Dwight Howard and James Harden put on a show in front of their home crowd as the Rockets defeated the Golden State Warriors, 105-83, to snap their two-game losing streak. Howard finished with 22 points and 18 rebounds and Harden contributed 34 points, seven rebounds and four assists of his own.
Warriors vs. Rockets final score: Dwight Howard, James Harden lead Houston to 105-83 win over Golden State
Houston received huge nights from its two stars, propelling it past Golden State and its poor shooting night.
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Both the Warriors and Rockets came into the game as two of the best three-point shooting teams in the NBA, but they combined to shoot just 8-of-44 (18.2 percent) from downtown. The Warriors, as a team, shot just 35.5 percent from the field and committed 22 turnovers -- a recipe for disaster.
Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 22 points but committed eight turnovers and received little help from his teammates. Harrison Barnes was the next highest scorer with 14 points and Klay Thompson, who came in averaging 21.3 points per game, scored just five points.
The Rockets steamrolled through the first quarter, taking a 31-12 lead. Terrence Jones led the way for Houston with 11 points and Howard was one rebound and one point away from a first quarter double-double. Curry, Thompson, Barnes and David Lee combined for six points in the first, a combination not ideal for Golden State.
But Curry, as you probably know, can’t be held without scoring for too long. The slinky sharpshooter exploded for 14 points in the second quarter but Harden countered with 12 of his own, leading Houston to a 24-point halftime lead.
The second half wasn’t much better for Golden State as it was never able to mount any significant comeback. The team shot 1-of-8 from behind the arc and turned the ball over nine times in the final 24 minutes.
On Tuesday, the Warriors mounted a 27-point comeback against the Toronto Raptors but no such effort was in store for them on Friday. In that win, the Warriors shot 8-of-11 from three in the fourth quarter and scored 42 points total. Against the Rockets, they managed just 17 points on 33.3 percent shooting from the field in the final period.
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