Durant sets tone for Golden State in series opener

HOUSTON－Kevin Durant continues to deliver in the postseason for Golden State.

Durant scored 37 points on Monday night to lead the Warriors to a 119-106 triumph in Game 1 of the long-awaited showdown with the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference finals.

But if it were up to him, he would have done even more.

Durant wasn't happy when coach Steve Kerr took him out in late in the third quarter and loudly asked Kerr why he was being sat down.

Durant, who played just over 40 minutes, was asked if he'd prefer to play the entire 48.

"Probably so," he said.

Kerr acknowledged that he should have left him in at that point and raved about his performance after his fourth 30-point game these playoffs.

"This is why anybody would want him on their team ... I don't know what you do to guard him," Kerr said. "He can get any shot he wants."

Starting a playoff series on the road for the first time since 2014, the Warriors trailed by as many as nine early, but knotted the score by halftime and used a big run at the beginning of the fourth quarter to pull away.

"We're in the Western Conference finals, so they're going to come out with a lot of energy," Durant said. "We're going to take that first punch and keep punching."

Game 2 is on Wednesday night in Houston.

Eric Gordon opened the final period with a 3-pointer to pull the top-seeded Rockets within four, but Klay Thompson scored the first eight points of a 13-4 run to make it 100-87 with about eight minutes left.

Houston used a 9-3 spurt to cut the lead to 103-96 with less than five minutes to go, but Thompson struck again, hitting a wide open 3 to leave the Warriors ahead by 10 with four minutes left.

James Harden scored 41 to lead the Rockets, who lost at home for the second time this postseason.

"You're not going to come in and just knock them out," Houston coach Mike D'Antoni said.

"There were too many times where we had mental lapses. We didn't switch properly, turned the ball over and missed too many layups.

"We need to do a better job of staying up mentally."

Now the Rockets are left to regroup after losing their leg-up in the homecourt advantage they worked hard all season to get.

"It's nice to have home court," D'Antoni said. "But we don't have it. Now we've got to go get it."

Steph Curry added 18 for the Warriors, who are in the conference finals for a franchise-record fourth straight time.

It's Houston's first trip since 2015, when Golden State won the series in five games.

"I think he's going to get even better as the series goes on, which is good for us," Kerr said of Curry.

The Warriors, who are the second seed in the West, opened a playoff series away from Oracle Arena for the first time since 2014, when they lost to the Los Angeles Clippers 4-3 in the opening round.

Houston struggled to slow down Durant all night, and things got even worse when Trevor Ariza picked up his fifth foul with about 10 minutes left in the third with Golden State up by three.

Durant made two baskets for the Warriors around one by Chris Paul that left the Warriors up 73-68 a couple of minutes later.

"He's one of the best scorers ever," D'Antoni said of Durant. "I thought he was extremely good. But we can withstand that. We can't withstand turning the ball over and giving up so many wide open 3s."

Gordon added a layup for Houston after that, but Golden State scored the next six points, with a 3-pointer from Thompson, to make it 79-70 with just over four minutes left in the third.

Houston ended a scoring drought of more than two minutes with a dunk by Harden seconds later and the Warriors followed with another run, scoring six straight points to extend it to 85-72 with just over two minutes left in the third.

The Rockets rediscovered their offense after that, scoring the next eight points, powered by 3s from Gordon and Gerald Green, to get within 85-80 with about a minute left in the quarter.

Durant added two free throws to close out the quarter and leave the Warriors up 87-80 entering the fourth.

"Houston, they never stop," Durant said.

"They are always in the game with 3-point shots. We try to get good shots every time down and defend at the other end."

AP