You knew when the Warriors’ NBA playoff record home winning streak ended it would be painful, and after 16 straight, the Rockets’ 95-92 victory will hurt for a while.
The absence of Andre Igoudola, Warriors very poor shot selection, a season worst 3-of -8 shooting in the fourth quarter — a Warriors playoff record for 4th quarter futility (12 points) — coupled with the brilliance of James Harden and Chris Paul, told the tale. But as always in a close loss, there are many sequences that had significant impact in the outcome.
After a 12-0 run to start the game, the Warriors squandered multiple opportunities extend the lead and have a monster advantage at the end of the first quarter. Allowing a lay-up with only 0.4 seconds left in the first quarter on an inbounds play was just a mental breakdown. The kind that doesn’t happen when Igoudola is on the floor. No Igoudola and no Patrick McCaw forced Nick Young into service, and he finished -14 during his 12 minutes on the floor. Ugh. Instead of up 15 or 17 after 1 it was only a nine point lead.
The third foul on Stephen Curry with 5:06 left in the first half benched him for the rest of the second quarter, and resulted in an 11 point swing with the Rockets leading by seven at halftime. With an even game at halftime, the Warriors dominant third quarter would have given them a huge lead heading into the fourth. Being down seven at the break does not happen with Curry on the floor those last five minutes.
Officiating was always going to play a huge role in this series because so much of the Rockets game involves free throws. James Harden constant flailing and flopping often gets rewarded. But overall the game was officiated reasonably well with a few glaring misses.
The crew chief Mike Callahan missed one call all night. But it was the Harden flop on a Draymond Green screen that disallowed a Klay Thompson made 3-pointer. Harden acted more than Denzel Washington on this play and those missing three points were critical.
The aforementioned third foul on Curry was whistled by Kane Fitzgerald, the youngest of the three officials who also had a decent game. But that missed call had a huge impact on the game forcing Curry’s absence.
Derrick Stafford missed a blatant push off by Chris Paul on Curry in the first quarter and incorrectly called Shaun Livingston for a retaliatory foul on Paul later in the half but also had a quality game.
And in case you are wondering, missed calls do not even out. That is the dumbest line ever trotted out. Why would inaccuracy be evenly distributed for some reason?
Someone smart said that after Houston shot 13 free throws in Game 3 that they would live at the line in Game 4. And they did. A 27 to 14 free throw advantage for a visiting team is almost unheard of in a playoff game. But the officials were not responsible for the final result of this game.
The Warriors insisted on playing way too much one-on-one basketball in the fourth quarter. Far too many launched 3-pointers without player or ball movement. That’s how you shoot 3-of-18. A season worst for any quarter.
The Warriors settled for perimeter launches when the extra pass against Houston often yielded easy buckets inside. Fourteen assists on 35 made field goals is not Warriors basketball. Again, the absence of Igoudola was obvious with the lack of ball movement, the extra pass, and quality decision making.
What will add to the frustration of this loss is that the Warriors played an excellent defensive game. Holding Houston to 95 points, 39 percent shooting and 31 percent on 3s is something the Warriors will take for every remaining game. They were active, aggressive and played large segments of staunch defense.
This loss is on the Warriors offensive approach which was completely out of character. It resulted in a brutal fourth quarter that resembled the last time they lost a home playoff game, Game 7 vs. the Cavs in 2016.
So now its 2-2 and back to Houston. The health of Igoudola and Klay Thompson have put the Warriors in a very precarious position. The Rockets will be very pleased with having stolen a game at Oracle. The Warriors will view it as a gift. And in a seven game series, you can’t give games away.
