3rd Quarter Report
The Suns already have more points against the Warriors than they managed in total against the Mavericks on Friday. The Suns have jumped out to a 94-87 lead against the Warriors.
If the Suns keep playing like this, they’ll bump their record up to 16-15 in no time. On the other hand, the Warriors will have to make due with a 15-16 record unless they turn things around (and fast).
Who’s Playing
Phoenix Suns @ Golden State Warriors
Current Records: Phoenix 15-15, Golden State 15-15
How To Watch
- When: Saturday, December 28, 2024 at 8:30 p.m. ET
- Where: Chase Center — San Francisco, California
- TV: NBATV
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $125.00
What to Know
The Suns are 8-2 against the Warriors since March of 2022, and they’ll have a chance to extend that success on Saturday. Both will face off at 8:30 p.m. ET at Chase Center without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. Coming off a loss in a game the Suns were expected to win, they now face the more daunting task of proving themselves against unfavorable odds.
The Suns are headed into this one after the oddsmakers set last week’s over/under low at 224, but even that wound up being too high. They took a 98-89 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Mavericks on Friday.
The Suns’ defeat came about despite a quality game from Kevin Durant, who went 11 for 19 en route to 35 points. The Suns are undefeated when Durant posts 20 or more points, but 12-15 otherwise.
Meanwhile, the Warriors’ recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Friday after their third straight loss. They fell 102-92 to the Clippers. Golden State was down 81-62 at the end of the third quarter, which was just too much to recover from.
Despite the defeat, the Warriors got top-tier performance from Jonathan Kuminga, who dropped a double-double on 34 points and ten rebounds. Lindy Waters III, on the other hand, was considerably less helpful: he went 0-6 from long range.
Even though they lost, the Warriors smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 19 offensive rebounds (they’re ranked third in offensive rebounds per game overall). That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they’ve now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in 11 consecutive matches.
Phoenix has been struggling recently as they’ve lost four of their last five games, which put a noticeable dent in their 15-15 record this season. As for Golden State, their loss dropped their record down to an identical 15-15.
Keep an eye on the arc in Saturday’s matchup: The Suns have made nailing deep shots look easy this year this season, having averaged 14.7 threes per game. However, it’s not like the Warriors struggle in that department as they’ve been averaging 15.1. Given these competing strengths, it’ll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
The Suns were able to grind out a solid win over the Warriors in their previous matchup back in November, winning 113-105. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Suns since the squad won’t have the home-court advantage this time around. We’ll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Odds
Golden State is a solid 5.5-point favorite against Phoenix, according to the latest NBA odds.
The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Warriors as a 6.5-point favorite.
The over/under is 219.5 points.
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Series History
Phoenix has won 8 out of their last 10 games against Golden State.
- Nov 30, 2024 – Phoenix 113 vs. Golden State 105
- Feb 10, 2024 – Golden State 113 vs. Phoenix 112
- Dec 12, 2023 – Phoenix 119 vs. Golden State 116
- Nov 22, 2023 – Phoenix 123 vs. Golden State 115
- Oct 24, 2023 – Phoenix 108 vs. Golden State 104
- Mar 13, 2023 – Golden State 123 vs. Phoenix 112
- Jan 10, 2023 – Phoenix 125 vs. Golden State 113
- Nov 16, 2022 – Phoenix 130 vs. Golden State 119
- Oct 25, 2022 – Phoenix 134 vs. Golden State 105
- Mar 30, 2022 – Phoenix 107 vs. Golden State 103
