SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Buddy Hield scored 27 points, Steph Curry added 20 and the Golden State Warriors overpowered the Utah Jazz 127-86 on Friday night.
Hield had 24 points in the first half, hitting 6 of 7 3-pointers, to help the Warriors improve to 2-0. The Jazz dropped to 0-2.
From the early first quarter to the early third, the Warriors outscored the Jazz 68-32. Trayce Jackson-Davis’ inside shot made it 74-47 with 8:15 left in the third.
John Collins led Utah with 14 points. The Jazz opened with a 15-6 lead, but the Warriors took a double-digit lead early in the second quarter.
Utah shot 31.5%. The Jazz are 0-26 in games shooting below 33%.
Warriors: Golden State had its second straight blowout win over a team that may be battling for lottery position after beating Portland 140-104 in the opener. The Warriors employed a trapping defense to force the Jazz into turnovers and crisp passing to get Hield and Curry open jumpers. Curry and most of the starters sat out the fourth quarter.
Jazz: After a competitive loss to Memphis, the Jazz couldn’t shoot or handle the pressure from the Warriors. Simple rotations were bungled and the Jazz misfired from the 3-point line all the way to the lane.
Hield came off the bench midway through the first quarter with the Warriors trailing by nine and immediately hit a 3-pointer off a pass from Curry and followed it with a layup. Hield then became a facilitator and found Curry for a 3 and Gary Payton II for a layup to give the Warriors a 22-21 lead.
Hield has made 12 of 16 3-pointers in his first two games, the most in NBA history for a player with a new team.
The Warriors host the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday, while the Jazz are at Dallas on Monday night.
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