Warriors down shorthanded Rockets in battle of unbeatens
It's tough to glean anything from a game in which one team was missing three starters, but the Golden State Warriors continued their impressive start to the season Saturday with a 98-87 victory over the Houston Rockets.
What should have been a statement game between unbeaten teams fell short due to the health of each side. The Rockets were without Dwight Howard (illness), Terrence Jones (leg) and Patrick Beverley (hamstring), while the Warriors played without David Lee (hamstring). Regardless of circumstance, though, the games get played, and Golden State didn't take it easy on their undermanned opponent.
As has become their early-season trademark, the Warriors were stingy on the defensive end, limiting the Rockets to just 87 points on 101 possessions.
Perhaps sensing their disadvantage, the Rockets dialed up an incredibly high-variance strategy, firing 42 3-point attempts - more than any team has taken so far this season. Unfortunately, the Rockets went cold largely to a man, hitting just 23.8 percent from long range and 34.9 percent overall.
| Rockets | 3FG | 3FGA |
|---|---|---|
| James Harden | 1 | 11 |
| Isaiah Canaan | 3 | 7 |
| Trevor Ariza | 0 | 6 |
| Jason Terry | 2 | 6 |
| Kostas Papanikolaou | 0 | 5 |
| Donatas Motiejunas | 2 | 3 |
| Francisco Garcia | 1 | 2 |
| Troy Daniels | 1 | 2 |
Despite the woeful mark from outside, Harden managed 22 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, though he needed 24 shot attempts to get there and committed five turnovers. It's tough going it alone for stretches, as he was sometimes asked to do.
The Warriors didn't exactly catch fire themselves, and the Rockets defense held up well enough without Howard and Beverley, two of their defensive anchors. Houston kept Golden State off the line and forced 26 turnovers, but a rebounding edge and a 44.8 percent mark from the floor allowed the Warriors to pull away.
Steph Curry scored 34 points with 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals, helping pick up some of the slack from Klay Thompson, who finally had a cold shooting night with a 3-of-16 mark from the floor.
With the win and a Memphis Grizzlies (6-1) loss, the Warriors (5-0) are the league's lone undefeated team, while the Rockets (6-1) join just three others with a solitary loss. Golden State will be tested Sunday when they travel to Phoenix, which is no easy task in a back-to-back situation. The Rockets are off until Wednesday, possibly allowing them to get healthy and continue their hot start after this one quick stumble.