Expectations were fairly low as the Golden State Warriors hosted the Houston Rockets on Thursday night. The Rockets, who entered the night in second place in the Western Conference standings, have been rolling lately. The Warriors, on the other hand, had lost five consecutive games … and of greater concern, were without their two Hall of Famers, Steph Curry and Draymond Green.
It was a preview of Wednesday’s quarterfinal matchup of the NBA Cup, even if the Dubs will be hoping to have a healthier roster when that game rolls around. But they won’t be hoping for a different result because, despite being so shorthanded, they stopped the bleeding and pulled off a huge win, 99-93.
As the score would suggest, it was all about defense. They jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead behind five points from Jonathan Kuminga, and led 11-3 more than five minutes into the game. While the defense continued to play well, the lack of Curry caught up to the offense, as they went stone cold. The Rockets chipped away and eventually surpassed the Dubs, ending the quarter on a 17-4 run to lead 22-18.
But the Dubs found the hoop again to start the second quarter, with the offense quickly finding life. But again the game ground to a halt, with defense prevailing for both squads. And even though Houston led for much of the quarter, the Warriors shined in the final minutes, culminating in a four-point play be Andrew Wiggins with 12 seconds remaining, followed by a spectacular defensive possession from Wiggins, giving Golden State a 49-43 lead at halftime.
Despite being down their two most important players, the Third Quarter Warriors once again showed up, setting the second half tone with a 12-3 run to open things up. With a 61-46 lead in hand, the Warriors set out to try and preserve the advantage.
But Houston had a run in them. Shortly after the halfway mark of the quarter, they rattled off a 10-0 run to pull within four points. But the Warriors responded with a 6-0 run of their own, and would enter the fourth quarter with a 73-66 lead.
The momentum had shifted, however, and Houston came flying out of the fourth-quarter gates. It felt like the Warriors were desperately trying to cling to the lead, with Kuminga and Wiggins making heroic plays one after the other as the Chase Center crowd — and the sidelined Curry and Green — cheered them on. With about a minute remaining, Kuminga made one of the defining plays of the game, beating everyone in transition for a layup — following a Gary Payton II steal — to push the lead to six points.
But Houston scored quickly, which was countered by Kuminga splitting a pair of free throws. The Rockets scored again in a two-for-one situation, making it a single-possession game. With the Dubs nursing a three-point lead but the game far from over, Kuminga mashed all the buttons on the controller, beat his man, split a pair of defenders, and finished gorgeously at the rim. One successful defensive possession and a Wiggins free throw later, and the 99-93 final score was set, with a huge win in the books.
Kuminga led the way with 33 points on 13-for-22 shooting, in what was clearly his best game of the season. Wiggins starred with a little bit of everything, scoring 23 points on 8-for-15 shooting while adding nine rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a block. Those two not only scored 55 of the team’s 99 points, but were the only Warriors with double-digit points, though Brandin Podziemski (12) and Kevon Looney (11) both contributed double-digit rebounds as Golden State beat Houston 54-45 on the glass.
The Warriors improve to 13-8 on the year, and are 2-0 against the Rockets, though the teams still have three games left against each other. The Warriors will get a chance to build on the win on Friday night, when they host the Minnesota Timberwolves at 7:00 p.m. PT.
