CLEVELAND — Jordan Poole scored 32 points and the Golden State Warriors put on a shooting display by making 23 3-pointers while star Stephen Curry sat on the bench for a 120-114 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night.
Ty Jerome added a season-high 22 points as the defending NBA champs ended a five-game trip with an improbable win.
Following a stinging three-point overtime loss Thursday night in Boston, Warriors coach Steve Kerr rested Curry along with fellow starters Draymond Green, Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins.
It hardly mattered. Even with their top players on the bench in street clothes, the short-handed Warriors came out firing and barely slowed down.
Darius Garland scored 31 points to lead the Cavs, who were without star Donovan Mitchell because of a strained groin and suffered their most embarrassing loss this season. Caris LeVert added 22 points and Evan Mobley 17 for Cleveland.
Golden State made a season-high 14 3-pointers in the first half — tying the most ever by a Cavs opponent for a half — to take a 64-59 halftime lead.
Although Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff certainly stressed limiting Golden State's outside attack at halftime, his team didn't get the message as the Warriors made five 3s in the first five minutes to open a 20-point lead.
The Cavs, who have 11 comeback wins when trailing by double digits, fought back and pulled within 114-110. But Jerome, who added eight assists, dropped the Warriors' final 3-pointer with 1:39 left.
When the final horn sounded, Curry came on the floor and wrapped his arms around Poole, the only Warriors starter to see action. Golden State has now beaten Cleveland 16 straight times since Game 5 of the 2017 NBA Finals.