The Warriors simply overwhelmed the Rockets in the second half of Game 6 on Saturday night, outscoring Houston 64-35 in the final two quarters on the way to a 115-86 blowout victory.
Klay Thompson (35 points, 9-of-14 from 3-point range) and Stephen Curry (29 points, six assists, five rebounds) went into full "Splash Brothers" mode, drilling open looks all over the floor and leaving the Rockets' defense scrambling. Draymond Green took only three shots, but he filled up the box score with 10 rebounds, nine assists, five blocks and four steals.
James Harden did his best to push the Rockets to the NBA Finals with 32 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, but talent and turnovers ultimately buried Houston down the stretch. The Rockets certainly could have used Chris Paul in this one to settle them down. His status for Game 7 remains unclear at this point and will be a major storyline in the next two days.
Check out the best highlights from Game 6 of the Western Conference finals...
Final: Warriors 115, Rockets 86
11:25 p.m. ET — After falling behind by 17 points in the first quarter, Golden State finishes the game on a 93-47 run. What?! It's a win-or-go-home situation now. Should be a lot of fun.
Game 7 here we come!
The @warriors come alive in the 2nd half for a 115-86 W!
Klay: 35 PTS, 9 3PM
Steph: 29 PTS, 6 AST, 5 REB
KD: 23 PTS, 7 REB, 4 AST
Draymond: 4 PTS, 10 REB, 9 AST, 5 BLK, 4 STL #NBAPlayoffs | #DubNation pic.twitter.com/5PQKHf9dnS — NBA (@NBA) May 27, 2018
11:15 p.m. ET — This is crazy. The Warriors have outscored the Rockets 55-20 in the second half. Just an all-out assault in the last 24 minutes. We're going to a Game 7 in Houston.
11:02 p.m. ET — This Klay Thompson bomb gives the Warriors a double-digit lead. This could be an early dagger with how Golden State has played defensively this half.
End of third quarter: Warriors 84, Rockets 77
10:51 p.m. ET — Stephen Curry (22 points) and Klay Thompson (26) both find the range from deep to help push the Warriors ahead with a huge 33-16 run in the third. The crowd is alive inside Oracle Arena. James Harden is up to 32 points, but he's going to need some help in the final frame. Eric Gordon has slowed down significantly after a terrific first half.
10:37 p.m. ET — James Harden over here showing the rookie how it's done.
10:32 p.m. ET — The Warriors are charging hard. The game is now tied at 66 points apiece. Yet another third-quarter explosion for Golden State.
10:24 p.m. ET — That took 95 seconds. The Warriors kick off the second half with an 8-0 run. Mike D'Antoni calls timeout. The Rockets are only up by two.
8-0 burst to start the half! We have a 2 point game 👀 #Rockets 61 | #DubNation 59 on @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/0cSZbs6cf8 — NBA (@NBA) May 27, 2018
Halftime: Rockets 61, Warriors 51
10:06 p.m. ET — Despite a second-quarter surge by the Warriors, the Rockets walk into the locker room with a 10-point advantage on the road. An impressive first half. James Harden has 22 points and seven assists so far, but Eric Gordon has really taken his game to another level with Chris Paul out. He's got 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including 4-of-4 from 3-point range. Kevin Durant (14 points), Klay Thompson (14) and Stephen Curry (13) are all putting up points, but the trio is a combined 4-of-16 from beyond the arc.
9:53 p.m. ET — Kevin Durant turning defense into offense. The Warriors are locked in defensively. The Rockets' 17-point lead is all the way down to five.
9:47 p.m. ET — Eric Gordon is a perfect 5-of-5 for 13 points. He will never miss again! (OK, probably not, but that would be impressive.)
9:41 p.m. ET — The Warriors are showing signs of life. A little 12-4 spurt to keep it close. Golden State is also using full-court pressure to speed up the Rockets and force some turnovers.
End of first quarter: Rockets 39, Warriors 22
9:31 p.m. ET — Wow. What a start for the Rockets. Houston is 8-of-12 from 3-point range as a team, and James Harden has finally broken out of his slump. He's got 15 points and four assists through the first 12 minutes. He looks extremely confident.
9:19 p.m. ET — Yep, Stephen Curry can still shoot from waaaaay out there.
9:11 p.m. ET — The Rockets jump out to a 13-6 lead, hitting 3-of-5 attempts from 3-point range. Eric Gordon already has eight points.
. @TheofficialEG10 got the start tonight and has scored 8 of the #Rockets 13 points! #Rockets 13
Warriors 6 pic.twitter.com/1E513RfnwN — Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) May 27, 2018
9:04 p.m. ET — Your Game 6 starters...
Warriors: Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, Kevon Looney
Rockets: James Haren, Eric Gordon, Trevor Ariza, PJ Tucker, Clint Capela
8:56 p.m. ET — Apparently Stephen Curry is feeling just fine with his season on the line...
. @StephenCurry30 back with the Jones BBQ and Foot Massage pregame routine 😂 #NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/tFE5bwIYJq — NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 27, 2018
8:42 p.m. ET — And here come the Rockets. Let's see how James Harden adjusts without Chris Paul by his side.
Warriors 115, Rockets 86 (final)
Related The Warriors are back to looking like the Warriors we remember
The Golden State Warriors blitzed the Houston Rockets in the second half of Game 6 of their Western Conference Finals on Saturday night in Oakland, forcing a decisive seventh game on Monday night.
Down 17 points in the first quarter and 10 points at halftime, the Warriors used yet another third quarter run to take control of the game. Golden State outscored Houston 33-16 in the quarter, and in 64-25 in the second half.
