If anyone believes the players don’t care about the Cup, the matchup between the Rockets and Warriors is a good place to start convincing themselves otherwise. With a ticket to the semi-finals at stake, the two teams faced each other in a duel that was one of the most unusual at this time of the year, which saw the score tight 91-90 for Houston. A result that, despite the low score, serves to confirm the good progress of the project of the Texans, who gained their presence in Las Vegas.
And what better example of what this game is like than the decisive play, which, far from a game-winning basket or heroic defense, is a rebound. With 89-90 on the scoreboard, Golden State attacked in search of a game-clinching basket, but Curry’s 3-pointer was launched from the rim, giving the home team the opportunity to have the last possession if they could get the ball, from where he started a series of caroms that everyone had their hearts in their mouths for a few seconds.
Sengun failed to catch the ball, allowing Gary Payton to pick it up, but, down and surrounded by VanVleet, he chose to look for a pass to a teammate. The pass, however, was bad, and the ball fell between the two Greens, Jalen and Draymond, who fell to the ground, one from the Rockets who tried to stop it by calling a timeout and the other from of the Warriors. looking for a jump between the two with less time to spare. And just when it looked like Houston was going to keep the ball, the refs blew the whistle…foul?
“I’m angry. “We want to win the Cup and we’re not going to do it because of a split ball foul 20 yards from our basket,” Kerr exploded late in the game. “I’ve never seen anything like this in my life, it’s funny. I have never seen a foul called in a jump ball situation 20 meters from the rim, with the stakes at stake. I can’t seem to figure it out. There are two players and you decide to give them two free throws to win the game? Have them call a timeout and let the players decide. This is how you referee. “Especially because the whole game was a constant battle and they didn’t blow the whistle.”
Jalen, of course, converted two shots, making it 91-90 with 3.5 seconds left. This gave the Warriors a chance to find the last game, but Podziemski failed to make the final 3-pointer and the victory remained at the Toyota Center.
Sengun set the pace
Green thus made for a somewhat unlucky night, where he was held to 12 points after shooting 5/15 from the field. More successful was his teammate Alperen Sengun, who led his team that night with 26 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists, becoming the leader in the most important game played by the Rockets for many years.
For the Warriors, Jonathan Kuminga and Stephen Curry carried the brunt of the scoring with 20 and 19 points, respectively, however, in a night with many struggles, it was difficult to see the players at their best. Buddy Hield, with 15, was third in double figures, but the Californians were not enough to win the duel.