The Golden State Warriors beat the Houston Rockets 121-94 in Game 4 to take a 3-1 series lead in the first round of the 2016 playoffs. Klay Thompson finished with a game-high 23 points for Golden State, including 7-of-11 shooting from three. Andre Iguodala added 22 points. It was his 14th career 20-point game in the playoffs and his first one coming off the bench.
The Warriors 1got off to a 14-8 start, with Klay Thompson making his first three out of four threes after going 0-for-7 in Game 3, scoring 11 points in the first quarter. But the Rockets came out with similar spirit as Game 3, with James Harden commanding the game with Dwight Howard and Michael Beasley providing a major boost with 11 points early first half points. Houston finished the first quarter on a 12-2 run and a James Harden three-point buzzer-beater.
Stephen Curry, who missed Games 2 and 3 of the series with an ankle injury, started 1-for-5 from three in the first quarter. He only had 6 points at halftime on 2-for-9 shooting and 1-for-7 from three. On the last play of the first half he slipped and had an awkward fall, appearing to tweak his right leg. He stood up and jogged off the court, somewhat hobbling.
Curry would start the second half in the locker room. Patrick Beverley was also ruled out midway through the game with a right leg strain.
The Rockets shot 51 percent from the field in the first half. Golden State was +21 from the three-point line but the Rockets were +13 from the free throw line, shooting 16-of-24 from the line in the first half.
Draymond Green gave the Warriors a huge spark with 11 points in the third quarter, all of them coming in the first six minutes. Klay Thompson also came alive, as he and Green combined for 23 points and seven threes in the third quarter alone, leading Golden State to a 41-20 advantage in the quarter and a 21-point lead going into the fourth.
The Warriors outscored the Rockets 61-42 in the second half. They also set a new playoff record for three-pointers made in a game with 21. The Cleveland Cavaliers just tied the previous record of 20 in Game 2 of their series against the Pistons last week. Golden State had tied that mark during their playoff run last season.
Another accolade came from the Warriors in the assist column:
Warriors’ 38 assists are the most by the club in a playoff game since a franchise postseason record 40-assist game on 5/4/94 vs. PHO
— GSWStats (@gswstats) April 24, 2016
Game 5 of Warriors-Rockets will be on Wednesday at 10:30 PM EST on TNT.
