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 Curry went down in the second quarter of Game Four in the Western
Conference Finals, falling hard on his upper back and neck after
flipping over Rockets forward Trevor Ariza, silencing a previously
raucous Houston home crowd.
The star point guard remained on the floor below the basket for a
few minutes to receive treatment before gently rising to his feet
and walking slowly back to the locker room as he left the game with
a head contusion.
However, Curry surprisingly returned to the fray with about six
minutes remaining in the third after tests determined he had not
suffered a concussion.
"Obviously that's always scary. Guy hits his neck, you worry about
that," Golden State coach Steve Kerr told reporters.
He said Curry was assessed using concussion protocols.
"Our doctors cleared him and he's doing fine."
Curry's return did little to change the momentum of the game,
though, as the Rockets rode a monumental 45-point effort from
Harden, his best ever playoff haul, to avoid the sweep.
Harden also pulled down nine rebounds, while center Dwight Howard
notched 14 points and 12 boards as the Rockets ensured they would
live to fight another day, pulling back to 3-1 down in the
best-of-seven series.
Curry finished with 23 points, while guard Klay Thompson led the
Warriors with 24.
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Golden State, who will have their next chance to close out the
series back in Oakland on Wednesday, have not been to the NBA finals
since 1975.
No team has ever lost a best-of-seven series after winning the first
three games but the Rockets did improve to 4-0 while facing
elimination this post-season, the latest victory added to the ones
they strung together after trailing the Los Angeles Clippers 3-1 in
the last round.
(Reporting by Cameron French; Editing by John O'Brien)
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