Curry, Warriors erase 20-point, 4th-quarter deficit to stun Pelicans in OT

So, that was nuts. 

Stephen Curry scored 40 points as the Golden State Warriors erased a 20-point, fourth-quarter deficit to earn a 123-119 overtime victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday. The Warriors now have a commanding 3-0 series lead. 

What looked, for the majority of the night, like a runaway win for the Pelicans turned into a living nightmare, as Anthony Davis and company found out the hard way that no lead is safe against Golden State. 

The Pelicans played a fantastic 43 minutes of basketball. Their defensive rotations were crisp; they were executing in the pick and roll and cleaning up the glass; their bench was on fire; Davis was doing his thing. 

The Warriors were also uncharacteristically cold, especially from 3-point range, and couldn't seem to get their legs under them. This is a pretty accurate representation of how the first three quarters went for them. 

The Pelicans took a 20-point lead into the fourth quarter, and continued to lead by 15 with just five minutes to play. 

At that point, some dark cloud seemed to cast its pall over the entire squad. Suddenly, they couldn't score. Worse still, they couldn't seem to get a rebound when they needed one. The Warriors collected eight offensive rebounds in the last five minutes, and they're not a team you can afford to give that many second chances to. 

The Warriors chipped away and chipped away. They seemed to remember that their defense was the league's top-rated unit all season long. They blitzed pressed and trapped, forcing tough shots and turnovers down the stretch. 

When Curry hit a three with 10 seconds left to cut the lead to two, and Davis split his subsequent pair of free throws, the tension in the building was palpable. 

On the Warriors' final possession of regulation, Marreese Speights came up with the biggest offensive rebound of the night. Curry did the rest. 

The Warriors rode that wave of momentum into overtime, quickly building a six-point lead. The Pelicans, to their credit, didn't fold, and got it back down to two, with possession of the ball and 10 seconds left to play. 

The ball went to Davis, but Warriors center Andrew Bogut played perfect man-to-man defense and forced a wild layup attempt. The Warriors corralled the rebound and a pair of free throws from Curry iced the win.

Turning Point

One more time: 

Pelicans coach Monty Williams insisted after the game that the plan was to foul the Warriors in the final seconds, forcing them to shoot two free throws rather than giving them a chance to hit a game-tying 3. 

For whatever reason, they weren't able to commit the foul. 

Star Performer

Even in a losing effort, Davis was the best player on the floor for the balance of the game. 

Curry finished with 40 points, but he also shot 10-of-29 from the field and struggled for three and a half quarters before catching fire. 

Davis brought it from the opening tip, and consistently got it done at both ends of the floor.

He went cold with the rest of his team in the waning minutes, and he missed that potential game-tying at the end of overtime, but you can't knock the effort. He finished with 29 points, 15 rebounds, three assists, three blocks and two steals. 

We'll be hearing plenty from him in the postseason for years to come.  

Highlight Reel

Davis swooped in and skied for a massive putback jam early in the game. 

That triple Curry hit at the end of regulation wasn't his only impressive bomb of the night. This pull-up on the break was nasty. 

On top of hauling in 17 huge rebounds, Draymond Green put on a flopping clinic. Ryan Anderson was whistled for an offensive foul on this play. 

Green apparently has a disciple in teammate Harrison Barnes. 

Both may soon be hearing from the league office. Something tells us they'll gladly pay the $5,000 after escaping with this win. 

Series at a Glance

Game 1: Warriors 106, Pelicans 99 (Warriors lead 1-0)
Game 2: Warriors 97, Pelicans 87 (Warriors lead 2-0)
Game 3: Warriors 123, Pelicans 119 (Warriors lead 3-0)
Game 4: Saturday, April 25, 8 p.m. ET
Game 5*: TBD 
Game 6*: TBD
Game 7*: TBD