Brandin Podziemski exploded for 24 points, Stephen Curry added 19 in a balanced attack and the Golden State Warriors overcame the loss of Jimmy Butler III to a knee injury to run away from the visiting Miami Heat 135-112 in San Francisco on Monday night.
The team’s leading scorer at the time with 17 points, Butler wrenched his right knee pursuing a ball under the Golden State basket with 7:41 remaining in the third quarter. The six-time All-Star immediately fell to the court in serious pain and had to be helped to the locker room.
No announcement was made before game’s end on the seriousness of the injury.
The Warriors led just 77-75 at the time, but responded with 12 consecutive points to build their biggest lead of the game to that point. Podziemski had seven points in the run, including a 3-pointer, and Curry also buried one from long distance, helping the hosts go up 89-75 with 5:17 left in the period.
Opening a five-game Western swing, Miami got within eight before quarter’s end, but no closer than nine in the final period. Podziemski buried two more 3-pointers among eight points and Buddy Hield added 2- and 3-point shots in a 17-0 burst midway through the period that broke the game open and allowed Golden State to coast to a season-best fourth straight win.
Podziemski connected on nine of his 19 shots on a night when the Warriors, playing a seventh straight home game, shot 51.6%.
Curry completed a double-double with a game-high 11 assists and had five of Golden State’s 24 3-pointers. The Warriors outscored the Heat 72-39 from beyond the arc, with Hield and Quinten Post chipping in with four apiece.
Hield finished with 16 points, Post 15, Moses Moody 13 and Al Horford 10 for the Warriors, who played without De’Anthony Melton and Draymond Green on the front end of a back-to-back. Post was the team’s leading rebounder with nine.
Norman Powell had 21 points to pace the Heat, while Andrew Wiggins had 18 in his first San Francisco appearance since he was traded to Miami last February as part of a package for Butler.
Bam Adebayo grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds, but missed 12 of his 13 shots in a four-point effort. Kel’el Ware had 15 points, Simone Fontecchio 13 and Jaime Jaquez Jr. 10 to complement a team-high nine assists for Miami, which was coming off a home win over Oklahoma City.