Steph Curry led the Warriors with 33, and Klay Thompson had 32, including 9-for-14 from three-point range. Draymond Green had five blocks to go with his 10 rebounds and nine assists in the win.
The Rockets hit eight three-pointers in the first quarter, but hit just seven the rest of the game. James Harden led Houston with 32 points and nine assists, but also had nine turnovers.
Game 7 is Monday night at Toyota Center in Houston.
Warriors 94, Rockets 79 (7:37, 4Q)
The Rockets have been basically using only a seven-player rotation, which made it noteworthy down 15 points in the fourth they brought Joe Johnson out of mothballs.
Warriors 84, Rockets 77 (end of 3Q)
Golden State hit seven threes and outscored Houston 33-16 in the third to turn this game around. Steph Curry was quite confident that this particular shot was going down:
Steph knew it was going in!
12-0 run to take the lead for #DubNation#NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/W075FGrl4C — NBA (@NBA) May 27, 2018
Warriors 79, Rockets 74 (2:31, 3Q)
The third quarter has featured both teams exchanging haymakers, with five lead changes (including four consecutive possessions!) and a tie. Klay Thompson has four triples in the quarter and 26 points in the game.
8-0 burst to start the half! We have a 2 point game #Rockets 61 | #DubNation 59 on @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/0cSZbs6cf8 — NBA (@NBA) May 27, 2018
Rockets 61, Warriors 59 (10:25, 3Q)
Well, that was fast. Golden State came out of halftime with a vengeance. Two threes from Klay Thompson and a dunk by Kevin Durant fueled an 8-0 run in 95 seconds, and we have a two-point game.
8-0 burst to start the half! We have a 2 point game #Rockets 61 | #DubNation 59 on @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/0cSZbs6cf8 — NBA (@NBA) May 27, 2018
Rockets 61, Warriors 51 (halftime)
Golden State pulled things to within five points before Houston added some cushion heading into the break. Eric Gordon made the most of his first start of the playoffs with Chris Paul out, scoring 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including four three-pointers.
James Harden led all scorers with 22 in the first half. Kevin Durant had 14 for the Warriors, but shot just 3-of-14 from the field.
Rockets 48, Warriors 39 (6:08, 2Q)
The second quarter devolved into sloppiness for a bit, but amid the chaos Golden State used a 12-4 run to cut their deficit nearly in half. Klay Thompson leads Golden State with 12 on 5-of-8 shooting so far. Steph Curry is just 1-for-7 from three, but has nine points thanks to nifty moves like this:
Rockets 39, Warriors 22 (End 1Q)
James Harden finally snapped his drought from distance, hitting a pair of deep three-pointers late in the first quarter, after missing 22 straight three-point attempts. That was two of eight threes hit by the Rockets in the first quarter to grab a huge early advantage on the road.
Harden scored 15 in the quarter to go with four rebounds and four assists, while Trevor Ariza added 10 points and Eric Gordon scored eight.
Rockets 13, Warriors 6 (7:33, 1Q)
Houston had three turnovers early but responded quickly thanks to eight quick points by Eric Gordon, who hit two of the Rockets’ three early three-pointers.
Eric Gordon stepping up early in Game 6! @HoustonRockets jump out to a 13-6 lead at Oracle! pic.twitter.com/lE9u3hos9q — NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 27, 2018
Two big crowds
Not only is Oracle Arena in Oakland sold out, but folks at the Toyota Center in Houston are watching Game 6 on video screens, and for a good cause.
Rockets sold out all 10,000 tickets to tonight's watch party at Toyota Center. That's $100,000, all going to the Santa Fe Memorial Fund. — Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) May 26, 2018
Tonight’s fan T-shirts
Here is your obligatory shot of what the home team fans are wearing.
Playoff tradition on #WarriorsGround! Thanks @RingCentral for helping set the stage for tonight’s game. pic.twitter.com/o9fsm4UZpC — Golden State Warriors (@warriors) May 27, 2018
Iguodala out
The Warriors will once again be without Andre Iguodala, who was ruled out for Game 6. with what Golden State says is a left lateral leg contusion. This will be the third straight game missed for Iguodala.
Pregame
The Houston Rockets are one victory away from their first NBA Finals trip in 23 years. To clinch that berth on Saturday night they have to beat the Golden State Warriors on the road in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals (9 p.m. ET, TNT).
Houston will be without the services of point guard Chris Paul, who suffered a hamstring strain in the final minute of on Thursday. Paul scored 18 of his 20 points in the second half of the Rockets’ Game 5 win, giving them a 3-2 series lead and just one win away from their first berth in the NBA Finals since winning the second of back-to-back championships in 1995.
Golden State is 7-1 at Oracle Arena this postseason but that loss came in their last game there, on Tuesday to the Rockets, snapping an NBA-record 16-game playoff home winning streak.
Houston (114.7) and Golden State (113.6) were first and third in the NBA, respectively, during the regular season in points per 100 possessions, but in the last two games of this series between offensive juggernauts have features scores of 95-92 and 98-94, both Rockets wins. That left Steph Curry perplexed, per the Associated Press:
“I think (if you) guessed what the final score would be between the Rockets and Warriors, and neither team getting to 100 two straight games, don’t know what the odds (would be) on that,” he said. “Defense is high right now.”
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Warriors vs. Rockets Game 6 info
Location: Oracle Arena, Oakland, Calif.
Game time: 9 p.m. ET
TV: TNT
Announcers: Marv Albert, Chris Webber, Reggie Miller, David Aldridge, Kristen Ledlow
Online streaming: Watch TNT
