OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Golden State Warriors' mantra might as well have been "Go big or go home," as the Western Conference's No. 1 seed saved its season with a 120-111 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 5 of the conference finals. On the brink of elimination, the team that stoked a small ball craze with its Game 4 starting lineup change in the 2015 NBA Finals decided to largely abandon its trademark.

When desperate in the past, the Warriors used a small lineup as their frenzied, fast-paced haymaker. This time, in a situation more desperate than any they’d faced since Steve Kerr was hired, Golden State went the other way. Ironically, after going big as a means of shoring up the defense, Stephen Curry, their smallest starter, made two key crunch-time defensive plays on the crane-sized Kevin Durant.

Before all that, Golden State had to do something to slow down Oklahoma City’s transition attack. Since running with them wasn’t working, the big adjustment was to place further trust in the lumbering Andrew Bogut, a player Kerr had more or less called out for getting into foul trouble.

And Bogut did perform. He picked up a mere one foul in the first half and added some stingy defense at the rim. Bogut played 17 first-half minutes, which had more than a little to do with the Thunder shooting 5-of-20 in the paint in the first two quarters. Oklahoma City kept the game close early due to their 3-point shooting, but they’re a less imposing team without a consistent rim attack.

The Bogut adjustment, mixed with a few others, were less creative than simplifying. The Warriors had Curry guard Andre Roberson more, as they’ve traditionally done when playing the Thunder before this playoff series. They also switched defensively more, as they’ve traditionally done when playing everybody. As a result, perhaps it’s no surprise that the Warriors resembled themselves for the first time in two games.

Offensively, Klay Thompson (27 points) gave Golden State an initial burst with some shot making over tight coverage. They’ll need more of that from Thompson if Curry (31 points on 20 shots) is going to continue playing like a slightly older version of himself. The two-time MVP has shown the ability to knock down 3-pointers off the catch, but absent are his sideways leaps he uses to create 3-pointers off the dribble.

Curry was resourceful, though not as efficient as he usually is. He leveraged the threat of leaping sideways to gash the paint, the most logical way to attack the Thunder’s switching defense, to claim 10 of his 31 points via the paint. The Warriors remain in a precarious place, as they travel to Oklahoma City, facing elimination. It’s especially daunting if Curry isn’t quite himself. But, they may have found a plan in simplifying the defense. And now, they need only one game to go from the brink to favored again.