Warriors advance to NBA Finals for 1st time in 40 years with win over Rockets

The Golden State Warriors are off to the NBA Finals for the first time in 40 years.

The Warriors won the Western Conference on Wednesday night, knocking off the historically pesky Houston Rockets 104-90 in Game 5 and advancing to meet LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Rockets kept things interesting, because of course they did, hanging around within single digits for the majority of the game. But on an uncharacteristically poor shooting night for the Warriors, it was their defense that got it done. They held the Rockets to 35.1 percent shooting and 20.8 percent from 3-point range, and turned them over 20 times, including an NBA playoff record 13 from the accursed James Harden.

Golden State witnessed a second scary incident involving one of its superstars for a second consecutive game, as Klay Thompson took a flying knee to the temple in the fourth quarter and was forced to leave the game.

But Thompson, who dropped 20 points (on 8-of-14 shooting) in just 22 minutes, said after the game he felt all right (if a little dizzy), and the Warriors now have a full week off before they open the Finals at home.

Turning Point

While the Warriors managed to keep their noses ahead nearly all game, the Rockets refused to let them pull away, and entered the fourth quarter down just six points.

After Thompson got knocked out of the game, it looked like the Rockets had an opening. Instead, Harrison Barnes, one of the Warriors' unheralded stars of the postseason, took over.

In a two-minute stretch, Barnes went on a personal 9-2 run - throwing in three rebounds for good measure - and turned a precarious eight-point lead into an insurmountable 15-pointer.

Alternately, the turning point may have come before the game even started, when the BasedGod himself decided he would attend, drowning Harden with a tidal wave of bad energy.

Star Performer

Steph Curry had a cold shooting night, hitting just 7-of-21 from the field and 3-of-11 from deep. Thompson had to sit with five fouls early in the third quarter, then took that shot to the dome in the fourth. Draymond Green was a tire fire on offense, shooting 3-of-15 from the field, missing all five of his 3-point attempts, and turning it over three times.

Amidst the chaos, Barnes was a steadying force at both ends of the floor all night. He poured in 13 fourth-quarter points, including the aforementioned nine during that game-altering run, and finished with 24 on 10-of-20 shooting to go along with seven rebounds.

Highlight Reel

Dwight Howard and Harden finish strong in the first half:

Steph Curry doing all kinds of Steph Curry things:

Series at a glance

Game 1: Warriors 110, Rockets 106 (Warriors lead 1-0)
Game 2: Warriors 99, Rockets 98 (Warriors lead 2-0)
Game 3: Warriors 115, Rockets 80 (Warriors lead 3-0)
Game 4: Rockets 128, Warriors 115 (Warriors lead 3-1)
Game 5: Warriors 104, Rockets 90 (Warriors win 4-1)

Alternate Series at a Glance