West Conf. Finals - Game 4: Houston Rockets 95-92 Golden State Warriors - Rockets' Player Ratings
Early in Game 4, both teams seemed to carry their momentum from Game 3, as the Warriors opened up this Tuesday night encounter with a 12-0 run. But this Houston Rockets squad is different from the one the Dubs faced in the Playoffs in 2015 and 2016.
The new Rockets showed a lot of grit, poise and gut in Game 4 to not only take the Warriors' punch in the mouth but always retaliate with a punch of their own. It was a game of quarters, as the Warriors combined to outscore the Rockets 62-36 in the first and third quarter combined but the road team always struck back. Houston outscored Golden State 59-30 in the second and fourth quarters.
In the end, the Warriors' 12 points in the final period allowed the Rockets to re-take home court advantage with a Game 4 win. Also, snapping the Golden State Warriors' 16-game home Playoff win streak in the process. Not to mention the fact that they did this by bouncing back from a record 41-point loss.
Plenty of praise to throw around to both teams. Let's start with the winners:
James Harden - 9/10
Stat line: 30 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks and 11-26 FG's
At this current stage of his career, we expect James Harden to get 30 points in his sleep. Game 4 wasn't about his scoring, as he only knocked down 42.3% of his attempts, it was about his hustle and all-around play in a mucky game where he showed his fight.
The Rockets' horrid 0-12 start to the game combined with Harden opting out of an open 3 early, got many to believe the star was going to an off-night once again when it mattered the most. To his credit, the Beard not only showed up but balled out the rest of the way, even uncharacteristically recording 3 steals and 2 blocks during this game.
Rockets got the win but Harden also gets to take back this poster dunk on Draymond Green back with him to Houston.