Warriors vs. Rockets: Game 4 Score and Twitter Reaction from 2016 NBA Playoffs

The Golden State Warriors outscored the Houston Rockets 65-38 in the second half en route to a 121-94 victory Sunday in the Toyota Center. With the win, the reigning champions own a 3-1 first-round lead in the 2016 NBA playoffs.  

Center Dwight Howard and shooting guard James Harden were the only two Rockets starters to score in double figures, with both stars posting double-doubles. Howard had 19 points and 15 rebounds, while Harden finished with 18 points and 10 assists. The latter made just four of his 13 field-goal attempts, though. He was also a big reason why Houston shot just 5-of-27 from three-point range as a team.

The Warriors, on the other hand, set the playoff record for most made threes (21), per NBA.com. Power forward Draymond Green had 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists, while shooting guard Klay Thompson led the team with 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting.

Point guard Stephen Curry played only 19 minutes before an awkward fall at the end of the second quarter ended his night:

Prior to his injury, Curry shot 2-of-9 from the field for six points while adding five assists. According to ESPN Stats & Info, that shooting percentage (.222) was tied for his lowest single-game total of the season.

Sports on Earth's Erik Malinowski made light of the rush to diagnose Curry's injury:

"

as a certified twitter doctor, i am ready to hear about curry’s injury

— Erik Malinowski (@erikmal) April 24, 2016"

Curry attempted to return for the start of the second half but headed back to the locker room after the team's shootaround. The Warriors announced he had suffered a sprained right knee and kept him out for the remainder of the game, per ESPN.com's Marc Stein.

Curry was playing for the first time since suffering an ankle injury in Game 1. He removed any doubt regarding his status prior to the game, tweeting "Lock in! #DubNation." He sent the tweet at 2:50 p.m. ET, 55 minutes before the game's 3:45 p.m. ET tipoff. Sports Illustrated's Kenny Ducey explained why the timing was potentially statistically significant:

After missing his first three shots of the game, the reigning MVP absorbed a foul by Rockets guard Patrick Beverley and connected on his fourth attempt at the 8:17 mark of the first quarter:

Curry's layup sparked a 14-3 run by Golden State that gave the Western Conference's top seed a 19-11 lead with five minutes left in the quarter. The Rockets clawed back, though, with Harden hitting a three-pointer as time expired in the quarter to tie the game at 29-29:

Between the final 4:01 of the first quarter and the opening 2:31 of the second quarter, Houston outscored Golden State 28-15 and went ahead 41-36. The Ringer's Jason Concepcion thought the game mimicked the Rockets' season as a whole in terms of their Jekyll and Hyde nature:

In order to slow the game down, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr called for his players to start fouling Howard, and the Rockets responded in kind by fouling Golden State big man Festus Ezeli. USA Today's Sam Amick was less than enthused with the development:

The Rockets' sloppiness—they committed 13 first-half turnovers—began catching up to them the longer the second quarter went on. Warriors shooting guard Andre Iguodala tied the game, 56-56, with four seconds left in the half, and the two teams went into halftime on level terms.

Although Curry missing the start of the third quarter was a significant development, so too was Beverley's absence. In the first half, Houston's starting floor general suffered a strained right leg, per the Houston Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen, and at halftime, the team ruled him out for the remainder of the game.

Beverley's impact on the defensive end waned somewhat this season, but he's still one of Houston's best perimeter defenders. His injury left the Rockets ill-prepared to handle the Warriors' hot start to the third quarter.

Golden State jumped ahead by seven points, 66-59, in the first 3:01 of the quarter, and by the time the fourth quarter was set to begin, the Warriors owned a 21-point advantage, 97-76. Thompson and Green, in particular, were outstanding in Curry's absence. NBA on ESPN provided their impressive numbers from the third frame:

SB Nation's Mike Prada also praised Golden State's work on Harden defensively:

The Rockets' dreadful third quarter all but ended their hopes of evening the series, and they're now one game from elimination as they head to Oakland, California, for Game 5 on Wednesday.

Given Curry's health, The Cauldron's Nate Duncan suggested a victory in Game 4 took on added importance for Golden State:

The Warriors have already proved they can beat the Rockets with or without their starting point guard. Missing Curry would obviously be a big blow, but his not playing in Game 5 wouldn't turn the series on its head.

As good as Houston looked in the first half, the team fell back into bad habits in the second, displaying the inconsistency that has plagued it throughout the entire year. At their best, the Rockets are good enough to steal Game 5 on the road. They don't play at their best for long enough stretches, though, to envision them pushing the series to a Game 6.

The Warriors will also be playing with some level of urgency, since the earlier they can close out the series, the longer Curry will have to recuperate. As good as Golden State is collectively, the team's chances of going back-to-back depend heavily on his availability.

Postgame Reaction

According to ESPN.com's Ethan Sherwood Strauss, Kerr didn't seem confident when talking about Curry's status for the rest of the series:

Kerr also explained the process by which the team determined Curry would be unable to play, via NBA TV:

Judging by Green's comments in an interview with ESPN Radio (via ESPN.com's Royce Young), his injury had a galvanizing effect for the Warriors going into the pivotal third quarter:

"He was shook up; he was crying," Green said, per Sam Amick of USA Today. "It’s pain. It’s wanting to be out there with your guys. He was quiet, so I said everything to him.

"I just told him, 'Hold your head up. It’ll be all right. But then get the (expletive) out of here.' We got you. Get out of here."

Green also said despite the Warriors taking firm control of this series, there has to be a high level of concern when it comes to Golden State's superstar's knee injury.

"You’ve got to be [concerned]," Green said, per Amick. "You’re talking knee. It’s obviously not the same ankle and stuff (that he suffered in Game 1) ... You’re talking a knee sprain." 

And when Curry went back to the locker room, the Rockets fan cheered as he exited the court. Green did not like that at all.

"Yeah, that was garbage," Green said, per Amick. "You don’t do that. That’s not classy. You usually cheer for somebody getting off the ground, not for somebody limping. That’s garbage. It’s not cool."

With Curry out for the remainder of the game and the Warriors taking control the way they did, the Rockets' superstar didn't mince words when saying how bad of a loss this was.

"Terrible way, terrible way, terrible way to lose," said Harden, per Feigen. "It was loose ball opportunities, rebounds and things like that."

With many considering the series to essentially be over, Howard, a free agent in the offseason, is already having to dance around questions about his future in Houston, via NBA TV:

Rockets general manager Daryl Morey bet big on Harden and Howard delivering the franchise's third NBA championship. Instead, the team is on the verge of its second first-round exit since Howard's arrival in 2013.