-88 in Game 2 of the NBA Finals to even the series 1-1. Curry had 29 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals to help Golden State bounce back from a Game 1 loss and take the even series back to the East Coast.

“They said we needed to play with desperation, that’s what we did. Good feeling to get back on track and now we got to take it on the road,” Curry told ESPN’s Lisa Salters after the game. 

The Warriors used a 35-point third quarter to seal Game 2. Golden State ended the quarter on a 16-2 run in the final 4:17.

Jordan Poole would nail a 39-foot three-pointer to put Golden State up 87-64 heading into the fourth and it was more than the Warriors could’ve asked for.

Curry said their third quarter in Game 2 was just like in Game 1, they just played better defensively. He said making it difficult for guys like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown “carries over to the rest of the game.”

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“Our third quarter was great. We got enough separation… the fourth quarter was a little bit easier tonight.”

Boston was 4-for-17 from the field and only scored 14 points in the third.

Tatum and Brown were the only two Boston starters who finished in double figures in scoring. Tatum had 28 points and Brown had 17 points. Derrick White was the only other player to have double digits in scoring, finishing with 12 points.

Curry got scoring help from Poole, who had 17 off the bench. Kevon Looney added 12 points and seven rebounds. Andrew Wiggins had 11 points and six rebounds.

Draymond Green had nine points, seven assists and five rebounds. Curry praised Green for his presence on the defensive side of the floor.

“He was just being himself. Finding different ways to impact the game on both sides of the floor,” Curry said. “Sometimes it shows up in the stat sheet across the board, sometimes you just feel his energy, his focus and his passion and that gives us a lot of life.”

Game 3 between the Warriors and Celtics will be Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET in Boston.