HOUSTON _ The Warriors have four All-Stars, but they could not lean on any of them to make a shot to force overtime.
Shortly after Kevin Durant missed a potential game-tying 3 at the top of the key, Stephen Curry also missed another look.
The result? The Warriors lost, 112-108, to the Houston Rockets in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals on Monday. There are many implications.
The Rockets tied the series, 2-2. They forced a Game 6 here on Friday. And though the Warriors still have home-court advantage with Game 5 on Wednesday at Oracle Arena, the Warriors look increasingly vulnerable.
Let's count the ways.
The Rockets' James Harden (38 points), Eric Gordon (20) and P.J. Tucker (17) punished the Warriors. While Durant maintained his prolific play with 34 points, Curry (30) and Klay Thompson (11) combined for 2-of-10 from 3.
The Rockets' math played on their side. They shot 17-of-50 from distance, while the Warriors only 8-of-33.
The Warriors' stars became plagued with foul trouble to Thompson (five) Durant (four), Curry (three), Green (three) and Andre Iguodala (three). The Warriors could not depend on anyone other than their starting five. And the Rockets won the fight on the boards for a second consecutive game (50-43).
The Warriors hardly sounded worried beforehand about Houston potentially tying the series. They considered it an overreaction to proclaim the series over after the took a 2-0 series lead. Likewise, the Warriors consider it an overreaction to suggest they are on trouble. As plenty of NBA observers say, a series never begins until a team steals a win on the road.
Nonetheless, the Warriors allowed the Rockets to breathe new life into the series. Unlike what they experienced here in a pivotal seventh game last year in the Western Conference Finals, the Warriors could not overcome adversity.
