HOUSTON — Kevin Durant scored 20 points, Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson added 19 and the Houston Rockets snapped Golden State’s eight-game winning streak with a 115-108 victory on Wednesday night.
The Warriors played most of the game without Stephen Curry after the superstar left in the first quarter with right abdominal soreness and didn’t return.
Curry made a 3-pointer with about 7 1/2 minutes left in the first quarter and put his hand on his right side and winced as he backpedalled after the shot.
He immediately walked over to coach Steve Kerr and headed straight to the locker room. He appeared to be in pain and was walking gingerly and holding his right side as he exited the court.
“He said he tweaked something in his abdominal area and said he’s never done it before,” Kerr said.
Kerr added that Curry left the arena in the second half to get an MRI but that the team hadn't yet received any information from the imaging.
Kerr was asked what his level of concern about Curry's condition was.
“I mean, concern is high, but I have no idea the extent of the injury,” he said.
Golden State's longest winning streak since 2022 ended on a night they were held well below their season average of 120.4 points a game. Curry, who entered Wednesday ranked second in the NBA by averaging 30.6 points a game, had just three points before exiting.
With Curry out, the Warriors were led by rookie Yaxel Lendeborg, who had 25 points and 10 rebounds. Brandin Podziemski added 22 points.
The Rockets led by nine points early in the fourth quarter before the Warriors got 3-pointers from Georges Niang and De’Anthony Melton to cut the lead to 88-85 with about 10 minutes remaining.
But Houston scored the next eight points, with an alley-oop dunk by Thompson before consecutive 3-pointers from Reed Sheppard to make it 96-85 with under nine minutes to go.
The Warriors used a 6-0 run, with a four-point play by Podziemski, to get within 5. But, back-to-back 3s from Sheppard and Fred VanVleet left Houston up 102-91 midway through the quarter.
Houston’s Marcus Smart was ejected late in the third quarter for punching Golden State’s Charles Bassey. It was unclear what started the altercation between the two, but Smart threw a punch that appeared to lightly strike Bassey’s nose.
Smart was immediately pushed away by two other Warriors and an official grabbed Bassey around the waist and pulled him away. Smart didn’t wait for the officials to eject him, heading straight to the locker room after he was pulled away. The play was reviewed and he was issued a Flagrant 2 foul and ejected before play resumed.
Curry had been the team’s leading scorer in six of the last eight games as the Warriors had gone 8-0 after an 0-3 start.
The two-time MVP and 12-time all-star entered Wednesday’s game ranked second in the NBA by averaging 30.6 points a game this season.
Up next
Warriors: Visit San Antonio on Friday night as they continue a five-game road trip.
Rockets: Host Utah on Friday night.
