NBA playoff scores 2015: Stephen Curry’s miracle shot saves the Warriors and 3 other things we learned

Anthony Davis had a huge night, but Stephen Curry had a bigger shot from the corner that sealed the win.

by Tim Cato

Apr 24, 2015, 11:55 AM UTC

Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

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NBA playoffs schedule and results: Steph Curry shocks the Pelicans

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Thursday was the Warriors' 70th win this season. They've beat all 29 teams. They own the NBA's best offense, defense, pace and shooting percentages. They have a resume full of incredible wins, but a 20-point comeback win in Game 3 of their first round series against the Pelicans might be the finest one this year.

It was more than a 20-point comeback, though: Golden State was down by 15 with 4:53 in the game. They manufactured the win out of some offensive rebounds and one of the most ridiculous game-tying three-pointers you’ll ever see. They staved off a Pelicans team that still wouldn’t die once the game went into overtime.

This was supposed to be Anthony Davis' playoff moment. His stat line was incredible -- 29 points, 11-of-22 shooting, 15 rebounds, three assists, two steals, three blocks in 46 minutes -- and his impact from play-to-play was even greater. But unfortunately for him, even that wasn't enough, because Curry made this shot.

For three quarters, Golden State -- specifically their bench -- hadn't been sharp. The crisp passing was either nonexistent or didn't lead to a makeable shot. Three key bench players -- Andre Iguodala, Marreese Speights and Leandro Barbosa -- combined to shot 5-of-21.

Even Stephen Curry arguably had a poor shooting display by his lofty standards, which shows you how insane he is when you look at his stats: 40 points, 10-of-29 shooting from the field, 7-of-18 from deep, nine assists and five rebounds. That all these things can happen and the Warriors can still win is insane, terrifying and a host of other adjective descriptors.

Most of the teams in these playoffs wouldn't have collapsed like New Orleans did. But regardless of that fact, the Warriors did come back in tremendous fashion. Anthony Davis' moment -- just like the MVP race -- will have to wait, because right now it's Stephen Curry's time.

3 other things we learned

Derrick Rose is BAAAAACK. The game in Milwaukee would be first in everyone's mind if not for Curry. The Bulls led big, let the Bucks tie it late in regulation and needed two overtimes to finally rid themselves of the pesky deer. Derrick Rose, who looked as good as he ever has, scored 34 points and dished out eight rebounds in exactly 48 minutes. He even knocked in five three-pointers. If you're wondering just how important he is for Chicago making a run, this should help.

D-Rose, playoffs splits. D-ROOOOSSSEEE pic.twitter.com/U7BQB7xphn
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) April 24, 2015

Curry stole Davis’ show, but he stole Ryan Anderson’s thunder. Early in the fourth, an already smoldering Anderson caught fire, nailing mid-range fadeaways with stupid levels of difficulties like he was Dirk Nowitzki. The NBA yeoman has struggled with injuries virtually his past two seasons with the Pelicans, but looked more than healthy as he went for 26 points on 10-of-14 shooting. That’s the most he has scored since Dec. 12 and a few shots even came when New Orleans desperately needed them, but even then, it wasn’t enough to stave off Golden State.

The Cavaliers' hidden enemy is their heavy minutes. Especially as the Hawks don't look quite right in their first round series, Cleveland is by far the favorite to win the Eastern Conference championship. They beat the Celtics in Game 3 to take a 3-0 lead in the series, but like the two meetings before it, Boston kept it close until the final minute. As a result, LeBron James played 42 minutes, Kyrie Irving 40 and Kevin Love 38.

This continues a regular season trend where both James and Irving averaged 36 minutes a game. Irving missed a few games with injury and James had his now-famous mid-season sabbatical, but even with crucial mid-season additions, those two still have to do a lot of heavy lifting on a night-to-night basis.