The Golden State Warriors handled the Miami Heat 79-68 on Monday night in the opening matchup of the California Classic.
The Warriors were paced by 19 points and 11 rebounds from Kendrick Nunn, while Damian Jones and Jordan Howard added 14 and 12 points, respectively. Jones also had eight rebounds and an assist but picked up eight fouls in less than 25 minutes of action. Jordan Bell, who played key minutes in the playoffs off the bench for the Warriors, had four points, five rebounds, three assists, three steals and five fouls in 29 minutes.
Miami struggled from the field all night, shooting just 29.3 percent as a team, including 22.6 percent (7-of-31) from deep. Derrick Jones, Jr. was the lone bright spot, as he led all scorers with 24 points, to go with 11 boards. Bam Adebayo, last year’s first-round pick, finished with 14 points, but eight of those came at the free throw line (8-11 FT), as he went just 3-of-13 from the floor. Former Michigan standout Derrick Walton, Jr. was 1-of-12 shooting, including 0-of-9 from beyond the arc.
Up next, Miami takes on the Lakers, and the Warriors match up with the Kings. Both games arrive Wednesday night.
