Stephen Curry calls Lou Williams the 'X-factor' following Warriors' Game 5 loss to Clippers
Watch Warriors @ Clippers Game 6 live on Sky Sports Arena in the early hours of Saturday morning (3am)
Thursday 25 April 2019 12:42, UK
Stephen Curry called Lou Williams the 'X-factor' after the Clippers guard scored 33 points to condemn the Golden State Warriors to defeat in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series.
Williams responded to the Warriors taking a 118-117 lead, their first of the second half, with a four-point play with 2:32 remaining, igniting a late run that inspired the Clippers to a 129-121 win that kept their season alive. They now trail 3-2 in the series.
The Clippers, facing elimination, dominated the remainder of the game as after Williams' go-ahead three-pointer on which he was fouled by Durant. His free throw made it a four-point play and gave Los Angeles a three-point lead they would not surrender.
Williams then added a pair of short jumpers to increase the advantage to 125-118 with just 1:29 to go, and the Warriors, relegated to shooting three-pointers, could not recover.
Speaking after the game, Stephen Curry said of Williams: "He's obviously an 'X-factor' for them, their main catalyst in terms of momentum swings because he can get going really quick."
Curry's team-mate Kevin Durant said: "You can't just say, 'I'm going to stop Lou Williams tonight'. You just hope you lock him down enough to stop them."
Warriors coach Steve Kerr believed his team could have done a better job of containing the Clippers prolific bench scorer. "We were not aggressive. We were not flying around. The game came way too easily for him," he said.
Williams, the consensus favourite to win this season's Sixth Man of the Year award, played down his game-winning run of baskets. "I go out there at the top of the fourth [quarter] knowing it is my 'time to go'. My team-mates know it is my 'time to go'. I got out there and try to do the best that I can to help us get a win," he said.
"When you have a locker room full of guys who are going to live and die by the decisions you make in the fourth quarter, it makes your job tremendously easy."
Clippers coach Doc Rivers reflected on Williams' role as his team's game-winner. "When Lou gets his rhythm he is tough to guard. His mentality in the fourth… he believes he's a closer. He is a closer and he did that tonight for us," he said.
Game 6 takes place in Los Angeles in the early hours of Saturday morning (3am) - watch live on Sky Sports Arena.
