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Bernie Sanders hands a shoe back to a fan during Game 7 of the Western Conference finals between Golden State and Oklahoma City in Oakland on May 30. | AP Photo Sanders cheers Warriors to victory

Once Bernie Sanders got in, it was a slam dunk.

The basketball game, that is.

After a campaign event Monday in California, the Democratic presidential candidate showed up at Oakland's Oracle Arena with actor/activist Danny Glover. They were there to watch Game 7 of the NBA Western Conference finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the host Golden State Warriors.

Sanders and Glover arrived in the middle of the game — but in time to catch a comeback by Steph Curry, Draymond Green and the Warriors, who had trailed three games to one in the best-of-seven series and who also fell behind early in Game 7. The Warriors were down six points at the half.

The defending NBA champions, however, launched a second-half barrage to pull out a 96-88 win.

"It's coming down to the wire," Sanders tweeted late in the game. "Excited to see how this one ends."

Sanders and Glover, who arrived from a rally in downtown Oakland, sat in Section 108, in the 15th row behind the basket. The Vermont senator was visible as one of the few spectators not wearing a distinctive yellow "Strength in Numbers" T-shirt or other Warriors garb. His presence drew those seeking selfies and autographs. (Glover, for his part, did put on one of those "Strength in Numbers" shirts — spotlighting a phrase coined by Warriors coach Steve Kerr.)

"We came in the second half and the Warriors turned it around," Sanders said, according to a pool reporter's account.

Asked whether the Warriors' comeback could be attributed to his attendance, the Vermont senator remarked, "Absolutely. No question about it ... What other explanation is there?"

If, on the other hand, Golden State's second-half climb had fallen short, Sanders suggested that it was all in the game.

"Hey, in politics," Sanders said. "You gotta take your shots."

According to an ESPN report, the list price for Monday's game averaged $960 per seat; it's not clear where Sanders' tickets came from.

The California primary — in which Sanders hopes to mount his own comeback to defeat Hillary Clinton — is June 7. The NBA finals — pitting the record-setting Warriors against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers — start Thursday night.

"Last week, Golden State was down three games to one," the Vermont senator tweeted afterward. "Tonight, they finished off a great comeback in California. I like comebacks."