The Golden State Warriors are going to have to come back in a playoff series for the first time in a while after falling to the Toronto Raptors.
Toronto took control in the third quarter against a depleted Warriors team and came away with a 123-109 win in Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena on Wednesday. They now lead the series 2-1.
Golden State were playing without Klay Thompson, who missed the game with a strained hamstring. Kevin Durant has also been out since straining his calf in the Warriors' second-round series while an injured Kevon Looney will be sidelined for the rest of the Finals after suffering an injury in Game 2 against Toronto.
Here are three takeaways from the Raptors' win.
Raptors' starters deliver
The Raptors received significant contributions from all of their starters on Wednesday.
Star Kawhi Leonard scored 30 points to lead his team to the win while Kyle Lowry bounced back with 23 points.
KAWHI WITH THE LEFT!
— NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2019
End of Q1 in Game 3:#WeTheNorth 36#StrengthInNumbers 29
Kawhi Leonard: 9 PTS, 3 REB
Danny Green: 9 PTS, 3 3PM
Steph Curry: 17 PTS, 3 3PM
: ABC : Sportsnet pic.twitter.com/8sAtASoWXQ
Danny Green (18 points) gave Toronto a big boost by hitting six of his 10 three-point attempts and Pascal Siakam chipped in 18 points. Marc Gasol also added 17 points and seven rebounds.
Kawhi saves it and Danny Green buries his 6th trey of the night!#WeTheNorth 96#StrengthInNumbers 83
— NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2019
Headed to the 4th on ABC & Sportsnet pic.twitter.com/cf4rchmlkX
The Warriors could not key on one player defensively, which made the Raptors hard to beat. Toronto will look to replicate their success in Game 4.
Stephen Curry was phenomenal
Stephen Curry was absolutely fantastic for Golden State.
Curry almost single-handedly kept the Warriors in the game for much of the night. Despite being the focus of the Raptors' defense, Curry found a way to create opportunities for himself off the dribble and by using screens.
Steph Curry pours in 25 1st half PTS for the @warriors in Game 3! #StrengthInNumbers #NBAFinals
— NBA (@NBA) June 6, 2019
: ABC : Sportsnet pic.twitter.com/dDUpzXG3si
Curry finished with 47 points on 14-of-31 shooting and added eight rebounds, along with seven assists. He also knocked down six of his 14 three-point attempts.
But, the Warriors did not receive much scoring outside of their lone healthy star.
Warriors were a one-man show offensively
No other Golden State player really stepped up to help Curry offensively.
Draymond Green had a solid game as he recorded 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists. However, he turned the ball over four times and had a quiet first half. Andre Iguodala scored 11 points but disappeared for long stretches offensively.
DeMarcus Cousins, who was instrumental in the Warriors' Game 2 win, was one-of-seven shooting and a minus-12 for the matchup.
The Warriors will hope their other stars return soon.