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The Golden State Warriors got tripped up by the Houston Rockets in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals on Wednesday, taking a 127-105 loss. The Warriors’ defense in the game was not as tight as it was in the series opener, as evidenced by Houston making over 51 percent of their shots with a number of secondary players going off for the Rockets.
Kevin Durant tried to take the blame for the Warriors’ relatively lethargic performance, saying during postgame interviews with reporters that by starting the game off with a turnover and allowing Trevor Ariza to get hot early set a bad tone for the Warriors and injected confidence to the Rockets.
"I take full responsibility for the start of the game. After that, it was just contagious. I can't start off the game like that." – @KDTrey5 after Game 2 loss#NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/u7qPLKQ7OZ
— NBA TV (@NBATV) May 17, 2018
On paper, Durant was the only Warrior who got it going in the game. The former league MVP exploded yet again by scoring 38 points on 13-for-22 shooting with three 3-pointers after putting up 37 in the series opener. That said, Durant concluded the game Wednesday with a plus/minus of minus-28 — the worst by any player from both sides.
Ariza had 19 points, while PJ Tucker went off for a playoff career-high of 22 points on 8-for-9 shooting, including five 3-pointers to help the Rockets pull off a series-tying victory.
Going back to Durant, he’s been the best player for the Warriors in the playoffs. He leads the team in the postseason with 29.6 points per game and has been stepping it up of late. In the last four games, Durant has managed 34.3 points with a 55.3 field goal shooting percentage.
Durant and the Warriors have three full days to make adjustments with Game 3 of the series to be held this Sunday in Oakland.
