By: Ben Leonard
Follow @ben___leonard

Despite what you might have heard, the Houston Rockets are no pushover. Houston was just one loss away from being the number six seed, and the Warriors were expected to rocket past them to the Finals. They might have picked up four emphatic victories over Houston in the regular season, but Tuesday was a whole different story.  Golden State held on to preserve a 110-106 victory over the Rockets, needing MVP Stephen Curry to make two free throws in the waning moments of the game to seal a victory.

The Warriors found themselves in an unfamiliar position on Tuesday, down as many as 16 points in the second quarter. But just as quickly as they fell, they picked themselves back up, riding a 21-4 run to end the half up three points. From then on, it was a tight battle between these the two top-seeded teams in the Western Conference, transcending to the billing of the matchup.

Curry finished with 34 points and won the battle, along with his team, against MVP runner-up James Harden. He also pulled down 6 rebounds and spread around the ball well, dishing out 5 assists to his teammates.

Unlike Curry, his “Splash Brother,” star guard Klay Thompson struggled on Tuesday, with the shooting woes that plagued him early in the series against Memphis resurfacing. Thompson scored just 15 points on a paltry 6-18 showing from the floor, including an uncustomarily low 1 for 7 from long range. Other than Curry’s 6 for 11 effort from three, Golden State struggled to make the three-ball, going 4 for 18 from deep.

Just like Houston with Curry, the Warriors had no answer for Harden, who scored 28 points on 11 of 20 shooting and kept his team in the game. He certainly wasn’t “overrated” as Warriors fans chanted throughout the game, nearly leading his team to an upset victory.

Houston not only lost the game, but one of its biggest contributors on Tuesday. Dwight Howard went down with a left knee injury, but didn’t play well before getting injured. He turned the ball over five times in the first half, scoring just 7 points. Regardless, his presence down low was missed. Given the nature of the injury, it’s unclear at this point whether or not he will be ready for Game 2 Thursday night at Oracle.

It wasn’t pretty, but the Warriors got it done. Now just image what could happen if they are anywhere near at the top of their game.

 

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