The Santa Cruz Warriors shot down the Salt Lake City Stars, 122-111, on Wednesday night to not only notch their third straight victory but the franchise’s 150th overall.
Almost everything went down for Santa Cruz (4-2), which shot 61.1 percent from the field — a G League season-high — and led by 27 points in the third quarter.
“We shared the ball and got some good looks,” Warriors head coach Aaron Miles told reporters after the game. “I’m happy for them. They played well together for the most part.”
Warriors guard Quinn Cook scored 30 points and dished 13 assists, including a handful of alley-oops to center Damian Jones. The Warriors’ big man, currently on assignment from Golden State, finished with 18 points on 8-of-9 shooting with seven rebounds and five assists.
Forward Georges Niang added 24 points, eight rebounds and six assists and wing Cleathony Early made seven of his eight shots to finish with 18 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
“Guys were just moving — we were executing to a T,” said Cook, who on Monday was part of Golden State’s blowout victory over the Orlando Magic. “Coach Miles put us in great spots. I just thought guys were ready to play tonight.”
Stars (0-5) center Eric Griffin finished with 23 points and five rebounds in 36 minutes and forward Jermaine Taylor finished with 18 points on 4-of-7 shooting from deep.
The Stars took an early six-point lead in the first quarter but the Warriors’ balanced attack responded with a 26-4 run to grab a 35-24 lead in the first period.
The Warriors went into the locker room with a 67-47 lead after extending their double-digit advantage behind a 14-0 run in the second quarter.
Santa Cruz led by as many as 27 points in the third. The Stars, however, went on a 16-5 run near the end of the frame to slice the deficit to 16.
They trimmed the Warriors’ cushion to 10 in the final stanza but late buckets by Niang and Cook ended any hope of a Salt Lake City comeback.
“We got to do better defensively in late games,” Miles said. “We get up and kind of lax defensively at times.”
The Warriors will conclude their four-game homestand on Friday against the Long Island Nets.
