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Stephen Curry said the Golden State Warriors had to “dig deep” to beat the Houston Rockets 103-89 in the deciding game of their Western Conference first-round play-off series.<\/b><\/p>\n
The Warriors led the best-of-seven series 3-1 before the Rockets pulled level at 3-3 going into the final game in Houston.<\/p>\n
Curry scored 14 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter while team-mate Buddy Hield sank nine three-pointers in his game-high haul of 33 as the pair helped the Warriors set up a Western Conference semi-final against the Minnesota Timberwolves.<\/p>\n
“A lot of resilience and everybody stepping up,” said Curry when asked what was needed to secure the win. <\/p>\n
“Everybody’s been talking about our team the last two games in terms of our execution, our energy, all that.<\/p>\n
“We blocked it all out and just understood we had 48 minutes to dig deep. Everybody contributed. Buddy Hield was unbelievable.”<\/p>\n
Jimmy Butler, who joined the Warriors in a trade from Miami Heat in February, contributed 20 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. <\/p>\n
“For us to build chemistry on the fly and build trust on the fly and perform like we did in a game seven, it means the world,” added Curry.<\/p>\n
“So, mission accomplished – step one.”<\/p>\n
The Rockets were second in the Western Conference regular season compared to the Warriors’ seventh-place finish.<\/p>\n
Houston’s defeat in the decider meant they failed to become the 14th team to come from 3-1 behind to win a NBA play-off series.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Indiana Pacers won 121-112 at the Cleveland Cavaliers to take a 1-0 lead in their Eastern Conference semi-final play-off series.<\/p>\n
Andrew Nembhard top scored for the Pacers with 23 points while team-mate Tyrese Haliburton added 22.<\/p>\n
The Cavaliers, who finished top of the Eastern Conference, were beaten for the first time in this season’s play-offs following their 4-0 first-round play-off series victory against Miami.<\/p>\n
“We’re definitely the heavy underdog, but we’re trying to control what we can,” said Haliburton. “It gives us a lot of momentum for sure, but this is the best team in our conference. They don’t lose much.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n