One night after holding Miami to 37 points in the second half, the Warriors limited the Magic to 37 in the first half. Miami shot 30.4% from the field. Not a single player on either team cracked double-digits in the first 24 minutes. For the Warriors, it was a strong half that ended on a low note; nobody ran back on defense as Banchero leaked out for a wide-open dunk in the waning seconds.

But the Warriors didn’t let that sour note bleed into the second half. Curry found a slice of rhythm in the third and Trayce Jackson-Davis put pressure on each rim.

Jackson-Davis, his fellow rookie Brandin Podziemski, and the always-ready Moses Moody came up big. A Moody offensive rebound in traffic led to a Klay Thompson second-chance 3. To end the third quarter, Jackson-Davis stuffed Cole Anthony at the rim. Jackson-Davis (14 rebounds) and Podziemski (nine) combined for 23 rebounds.

Both teams shot under 30% from 3 as the Warriors entered the fourth with a 72-66 edge. Then, suddenly, the low-scoring slugfest’s dam broke.

Wiggins scored eight straight points for the Warriors, going back and forth with Magic guard Anthony. Wiggins aggressively got downhill to answer a Franz Wagner whirling finish, then Moody followed up a miss for a put-back slam.

Green had long been in the locker room, but the Warriors were playing with his fire. They sandwiched a Banchero 3 with a Thompson triple and Wiggins and-1.

The Magic cut Golden State’s lead to one late, but buckets inside from Payton and Curry provided a late cushion. Then Curry drilled a dagger step-back 3.

In the far left corner, Curry gestured his patented “night-night” celebration. He hasn’t been able to break it out much recently, if at all. But on a night that nearly went off the rails in the beginning, he came up big to end it.

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