HOUSTON — In the finale of a six-game homestand at Toyota Center, the Rockets fell to the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors on Monday night, 121-108 (box score). At 3-3, it was still a relatively successful home stretch for a young and rebuilding club.
In this one, “Splash Brothers” Steph Curry (29 points, 7 rebounds) and Klay Thompson (30 points, 7 rebounds) did what the future Hall of Famers typically do in Houston. Each splashed five 3-pointers in a victory for the visiting Warriors.
Houston dropped to 18-54 with Monday’s loss, while Golden State improved to 37-36 as it attempts to make a push in the Western Conference playoff race. It was the second night of a back-to-back for the Rockets, who also played on Sunday versus New Orleans.
With big man Alperen Sengun out sick, Jabari Smith Jr. shifted to center and rookie Tari Eason took advantage of an opportunity to start at power forward, finishing with a career-high 21 points and 12 rebounds. Eason hit 9-of-16 shots (56.3%), and he also had four steals.
Jalen Green had 20 points for Houston and made 3-of-7 from 3-point range (42.9%), though he hit just 4-of-12 from inside the arc (33.3%). Smith had another double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, shooting 7-of-15 (46.7%) and 1-of-4 on 3-pointers (25.0%).
With the homestand complete, next up for the Rockets is a five-game road trip. It starts with games in Memphis on Wednesday and Friday nights, with tipoff of both at 7 p.m. Central.
Until then, here’s our look at postgame reaction, interviews, highlights, and much more from Monday night in Houston.