Warriors victorious in season opener

Seth Curry leads team with 36 points, six assists. 

The Santa Cruz Warriors opened their regular season Friday night with a win over the Austin Toros, 121-102.  Seth Curry led Santa Cruz to victory, scoring a franchise record 36 points to go along with six assists.  The sold-out crowd welcomed the team's latest edition with thunderous ovations throughout the night. 

"I felt good," said Curry. "It was a great atmosphere, it was packed and it was real loud, the fans gave us a great advantage."

Cameron Jones added 31 points and Kevin Kotzur added a double-double scoring 20 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. 

Tre Kelley and Courney Fells each had 19 points for the Toros, who had six players score in double figures.

In a high-scoring contest the Warriors continued to struggle with their defense early as Austin pushed the tempo.  The Warriors defensive play was questionable at times in both preseason games. 

"I haven't put a strong enough focus on our transition defense," said Coach Casey Hill. "That's on me."

The Warriors allowed the Toros to shoot over 70 percent from the field early in the first quarter, but managed to keep the game close trailing only by four points to end the first quarter.

The Santa Cruz squad opened up the second quarter with an 8-3 run to take the lead 32-31 and finished the half with a 17-9 run to lead 63-55. 

The team came out flat in the second half, only scoring six points halfway through the third quarter, though they were able to finish the quarter scoring 23 points to lead 86-80.  Kevin Kotzur scored eight points shooting 3 for 4 from the field to lead all scorers for the quarter. 

"Kevin's proving me right," said Hill.  "Everyone counts him out as soon as they see him, and then he puts 22 (points) on you."

After Dewayne Dedmon's departure to the NBA to join the Golden State Warriors, there were concerns regarding the team's lack of height at the center position, but Kotzur helped put those fears to rest as the Warriors outrebounded the Toros 36-45. 

The Warriors also scored almost half of their points in the paint while limiting the Toros to just five second chance points.

The Warriors poured it on at the end of the game outscoring Austin in the final quarter 22-35.  The Warriors proved to be efficient offensively shooting 11 for 17 from the field while the Toros only shot 7 for 20. 

As Seth Curry continues to succeed at the developmental level, the possibility of a call-up could be in the near future for him,

"With the level he's playing at he's certainly opening some eyes and raising some eyebrows early on in the season," said Hill. 

Despite Curry's stellar performance, he's not concerned about a call-up to the NBA,

"I'm just trying to play well, I'm just focusing on the stuff I can control," said Curry.

The Warriors will play the Toros again Sunday night, and Hill wants to make sure his team is prepared to play them in back-to-back fashion.

"Most coaches talk about splitting games, I want to win them both," said Hill.