Warriors Under Review: DeMarcus Cousins Plays Best Game of Season

HOUSTON - The Warriors got an important win Wednesday evening, beating the Rockets 106-104 to both keep their spot atop the Western Conference and avoid a season sweep. 

In a matchup between two high-powered offenses, it was the Warriors' defense throughout the night that kept the Rockets at bay. 

For a team in search of a consistent effort, the win helped the Dubs towards that goal as they trudge through a grueling four-game trip. 

Here are some of the positives and negatives from the game:

Positive

Boogie on down

DeMarcus Cousins was dominant, finishing with 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. 

Throughout the night, Boogie showed flashes of his pre-injury days, routinely taking advantage of Houston's switch-heavy defense, punishing undersized defenders in the post. 

More impressively, Cousins played well defensively, even drawing a first-quarter charge on James Harden and earned minutes down the stretch from Steve Kerr. 

In a game the Warriors needed his production, especially with Kevin Durant out with an ankle injury, Cousins delivered. 

Positive 

Klay Day (And Everybody's Celebratin') 

With all the talk of Cousins' breakout game, Klay Thompson had a achieved a milestone of his own, making his 200th 3-pointer of the season, joining his teammate Stephen Curry as the only other player to reach 200 or more 3-pointers in seven consecutive seasons. 

When asked if Curry and Thompson were the top two shooters in NBA history, Draymond Green had a frank answer: "100 percent." 

No arguments here.

Negative

Chef still isn't cooking from beyond the arc

While his Splash Brother continues to shoot the ball at a historic level, Stephen Curry is struggling to find a rhythm from 3-point range. Following 3-of-9 performance Wednesday night, Curry is now shooting just 31 percent from 3-point range over his last eight games. 

[RELATED: Steph reveals 'why I try to protect my joy' on his 31st birthday]

Positive

Warriors avoid the season sweep against Houston

While the Rockets won the season series for the second straight season, they did not run the table. Golden State's win also starts the four-game trip off on a good note. But, win or not, Green wasn't worried too much about the season series following the game. 

"We don't need to be juiced up from them," Green said. "We beat them. So we don't need to be juiced up for them to get on their level. That's dumb. That doesn't make sense."

Copyright CSNBY - CSN BAY
Contact Us