JUST NO MATCH
Warriors keep it close early, but Harden leads Rockets on a run and they roll
HOUSTON >> With the game still in striking distance in the second quarter, Warriors rookie forward Eric Paschall attacked a closeout, drove baseline and finished with a two-handed dunk. He then looked to the bench for a raise-the-roof celebration, one that his teammates joined in on.
For the Warriors, it would be the last such celebration of the game.
In a 129-112 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday, the Warriors managed to keep the game close for most of the first half but, after a key Rockets run fueled by guard James Harden, couldn’t keep up at Toyota Center.
The Warriors’ biggest lead of the game occurred a little more than two minutes into the game, when a Paschall 3-pointer put the Warriors up six in a first quarter that saw seven lead changes.
Guard Alec Burks helped keep the score close, coming off the bench to score nine of his 28 points in the opening period.
Following Pachall’s twohanded dunk, the Warriors were up four points with less than five minutes left in the second quarter. That’s when Harden got hot, leading the Rockets by scoring or assisting on every Houston basket during a 21-6 run to close the half.
Coming out of an 11-point hole at the break, the Warriors went down by 23 within the first few minutes of the third quarter, punctuating a Rockets run that took control of the game.
“I wasn’t thrilled with the overall energy,” said Warriors coach Steve Kerr after the game.
“I thought we started out great and, as soon as we had that lull in the late second quarter, we sort of let our guard down. You got to keep fighting, keep playing.”
Following the team’s most impressive win of the season against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday, the Warriors (2-6) entered Wednesday’s game against the Rockets (5-3) sensing some stability.
Without normal starters Stephen Curry (hand), D’Angelo Russell (ankle), Klay Thompson (ACL), Draymond Green (finger) and Kevon Looney (neuropathy), the Warriors used the same starting lineup for the third-straight game.
Paschall finished with 19 points, six rebounds and three assists, and forward Glenn Robinson III logged 15 points and 11 rebounds.
Although the bench unit outscored the Rockets’ 5817, Houston’s experienced starting lineup outscored Golden State’s 112-54. The defense suffered breakdowns against Harden and guard Russell Westbrook, and struggled to find openings in Houston’s aggressive, switching defense.
“I think we got away from playing for each other. Just playing a little selfish at times,” said center Omari Spellman, who finished with 13 points and seven rebounds. “Driving for the (isolation) instead of driving and creating for somebody else, which is cool sometimes, but I think we tried to play Houston’s game better than Houston. That’s not gonna work.”
Burks’ 28 points is a season high after the 28-yearold guard missed all of preseason with a sprained ankle. In this, his fifth game, he said he’s noticed he’s in better condition. He may have been the only Warriors player to consistently find openings in the Rockets
defense.
“Trying to be aggressive. I know they’re a switching team so I was just trying to drive to the rim,” Burks said. “That’s my game, that’s what I prioritize is getting to the rim, so it just happened to go in tonight.”
Once a playoff-bound rivalry, Warriors vs. Rockets had a decidedly different feel. None of the active Warriors on Wednesday played in last season’s semifinal round in the playoffs. The Rockets swapped guards, Chris Paul for Westbrook, but their 3-point shooting ethos remained in tact, having made 46.7% on 45 attempts from the beyond the arc.
Houston’s ability to deliver a final blow with a barrage of 3-pointers is reminiscent of what once made the Warriors so dominant.
“I saw a couple of heads hanging, and a big part of this league is just fighting and keeping your energy and spirit up all the time,” Kerr said. “Whether you’re having a good night or a bad night, it can’t be dependent on your own success. The energy, the spirit, everything has to be there to be a consistent player in this league.”
Next, the Warriors play the Timberwolves in Minnesota on Friday.
• Looney will miss at least two more weeks with a neuropathic condition that has complicated his return from a strained right hamstring, the team announced. Looney, who has missed the past six games due to nerve-related symptoms, recently met with specialists to decide on a treatment plan.
“Following the tests, we are hopeful and encouraged that the treatment plan prescribed for him will allow Kevon to return to action in the near future,” the team said via a statement.
An update on his timeline will be provided in two weeks after further evaluation.
Neuropathic pain is chronic pain resulting from injury to the nervous system. While the condition is considered common, it is notoriously difficult to treat. Looney has dealt with lower body injuries throughout his fiveyear career, including to his hip.