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Injury-depleted Sonics upended

Golden State's Brandan Wright defends against Seattle's Chris Wilcox.Associated Press (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Greg Beacham Associated Press
Golden State's Brandan Wright defends against Seattle's Chris Wilcox.Associated Press (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)

OAKLAND, Calif. – Monta Ellis scored 30 points, Austin Croshere added 14 in the decisive third quarter without missing a shot, and the Golden State Warriors beat the Seattle SuperSonics 105-99 Tuesday night for their fifth win in seven games.

Baron Davis had 20 points, 10 assists and seven steals for the Warriors, who stumbled to another poor start against a bottom-dwelling opponent before Ellis and Croshere took charge. Croshere, the veteran forward who has barely played in his first year with Golden State, went 6 for 6 to establish his season high for points in just 9 1/2 minutes as the Warriors ran away.

Stephen Jackson returned from a two-game absence with a sprained ankle to score 17 points for the Warriors, who got back in form after an embarrassing home loss to Atlanta last Friday. Golden State never trailed in the fourth quarter, rare for a club that usually struggles to put away its foes.

Kevin Durant scored 21 points and fellow rookie Jeff Green had a career-high 21 for the Sonics, who have lost four of six. Luke Ridnour matched his career high with 15 assists, including 12 in the first half, but injury-depleted Seattle couldn’t stay with the Warriors’ up-tempo offense in the second half.

Nick Collison had 20 points and 13 rebounds for Seattle, which had a 13-point lead early on.

Donyell Marshall made his Seattle debut in the third quarter despite a lingering flu bug that kept him out since joining the team in the trades that shuffled the entire franchise last week. Marshall, also a former Warriors forward, played just 1 minute, as did newcomer Adrian Griffin.

The Sonics still are without guard Earl Watson, who’s ill, and forward Damien Wilkins, who has a sprained right wrist. Ira Newble, acquired from Cleveland along with Marshall, still hasn’t played for Seattle.

Ridnour’s playmaking and Durant’s scoring pushed the Sonics to several early runs, but the Warriors repeatedly made up for their shoddy defense with spurts of their own. After Seattle scored 12 straight points midway through the second quarter, Golden State scored the final nine points before halftime to keep it close.

Golden State then took charge with an 11-0 run, including four points apiece from Croshere and Ellis, who went 14 for 22 and added six rebounds.

Notes

Golden State rookie Brandan Wright had two points and three rebounds in his second NBA start, taking Chris Webber’s spot. Wright hadn’t started since Jan. 4. The Warriors again were without center Andris Biedrins, who missed his second straight game after an appendectomy last week. … Ridnour, a career 85 percent free-throw shooter making 89 percent this season entering the game, missed back-to-back foul shots in the first quarter. … Golden State starter Al Harrington missed his first seven shots and played 27 minutes before getting his first points on a 3-pointer with 8:37 to play.