The Golden State Warriors gifted their fans and new stadium a much needed win on Christmas Day as they defeat their Western Conference nemesis Houston Rockets, 116-104 and collect their 8th victory of the season so far.
Despite being depleted all season long due to injuries on star players Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, the Warriors boosted their morale by downing James Harden and the Houston Rockets via a strong team effort.
All of Golden State’s starters managed to score in double-digits with Damion Lee leading the way for a double-double game of 22 points and 15 rebounds. Draymond Green and D’Angelo Russell each got 20 points while Glenn Robinson and Willie Cauley-Stein poured in another 18 and 10 respectively.
Despite being down in the first half, the 5-time Western Conference champions used their trademark strong third quarter by outscoring the Rockets by nine points (28-19 during the quarter) to grab the lead heading into the fourth, 92-87.
From there on, they went on a blitz via a 16-2 run and capped off a victorious night. Golden State also effectively neutralized NBA’s leading scorer James Harden (who averages 38.8 points per game) by only allowing him to score 24 points throughout the night.
Russell Westbrook tried to carry the missing scoring load through his 30 points but it wasn’t enough to get the Rockets the victory.
