Eric Williams covered the Sonics' last season in Seattle. A Tacoma native, Eric graduated from Mount Tahoma High and the University of Puget Sound.
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6 -- The amount Kevin Durant scored, a career low. It’s the first time Durant has not scored in double figures.
90-40 -- The number Golden State’s starters outscored Seattle’s starters by..
4 -- The amount of points Mouhamed Sene scored, a season high.
28-- The Warriors largest lead of the night.
11 -- The number of 3-pointers Golden State made, the most allowed by Seattle this season.
Boxscore -- Check it out here.
Durant watch -- Probably Durant’s worst game of the year. He shot 2-of-12 from the floor and also had three turnovers and just three rebounds in 25 minutes.
Did you see that? -- Golden State’s Monta Ellis had several jaw-dropping dunks and drives off of the break. He’s really got some explosiveness. The 22-year-old finished with 18 points and five rebounds.
Overheard -- “Stephen Jackson, where’s your gun?," a Sonics fan screamed from behind Golden State’s bench. The fan was referring to Jackson’s seven-game suspension by the league commissioner David Stern. Jackson pleaded guilty in June to a felony count of criminal recklessness stemming from an incident in which he fired a gun outside an Indianapolis strip club during training camp in October 2006. The fan was escorted out of the building by police soon after his comments. The fan actually tried to return to his same seat (but surprise!) and was escorted out again.
Final take -- A forgettable game by Seattle, which played surprising sluggish tonight. Carlesimo was visibly upset with the way his team played. He was going to give the players the day off on Monday, but after such a lackluster performance the team will practice on Monday.
Seattle in particular needed to play with energy in order to match the fast-paced tempo of Golden State, but that didn’t happen. It was especially surprising to see Golden State center Andris Biedrins dominate inside. Biedrins had a double-double (10 points and 10 rebounds) by the end of the first quarter and finished with 18 points and 14 rebounds.
Earl Watson was one of the few guys who played hard, finishing with 16 points and five assists in a reserve role.
Carlesimo’s motto is for Seattle to play hard every night. For the most part they’ve done that, which is why Seattle has been in most games down the stretch. But the Sonics don’t have enough talent to coast, and the loss to Golden State tonight is a good example of what will happen the rest of the year if the Sonics don’t bring energy every game.
Here’s Carlesimo’s post-game interview. And Damien Wilkins called his team’s effort embarrassing.
With seven minutes left in the first quarter a light in the scoreboard over halfcourt caught fire during a timeout, stopping play. Spoke billowed from the top of the scoreboard, as emergency workers on hand helped put the fire out.
Seattle fire fighters responded to the fire, arriving within a minutes, removing the burning light and taking it away. The incident took about 10 minutes to revolve. Several fans took pictures of the lowered scoreboard with their cell phones.
The players were allowed to warm up for four minutes before play resumed.
Seattle has not played with much fire so far, falling behind 35-18 at the end of the first quarter.
The Warriors are the Sonics, shooting 4-of-6 from beyond the arc and 15-of-28 (53.6 percent) from the field and holding a 10-0 advantage in fastbreak points.
Golden State center Andris Biedrins already has a double-double, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds at the end of the first.
Seattle shot a dismal 7-of-28 (25 percent) in the opening quarter.
Golden State (8-7) at Seattle (3-14)
When:6 p.m., Key Arena, Seattle
TV: FSN. Radio: 770-AM
Series: The Sonics finished 1-3 against Golden State last season, with Seattle’s lone victory a 117-115 win at home on Dec. 10.
Scouting the Warriors: The Warriors arrive in Seattle riding a five-game winning streak. Golden State captain Stephen Jackson has been the difference. Since his return the Warriors have won seven of their last eight games.
“It’s not only just what he does on the floor, he sets a tone,” Seattle coach P.J. Carlesimo said. “He’s got a defensive mentality. He’s aggressive. He’s competitive. He was a big part of the success we had in San Antonio when he was there. He’s not just another player. He bring a little something extra.”
The combined scoring of Baron Davis (24.2 points per game), Stephen Jackson (21.6) and Monta Ellis (16.3) is just short of Boston’s All-Star trio of Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, 62.1 to 62.2.
During the Warriors' current five-game winning streak, the output from Davis, Jackson and Ellis has jumped to 72.0 points per game.
Carlesimo said the Sonics probably will not go small and try to adjust to the Warriors.
“I just think we have a better chance of Kurt (Thomas) and Wheezy (Chris Wilcox) beating them up for offensive rebounds and Wheezy scoring in the paint than we do going small,” Carlesimo said.
Scouting the Sonics: Seattle will start the same starting five of Delonte West (point guard), Kevin Durant (shooting guard), Damien Wilkins (small forward), Chris Wilcox (power forward) and Kurt Thomas (center).
The Sonics went hard at practice on Saturday, working out for an hour and half. Thomas sat out practice to rest his legs, but should be ready to go today.
Durant has been productive offensively this past week. The last five games Durant is averaging 23.8 points and five rebounds a game, and shooting 48.3 percent from the floor (43-of-89).
“He is becoming better certainly with his decision making, and certainly with his shot selection,” Carlesimo said. “And he’s involving people more. We’re putting him in more pick-and-roll situations than we did earlier. And he’s getting more assists.”
Durant scored a career-high 35 points in Seattle’s 95-93 win over the Pacers on Friday, shooting 12-of-20 from the field, including 3-of-5 from the 3-point line, and 8-of-12 from the free-throw line.
“I’m just trying to be aggressive throughout the whole game,” Durant said. “I think in the fourth quarter the game tightens up, so I just try to get to the free-throw line and get some easy points.”
Injuries: Nick Collison (broken nose) will be re-evaluated on Tuesday and could play on Wednesday against the Los Angeles Clippers. He’ll have to wear a mask to protect his nose. Luke Ridnour (partially torn left quad) and Robert Swift (right knee tendonitis, plantar fascitis left foot).
Next: Wednesday vs. Los Angeles Clippers, 7:30 p.m., KeyArena.
