CNN
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Steph Curry scored 50 points for the 11th time in his NBA career, but his effort wasn’t enough for the struggling Golden State Warriors against the Phoenix Suns as the defending champions lost 130-119.
The Warriors are now 6-9 this season and winless after eight road games – a troubling sign as the team seeks to win a fifth title since 2015.
It’s the longest road losing streak by a defending champion since the Chicago Bulls in the 1998/99 season, according to ESPN, and the Warriors’ longest road losing streak at the start of the season. one season since 1989/90.
“We’re never going to panic, there’s no point in panicking,” Warriors head coach Steve Kerr told reporters after Wednesday’s game.
“What we have to do is stay with him and find him. But to find it, we have to get everyone on board, on the same page in terms of caring about winning – and that’s it.
“I saw a lot of heads hang tonight,” he added. “I think we feel sorry for ourselves.”
Despite the loss, it was a historic night for Curry, who was 17 of 28 from the field and 7 of 11 from three-point range with nine rebounds and six assists.
In the process, he passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and tied Allen Iverson for the ninth-most 50-plus-point game in NBA history.
Klay Thompson had 19 points and Andrew Wiggins had 14, while the Suns, on the other hand, had a much more balanced offense with their five starters registering double-digit numbers.
Cameron Payne scored a career-high 29 points – including six three-pointers – while Devin Booker and Mikal Bridges, who finished just before a triple-double with nine assists and nine rebounds, each added 27 and 23 points respectively .
Phoenix, without an injured Chris Paul for the fourth straight game and facing a free-scoring Curry, controlled much of the game and led by a comfortable 14-point margin late in the third quarter.
“It’s important to have a team,” Booker said of the even distribution of points across the team. “It gives you longevity and will get us through a season.”
The win saw the Suns, second to the Portland Trail Blazers in the Western Conference standings, improve to 9-5 on the season.
They will then visit the Utah Jazz on Friday while the Warriors host the New York Knicks.
