Splash Brothers bounce back to snap Golden State Warriors’ 11-game road losing streak

It wasn’t the most convincing performance you could ever ask for, but the Golden State Warriors have finally snapped an 11-game road losing streak with a 121-108 win over the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center on Monday.

There was a collective breath hold when Stephen Curry limped away from a collision with Jordan Poole during the third-quarter, yet the two-time MVP pushed through the pain to pair with Klay Thompson in helping to deliver a much-needed win down the stretch.

The Golden State Warriors used an early fourth-quarter surge to eventually rally past the Houston Rockets in a rather uncomfortable contest on Monday.

Golden State led for the majority of the game but never in secure fashion across the first three-quarters. With the Warriors on a three-game losing streak, the Rockets on the second night of a back-to-back, and both teams in the bottom three in turnovers this season, one should have expected a rather sloppy opening.

That eventuated as the defending champions took a 26-21 lead after 12 minutes, with both teams struggling to find the range from beyond the arc. Curry sparked Golden State with 15 second-quarter points after zero in the first, but the lead remained just five at the main interval.

The teams continued to go back and forth during the third-quarter as Houston briefly took a lead late in the period. The Warriors re-asserted a slight advantage to enter the final period up four — a dangerous and precarious margin given their recent form. However, Golden State took some anxiousness out of the game with a blistering start to the fourth, eventually outscoring Houston 27-15 across the first eight minutes.

The Rockets briefly rallied to ensure there was to be no rest for the Warrior starters late in the game, but the visitors eventually navigated a tricky moment after the lead had been cut to seven with 1:47 to play.

Golden State will sweat on how Curry pulls up after another leg knock, but his 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists should provide optimism moving forward. Thompson had 18 points in the second-half and 29 for the game, with the Warriors backcourt bouncing back after 30 combined points on 32 shots against the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday.

Coming off 24 points in that same game, Jonathan Kuminga added another strong performance with 17 points, three rebounds and four assists on 7-for-9 shooting from the field. Draymond Green added eight points, seven rebounds and seven assists, Jordan Poole had eight assists off the bench, and Anthony Lamb knocked down three of his four three-point attempts.

Speaking after the game, head coach Steve Kerr reflected on the win by saying, “ironically, I thought this was the worst of the four games that we’ve played on this trip.”  Regardless, there’s some pressure release for the Warriors who once again move above .500 at 37-36.