Curry keys rally for lucky 13th

So much for 13 being an unlucky number.

With an NBA championship in their back pocket, the Golden State Warriors never feel as though they're out of a game - even when nearly being run off the court in the first half.

Stephen Curry scored 40 points and the Warriors drained 8 of 9 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 124-117 on Thursday night for their 13th consecutive victory to start the season.

"Obviously, you don't get a trophy for it, but it's just a nice story line and a nice way to start the season," Curry said. "We want to enjoy this."

Klay Thompson added 25 points, Harrison Barnes had 21 and Draymond Green 19 for the Warriors, one of four teams in NBA history to open 13-0.

Trailing by 23 points at the half, the defending champs improved to 6-0 on the road while completing the biggest comeback in the league this season.

"We just continued to fight and even when they were hitting everything, it still never felt like they were just controlling the game," Green said.

The Warriors were 11 of 15 from the field in the fourth, when they made nine of 10 free throws and outre-bounded the Clippers 11-6.

"Those numbers are insane," said Clippers star Blake Griffin, who had 27 points but was limited to one free throw and three shots in the fourth. "They're the better team. We're trying to get to where they're at."

The Warriors withstood five turnovers, some of which allowed the Clippers to stretch their lead from three points to 10 with five minutes remaining.

"Whether they shoot well or not, that's what fuels their offense - easy buckets in transition off turnovers," Curry said.

"Once we started getting good possessions on offense, we got stops because we were able to set our defense and make it tough on them. Then we were able to make some shots and run away with it."

Chris Paul scored a season-high 35 points - 18 while igniting the Clippers in the opening quarter-after missing two games with a sore right groin.

Jamal Crawford added 15 points for Los Angeles.

The Warriors closed on a 25-8 run, taking their first lead since Curry's 3-pointer opened the game.

He sat down with two early fouls in the first quarter. "They made every big shot," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said.

"The ball found everyone on that team."

(China Daily 11/21/2015 page11)