Warriors 112, Rockets 92
HOUSTON -- Stephen Curry scored 25 points in 28 minutes as the Golden State Warriors continued their dominance of the Houston Rockets with a 112-92 victory on Friday night at Toyota Center.
The Warriors (2-0) claimed their sixth consecutive win in Houston and improved to 10-1 in their last 11 meetings with the Rockets (0-2). With the Warriors leading by as many as 25 points, Curry casually engineered the offense, adding seven rebounds and six assists in a rematch of the 2015 Western Conference Finals won in five games by Golden State.
Four additional Warriors scored in double figures, but Golden State cruised to victory on the strength of its defense, doing so without center Andrew Bogut (concussion). The Rockets shot just 36.6 percent from the field and committed 17 turnovers that the Warriors turned into 19 points.
The Rockets were especially abysmal in the second quarter, with more turnovers (six) than field goals (five). Houston was 5 of 22 from the field in the quarter as Golden State turned a 13-0 run into a 53-37 lead when Curry followed his 3-pointer with a transition finger roll with 3:49 left.
Rockets guard James Harden (16 points) continued his early season shooting woes, missing 14 of 18 from the field, including 9 of 10 3-ponters. Center Dwight Howard, making his debut after missing the opener because of a suspension, had nine points (on 4-of-11 shooting), seven boards and five fouls. The Rockets were just 5 of 23 from behind the 3-point line.
Houston charged to an early five-point lead before Curry started to cook, drilling three treys in a two-minute stretch to lift the Warriors to a 14-10 lead. The Rockets found a spark off their bench from rookie forward Montrezl Harrell, who finished 5 of 5 from the field for 11 first-quarter points.
But with Harden continuing to misfire, the Rockets collapsed offensively. Their defense wasn't much better, with the Warriors scoring 16 points in the paint and nine in transition while extending their lead to 57-42 at the break.
Houston closed to 73-65 on two Harden free throws with 4:09 left in the third quarter but went scoreless the rest of the quarter, allowing Golden State to re-establish its 16-point advantage.
Warriors forwards Harrison Barnes and Andre Iguodala scored 12 points apiece and forward Draymond Green had nine points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Harrell finished with 17 points for Houston.
NOTES: With Warriors C Andrew Bogut out indefinitely with a concussion suffered in the season opener on Tuesday night, Golden State interim coach Luke Walton plans to use a number of players to fill the defensive void, including Festus Ezeli, Marreese Speights, Jason Thompson and James Michael McAdoo. ... Walton spoke by phone with coach Steve Kerr following shoot-around Friday morning, with Kerr sharing some ideas in advance of the matchup with the Rockets. ... Rockets C Dwight Howard returned from his one-game suspension (accumulation of technical fouls) and was in the starting lineup. ... Of the myriad things that rankled Rockets coach Kevin McHale about Wednesday night's 20-point loss to the Denver Nuggets was the slow pace with which Houston attacked on the interior, specifically F Terrence Jones, whose methodical post work resulted in his shot being blocked four times.