Golden State Warriors upset third seeded Houston to steal home court advantage from Rockets in opening game of their Western Conference playoff series.Stephen Curry scored a game-high 31 points and Jimmy Butler III added 25 as the Golden State Warriors held off the Houston Rockets 95-85 in Game 1 of their Western Conference first-round series.
Curry, who shot 1-for-10 and scored three points in a home loss to the Rockets on April 6, was brilliant on Sunday. He finished 12-for-19 overall, drilled five three-pointers and grabbed six rebounds. Butler added seven rebounds and six assists to his ledger as the visiting Warriors grabbed a 1-0 series lead with Game 2 set for Wednesday in Houston.
Houston reduced a 23-point deficit to 76-73 on an Amen Thompson floater with 6 minutes and 49 seconds left to play. But Curry extended that advantage back to 82-75 with a three-pointer with 5 minutes and 11 seconds remaining. Butler and Brandin Podziemski (14 points, eight rebounds, five assists) kept the Rockets at bay in the closing stages.
The Rockets shot just 39.1 percent and committed 17 turnovers that the Warriors converted into 25 points. Alperen Sengun posted 26 points and nine rebounds, but Jabari Smith Jr was the first teammate to join him in double figures with 11 points, doing so via a corner three-pointer with 7:34 minutes left. Advert …
