LOS ANGELES -- Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr was ejected and star guard Stephen Curry fouled out of the team's 103-102 road loss to the LA Clippers on Monday night.
Kerr's double technical came early in the fourth quarter after a string of officiating decisions set him off on the sideline.
The first call came with 8:44 left after a made Curry floater was waved off just after it went through the basket. Officials ruled that Curry was fouled on the floor, stripping away the two points with a late whistle.
"It's usually play on (if it's a made shot)," Curry said. "I've never seen it where it's a delayed call and then 'Oh, it's a foul,' and then, 'Oh, no basket.'"
Curry lit into the referees and Kerr started pacing on the sideline. Moments later, Gary Payton II had a layup blocked by John Collins in front of the bench, but replays showed Collins made contact with the basketball after it hit the backboard, meaning it should have been a goaltend.
"It should have been ruled a goaltending violation," crew chief Brian Forte admitted in a postgame pool report.
The Collins block led to a Clippers fastbreak and Curry's fifth foul of the game, leading to a stoppage and an irate Kerr stomping onto the court, needing to be restrained by assistant coaches as he yelled at all three officials.
Kerr was given two technicals and ejected. Lead assistant Terry Stotts stepped in as the interim coach the rest of the game and took questions from reporters postgame in Kerr's place.
"I'm up here because I'm saving Steve some money," Stotts said.
Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green said they appreciated Kerr's emotional reaction, even though it cost the Warriors an extra point during a sequence in which four points were already stripped from them. Curry said he would've erupted on officials if Kerr didn't.
The team responded with a fourth-quarter rally, outscoring the Clippers by nine points after Kerr was ejected.
That included two Curry 3s with 1:38 and 1:05 left, trimming the Clippers' lead to one point and giving Curry 27 points on the night. But Curry reached in on a defensive rebound attempt with 43 seconds left, committing a sixth foul that he said was the correct call.
It was the first time Curry has fouled out of a game since 2021, leaving him on the sideline on the final offensive possession when the Warriors had a chance to win it. Butler missed a fadeaway jumper at the buzzer that would've won it.
The loss dropped the Warriors to 19-18 on the season, but they have won six of their previous nine games and return home for eight straight in San Francisco.
