Houston ended Golden State's eight-game winning streak with a 115–108 victory on Wednesday night (US time), and the Rockets did it with more than a Kevin Durant scoring burst. Stephen Curry's early exit changed the contest, but Houston still had to hold off a Warriors comeback. Alperen Şengün's near triple-double and a timely fourth-quarter shooting burst from Reed Sheppard helped turn a tense finish into the Rockets' ninth win of the season. The official NBA box score confirms Houston improved to 9–3 while Golden State slipped to 8–4.
The Warriors' night changed after just 5 minutes and 35 seconds of Curry. He scored three points on three field-goal attempts before leaving with right abdominal soreness and didn't return. Golden State had arrived in Houston averaging 120.4 points across its opening 11 games, according to the Associated Press game report. Removing its primary scorer and the off-ball movement that constantly stretches a defence left the visitors chasing both the game and a new way to create shots. Coach Steve Kerr said Curry underwent an MRI during the second half; its findings weren't available in the 12 November injury update.
Houston had already made its intentions clear with a 35–20 opening quarter. The Rockets' advantage wasn't simply a case of launching more threes: they made 44 of 87 shots overall (50.6%), compared with Golden State's 36 of 88 (40.9%). Strip out the three-pointers and Houston scored 62 points from two-point field goals to the Warriors' 38. That's a 24-point difference inside the arc, a far more telling separation than the final seven-point margin. Golden State actually made four more threes and collected eight more rebounds, but Houston found better value from its shots closer to the basket.
Şengün was central to that balance. His 19 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists gave Houston an organiser in the middle of the floor, not merely another finishing option. He made eight of 14 shots and grabbed four offensive rebounds. Durant supplied 20 points and five assists, while Amen Thompson scored 19 on eight-of-11 shooting. With Steven Adams and Clint Capela both unavailable, the Rockets didn't win the total rebounding battle, yet their forwards and Şengün gave the attack enough size, passing and finishing to keep Golden State's defence occupied.
Golden State didn't fold when Curry left. Rookie Yaxel Lendeborg carried an enormous share of the response, posting 25 points and 10 rebounds in 36 minutes. Brandin Podziemski added 22 points, six rebounds and four assists in 37 minutes. The Warriors trimmed a 15-point first-quarter deficit to five at half-time and kept finding enough perimeter shooting to stay close. Their 17 made threes, including four from Podziemski, made this a game Houston couldn't simply put away by protecting the paint.
The most revealing sequence arrived early in the fourth. Golden State got threes from Georges Niang and De'Anthony Melton to pull within 88–85, turning what had looked like a controlled Houston win into a genuine contest. The Rockets answered with eight straight points, including a Thompson alley-oop and consecutive Sheppard threes, to restore an 11-point cushion. When Podziemski later converted a four-point play during another Warriors push, Sheppard and Fred VanVleet responded from beyond the arc. Houston didn't just survive the pressure; its supporting guards punished the moments when Golden State had finally created momentum. The NBA's game recap confirms the 115–108 finish.
Sheppard's final line was 13 points in 20 minutes, with three threes from six attempts. VanVleet added 18 points, six assists and three steals, making four of seven from deep. Those aren't the headline numbers beside Durant's name, but the timing matters. Sheppard's fourth-quarter shooting forced the Warriors to defend the perimeter just when they needed stops, and VanVleet's efficiency gave Houston another dependable outlet. Marcus Smart's third-quarter ejection could have disrupted the Rockets' guard rotation; instead, the available guards delivered the most important shots of the night.
For Golden State, Lendeborg's scoring and Podziemski's workload were genuine positives in a difficult road loss. But the offence needed 51 three-point attempts to produce 108 points, and Curry's absence removed the player who normally makes defenders pay for loading up elsewhere. The next question isn't whether the rookie can score — he's just shown he can carry a substantial load — but how the Warriors create easier two-point opportunities if Curry misses time. Houston has a clearer immediate takeaway: even without two traditional centres, its combination of Şengün's playmaking, Thompson's finishing and timely guard shooting can beat a dangerous opponent without winning the rebound count.
Comments