James Harden followed up a near triple-double in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals with an even more impressive near triple-double in Game 2, racking up 38 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists in leading the Houston Rockets to the brink of stealing a road game before heading back to Houston. Thanks to some clutch Rockets defense, Harden found himself with the ball as the clock wound down and his team down one point. Then, for some reason, Harden, who had been in full-on attack mode all night, dished the ball off to Dwight Howard (yeah, Dwight Howard) at the top of the arc, who promptly passed it right back as Klay Thompson and Steph Curry converged on Harden for a double team. The trap worked as Harden lost the ball as time ran out.
Now, the Rockets head back to Houston with two close losses to stew over and a very tough salvage operation ahead of them. The Rockets aren’t done in this series, but the Warriors haven’t lost four out of five games at any point this season (something that would need to happen in order for the Rockets to win), meaning a comeback would be even more improbable than the one Harden & Co. pulled off against the Clippers.
In a related story, Harden vs. Steph continues to be everything as advertised:
