Last updated 17:03, May 29 2018
DAVID J PHILLIP/AP
Golden State forward Kevin Durant shows his joy and stomach as the Warriors beat the Rockets.
Golden State forward Kevin Durant shows his joy and stomach as the Warriors beat the Rockets.
Stephen Curry and Golden State turned all those Houston bricks into a road back to the NBA Finals.
Needing not only all their firepower but also 27 straight misses by the Rockets during an epic cold streak from three-point range, the Warriors rallied on to keep alive their hopes for a repeat.
Kevin Durant scored 34 points, Curry sparked another third-quarter turnaround, and the Warriors earned a fourth straight trip to the NBA Finals by beating the Rockets 101-92 in Game 7 of the Western Conference finals on Monday night (Tuesday NZT).
Steph Curry scored 27 points for the Warriors as they ran out 101-92 winners against the Rockets in Houston.
The defending champions trailed by as many as 15 in the first half after falling behind 17 in Game 6.
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Curry, who finished with 27 points, scored 14 of Golden State's 33 points in the third quarter as Houston's shooting didn't just go cold, it froze. The Rockets missed all 14 three-point attempts in that quarter as part of a 1-for-21 second half from long range.
Western Conference Finals Champion @warriors! pic.twitter.com/3U9fTo1s2n
— NBA (@NBA) May 29, 2018
The Warriors will host LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 on Thursday night (Friday NZT) in the fourth straight matchup between the teams.
James Harden had 32 points as the top-seeded Rockets' bid to return to the finals for the first time since 1995 fell short without Chris Paul, who was nursing a hamstring injury.
The Rockets fell apart in the second half again after doing so in Game 6. The Warriors outscored Houston 122-63 in the second half of the final two games.
"It's amazing how long the NBA game is," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "Forty-eight minutes, it lasts a long time and there's so many opportunities to get yourself going as a team. And with our team, there's just so much firepower, we're going to get going."
Golden State led by seven entering the fourth and pushed the lead to 10 on a 3-pointer by Klay Thompson with about 9½ minutes left. Clint Capela made a hook shot for Houston but Durant hit a long 3 seconds later to make it 86-75.
The Rockets were behind by 13 after a three-pointer by Curry and had missed 27 straight three-pointers when PJ Tucker hit one from the corner to cut the lead to 89-79 midway through the quarter.
James Harden, left, and Steph Curry scramble for a loose ball during game seven of the Western Conference finals.
It was their first 3-pointer since one by Eric Gordon with about 6½ minutes left in the second quarter that put the Rockets up 42-28.
Tucker's three-pointer was the first of seven straight points for Houston which cut the lead to 89-83.
But Durant scored six points in a 9-2 spurt after that which left the Warriors 97-85 with about three minutes to go.
Houston finally found a little offence after that, using a 7-2 run to cut it to 99-92, but their rally bid came up short.
Thompson added 19 for Golden State after scoring 35 in the Game 6 win and the Warriors got a fourth straight start from Kevon Looney with Andre Iguodala sitting out again with a bone bruise on his left leg.
After being down by 10 at halftime of Game 6, the Warriors trailed by 11 entering the third quarter in Game 7. Golden State opened the third quarter with a 10-4 run to cut the lead to 58-53 after a 3-pointer by Nick Young with about eight minutes left in the quarter.
Tucker made one of two free throws and the teams exchanged layups before Golden State scored nine straight points, with two threes from Curry, to take a 64-61 lead.
Harden made two free throws before Curry scored eight points in a row, highlighted by a three-pointer which bounced high off the rim before falling back in, to make it 72-63 with just over two minutes left in the quarter.
Golden State scored 33 points in the third quarter for the second straight game while Houston managed just 15 points on Monday night (Tuesday NZT) after they scored 16 in the third in Game 6.
Golden State now resume their rivalry against LeBron James' Cavaliers with a chance to win back-to-back titles and their third championship in four years.
The teams first met in the NBA Finals in 2015 when the Warriors beat an injury-hit Cavs team in six games.
The following year Cleveland pulled off an epic comeback in game seven after trailing 3-1 in the series before the Warriors, boosted by the signing of former MVP Durant, were far too good last year, winning 4-1.