HOUSTON — Buddy Hield became an unlikely playoff hero for the Golden State Warriors, leading the team early in Game 7 against the Houston Rockets before Stephen Curry took over late.
Curry scored 14 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, Hield made nine three-pointers and scored 33 points, and the Warriors advanced to the Western Conference semifinals with a 103-89 win over the Houston Rockets on Sunday night.
“We were lucky to get out of this series,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said. “That was an incredibly impressive display of resolve.”
The Warriors will face the Timberwolves Tuesday night in Minnesota.
After not scoring in Game 6, Hield had a scorching first half with six three-pointers and 22 points to carry the Warriors to a 12-point lead, with Curry scoring just three points before the break. Then Curry took over in the closing minutes and performed his signature “night night” gesture as the Warriors put the Rockets away.
“This was not just a lights-out shooting performance for Buddy,” Kerr said. “It was a two-way performance. I thought his defence was fantastic.”
The Warriors became the seventh No. 7 seed in NBA history to advance to the semifinals and eliminated Houston in the playoffs for a fifth time. They sent the James Harden-led Rockets packing four times between 2015 and 2019.
None of the players from those teams remain with Houston, leading Fred VanVleet to say before the series that “this ain’t that team.”
Draymond Green, who helped beat the Rockets in Game 7 in 2018 to advance to the NBA Finals, mentioned VanVleet’s quote before continuing.
“It’s that organization, though,” he said. “We like coming to the city, playing in these situations. It’s been good to us.”
Hield was 9 of 11 from three-point range, setting an NBA record for a Game 7 and making more threes than the Rockets, who were 6 of 18 from long range.
“Just trying to seize the moment and relish the moment and just be in the moment at the same time,” Hield said. “Just trying to be myself. But tonight was fun.”
Curry added 10 rebounds and seven assists.
Amen Thompson scored 24 points to lead Houston, which forced Game 7 with two straight wins but couldn’t put away the experienced Warriors.
“We had our chances in this series,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. “We all expected to continue to be playing, so it’s a letdown. It’s going to sting now, but use it as motivation and let’s all come back better.”
Golden State led by eight entering the fourth and opened the quarter with a 5-0 run, capped by a three from Curry, to make it 75-62.
Houston scored the next six points, but the Warriors used a 7-2 spurt with four points from Curry to make it 82-70 with about seven minutes left.
Curry made a contested three, rebounded a missed jumper by Thompson and found Hield for an open corner three that made it 94-74 with 2:31 remaining.
That sent many of the red-clad Rockets fans streaming for the exits.
Jimmy Butler added 20 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for the Warriors, who improved to 28-11 since his debut on Feb. 8 after a trade from Miami.
VanVleet scored a combined 55 points in the last two games to help Houston extend the series. But he was limited to 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting Sunday to send the second-seeded Rockets home early in their first trip to the playoffs since 2020.
He was far from the only Rocket who struggled. Big man Alperen Sengun had 21 points and 14 rebounds. But he missed several easy shots on a 9-of-23 night.
Jalen Green, who had 38 points to lead Houston to a Game 2 win, finished with eight points.
“First playoffs is no excuse,” he said. “I’ve got to be better.”
The Warriors played without key reserve Gary Payton II, who sat out with an illness that coach Steve Kerr said had him “sick as a dog.”
Draymond Green added 16 points for the Warriors, who had four starters score in double figures.
