Eric Gordon sank two free throws with 2.4 seconds left, and the Houston Rockets eked out a 98-94 victory over the visiting Golden State Warriors in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals on Thursday at Toyota Center. The Rockets will take a 3-2 series lead back to Oakland, Calif., with a chance to close out the defending NBA champions on Saturday.
With the Rockets clinging to a two-point lead, Gordon sealed the victory at the foul line.
The Warriors had an opportunity to pull even on their previous possession, but Draymond Green lost the basketball attempting a drive to the basket. Gordon recovered the loose ball.
Houston won Game 5 despite James Harden missing all 11 of his 3-point attempts while finishing with 19 points on 5-of-21 shooting. He also committed six turnovers.
The Rockets’ other leader, Chris Paul, was on the bench for the final 22.4 seconds due to a right hamstring injury. Paul scored 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting in the second half after scoring two points and missing all seven of his field-goal attempts before halftime.
Houston coach Mike D’Antoni told reporters postgame that Paul is “worried” about his status.
D’Antoni said, “He’ll be evaluated tomorrow. They’ll do whatever they can do. If he’s there (for Game 6), great. If he isn’t, we have enough guys. ... We’ll be all right.”
Gordon tallied a team-high 24 points off the bench. He sank a big basket down the stretch for the second game in a row.
Kevin Durant paced the Warriors with 29 points while Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined for 45 points on 16-of-31 shooting. However, Curry missed a runner off the glass with Golden State trailing by one point down the stretch. Green had 12 points, 15 rebounds and six turnovers.
Golden State closed the second quarter with an 8-0 spurt and pulled even at the break after Durant kept them afloat with 18 first-half points.
