On May 5, the Houston Rockets will face the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals at home.
Starting lineups for both sides:
Warriors: Ying Guodala, Durant, Draymond Green, Klay Thompson, Stephen Curry.
Rockets: Eric Gordon, PJ Tucker, Capela, Harden, Paul.
Because he knew what happened in history, Deng Fang was not worried about this series, so he did not interfere too much.
In the first quarter, the Rockets were still sluggish. Curry and Durant hit consecutive three-pointers. Dream Green and Curry also hit layups. The Warriors led 10-4.
Harden made a tip-in and scored consecutive layups, but his touch was still bad on the outside. Fortunately, Gordon had a good touch and closed the score. With Gordon's efforts, the Rockets gradually caught up with the score in the latter part of the quarter, and Capela
Find the feeling of taking advantage of the inside, and actively tip-in the basket to score consecutive points.
At the end of this quarter, Kawhi blocked Yingodala's dunk with both hands during a defense, which made the scene boiling. Paul also made a foul and made a free throw. At the end of the single quarter, the Rockets were temporarily behind 25-26.
In the second quarter, the Rockets suddenly broke out. Gordon made a layup and scored 7 consecutive three-pointers. Harden forced a foul on Durant and made a free throw. The home team's lead reached double digits.
After that, the two sides fell into a tug-of-war. Curry found two good shooting opportunities in the seam and hit both jump shots, but Harden found the long-lost three-point touch and hit the net from the outside.
The game completely entered the Rockets' rhythm in the latter part of this quarter. The offensive systems of both sides were chopped into pieces. Gordon scored another three-pointer and Harden also succeeded in a layup. After halftime, the Rockets led 58-49.
After changing sides and fighting again, Harden became more and more brave. Starting from a breakthrough throw, his two channels were opened. He hit consecutive three-pointers and a layup, and his personal score quickly reached 20. On the Warriors side, others
Everyone's condition is average, only Durant continues to be efficient.
In the latter part of this quarter, Harden and Durant competed with each other from the outside. After hitting a three-pointer, Big Beard scored 15 points in a single quarter. Shumpert continued the fire and also scored a three-pointer, but after that, McKinney succeeded in a layup.
Chasing Dreams-Green hit a three-pointer. After three quarters, the Rockets continued to lead 91-84.
In the final quarter, Durant scored 7 points in a row, quickly filling the gap in the gap. On the other hand, the Rockets fell into the embarrassment of difficulty scoring in sports battles.
Later in this quarter, Rivers Jr. hit a three-pointer, but it was difficult for the Rockets to score after that. Entering the last 3 minutes, the scene was already suffocating. Tang Shen made a foul and scored a free throw into the net, and Yingodala also scored a three-pointer.
The Warriors took the lead twice and were about to win, but at the critical moment, Harden caused Curry to foul and shoot 2 of 2 free throws. Then the Rockets defended Durant's offense. Tucker grabbed the key rebound and the two sides tied at 112.
, entering overtime.
In overtime, Tucker made a successful throw and took the lead in opening the Rockets. Gordon and Harden continued the firepower. The former also scored a three-pointer and the latter made a throw into the net. But soon Yingodala hit a three-pointer into the net and Durant scored a layup.
The suspense of victory and defeat is back again.
After that, Harden stepped forward. He stepped back from a long distance and hit the net with a three-pointer. He also succeeded in a key throw. With his 5 points, the Rockets narrowly defeated the Warriors 126-121 and tied the series score to 1-2.
In this campaign, Harden completely got over the haze of eye injuries and sluggishness. He made 2 of 9 in the opening game and 0 of 4 three-pointers. He scored 41 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists in the final moments of overtime.
The crucial 5 points in a row helped the Rockets seal the victory.
For the Rockets, in addition to Harden, Tucker had 7 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks, Capela had 13 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block, Paul had 14 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal and 1 block, and Gordon had 30
Points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal and 1 block, Nene had 3 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist, Rivers had 8 points, 4 rebounds and 1 block, Gerald Green had 3 rebounds, and Shumpert had 10 points and 2 rebounds.
For the Warriors, Draymond Green scored 19 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists and 2 blocks, Durant had 46 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists, Curry had 17 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals, and Ying Guodala had 16 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists.
1 steal, Clay Thompson had 16 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals, McKinney had 2 points and 1 rebound, Looney had 2 points, 1 rebound and 1 block, Bogut had 1 rebound, and Livingston had 3 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists.
…
On May 7, the Houston Rockets hosted Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Golden State Warriors at home.
The starting lineup of both sides remained unchanged. In the first quarter, the two sides quickly started to attack without testing. Kahuang made a back-up dunk and a pie. Tucker made an open three-pointer from the outside and hit the net. The Rockets took the lead with a 7-2 lead.
But soon Durant, Curry and Tang Shen took turns to score, and the Warriors responded in kind. After that, Curry began to take over the offense. He changed from his sluggish performance on the court, hitting the net continuously for layups and jump shots.
Harden was blocked by Durant during a layup and was accidentally injured. He fell to the ground in pain for a long time before getting up. After the interlude, Durant scored 2+1, and the cute three-pointer also scored, and the Warriors achieved a lead.
For the Rockets, Gerald Green hit a three-pointer, and Paul also made a step-back jumper. But with McKinney's layup, at the end of the quarter, the Warriors temporarily led 28-25.
In the second quarter, the stalemate situation continued, but Tang Shen's fouls on the Warriors' side continued to accumulate and became a major hidden danger.
At 7 minutes and 12 seconds of this quarter, Harden hit the net with a three-pointer, and the Rockets sounded the horn of attack. After that, the team was full of momentum. Shumpert, Gordon and Rivers Jr. hit shots one after another, and the score was
The difference quickly widened to double digits.
At the critical moment, it was Durant who stood up and stopped the Warriors' bleeding with a jump shot. Yingodala also hit a three-pointer at the buzzer. At the end of the half, the Warriors returned to the lounge with a 7-point disadvantage 54-61.
The two sides fought again, and the competition between the two sides became fierce, and the smell of gunpowder became stronger and stronger. After Harden hit a three-point step back, he knocked down Dream Chaser Green. The latter fell to the ground in pain and did not get up for a long time.
In the middle of this section, Paul fouled Chai Meng again and brought him to the ground.
Chai Meng got up and pushed Paul away. When the ball was dead, Durant argued with Harden's mother who was sitting on the sidelines.
The Rockets have always been the dominant side in the battle. Later in the quarter, Tucker and Gordon hit three-pointers, and Gordon also scored a layup. The point difference was widened to 15 points.
In the latter part of the third quarter, Curry suddenly broke out and scored 7 points in a row, Durant also scored a 3-pointer, and the point difference was instantly closed to 4 points.
During the crisis, Shumpert stepped back and jumped into the net to stop the Rockets from bleeding. After that, Harden took over the offense and succeeded with a three-pointer and a layup. After three quarters, the Rockets led the Warriors 93-84.
In the final quarter, the two sides started a final competition, and the super giants took turns to score, but the Rockets still firmly held an advantage of about 10 points.
In the latter part of this quarter, the suspense on the court resumed. Curry hit a three-pointer, Durant turned on the death mode, and also succeeded in consecutive jump shots, and his personal score reached 30.
As Curry scored another three-pointer, his personal score also exceeded the 30 mark. At this time, the Warriors were only 2 points behind with only 19.3 seconds left in the game. The Warriors resorted to foul tactics, but Harden made 1 of 2 key free throws, giving the Warriors a chance
There was a chance to tie. But Durant missed a three-pointer, Paul went to the free throw line and made 1 of 2, and the game was over.
At the end of the game, the Rockets narrowly defeated the Warriors 112-108, bringing the total score of the series to 2-2.
In this campaign, Harden continued his aggressiveness from the previous game. He made 13 of 29 shots and scored 38 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists, helping the Rockets win the game.
For the Rockets, in addition to Harden, Rivers Jr. had 10 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, Gerald Green had 3 points, Shumpert had 5 points and 2 rebounds, Tucker had 17 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block.
Capela had 6 points, 9 rebounds and 2 assists, Paul had 13 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. Gordon had 20 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal.
For the Warriors, Draymond Green scored 15 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. Durant scored 34 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. Curry had 30 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists, and Ying Guodala had 7
He scored 8 rebounds and 3 assists, and Clay Thompson had 11 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal.
These two games were played at the Rockets' home court. The Rockets also fired at full strength, and Harden fired at full strength. Although Deng Fang was in charge, it didn't have much effect.
Under the current rules, Harden's offense cannot be defended!
If you get closer, he will foul you. If you get further away, he will step back and shoot a three-pointer.
Although the three-point shooting percentage is not as good as Curry's, Harden's three-point shooting is still quite good. If he does not defend, he may kill his opponent.
Harden's two most powerful moves are drawing fouls and stepping back for three-pointers. These two moves are almost impossible to defend under the current rules. This is also the Rockets' confidence.
However, the conditions required for Harden to use these two tricks are relatively strict. For example, it must be at home, or if the series is behind by a big score, the referee will take care of it. If not, once the referee loosens his calls, it will become a playoff game.
If the intensity is high, then Harden will most likely stretch his crotch!
It was also for this reason that Deng Fang was not worried.
The Warriors were leading 2:0 earlier, and now it's the Rockets' home court. The league will not let the Warriors get through it easily.
