Seth Curry makes splash in Santa Cruz debut
The Santa Cruz Warriors opened their preseason Thursday Night at Kaiser Permanente Arena defeating the Reno Bighorns 113-92 with a balanced offensive attack that saw seven Warriors scoring in double figures.
Seth Curry led all scorers with 28 points while shooting 4 for 6 from 3 point range in the second half. Cameron Jones added 20 points and Daniel Nwaelele added 16.
Curry, undeterred by his first half-struggles found his rhythm in the second half.
"I was getting good shots it's just a matter of knocking them down, and staying confident," said Curry.
Dewayne Dedmon earned a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds in limited minutes as foul trouble plagued him early on.
Warriors coach Casey Hill attributed first-game nerves to Dedmon's play on the court.
"He was anxious to play a lot of minutes," said Hill, "When that happens, guys tend to have a lot of fouls."
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Dedmon had 2 blocks early in the first quarter to pump up the near-full arena. Late in the fourth quarter, Dedmon left the game after suffering a mild ankle sprain. He is expected to play Sunday.
In a game of firsts, it was exciting for Hill to earn his first win as head coach of the Warriors.
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The Warriors came out flat in the first half, shooting 40 percent from the field while the Reno Bighorns shot 51 percent.
"I explained to these guys the third quarter was going to be a beast, and it was our decision to either come out hard and go on a run or we could come out flat," said Hill.
The Warriors came out strong outscoring the Bighorns 35-19 in the third quarter and never gave up the lead.
Hill earned his first victory as Warriors head coach and attributes the team's success to their locale.
"(Santa Cruz) is such a special place to play basketball and these guys are starting to feel the benefit of it," said Hill.
Oakland native Kiwi Gardner found his first action in the D-League and played tough defense in a little more than ten minutes of playing time.
"Kiwi Gardner continues to amaze us as a coaching staff," said Hill. "He plays within himself."
Gardner continues to work hard in training camp and fill whatever role the team needs him to be,
"I'm not here to be a star player, to be a big minutes guy to be a points guy, I'm here to be real scrappy and give us that energy whenever we need it," said Gardner.
New to the league, Gardner has found support in his fellow teammates making the transition to the professional level.
"(Maurice Baker) talked to me for about 30 minutes before the game," said Gardner. "He could tell how anxious I was, he told me to calm down, relax and do what I've been doing the whole week I've been here."
Living up to the team's moniker and his fearless attitude on the court, Gardner wants to continue playing hard in order to make the team out of training camp.
"We're Warriors, so we play like it," said Gardner.
The Warriors play their next preseason game at home Sunday at 7:30 p.m. against the Bakersfield Jam.
