It’s the Warriors vs. the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, Part 4

Those who have been happy with the last three NBA Finals featuring the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers will once again see these two teams battle it out for the Championship. The Warriors came back from a 54-43 halftime deficit to beat the Rockets 101-92 in Houston in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals and advance to the NBA Finals for the fourth year in a row. And once again, they will take on the Eastern Conference champion Cavaliers, as they have in the previous three.

Golden State came back on the basis of a huge third quarter. The Warriors outscored the Rockets 33-15 in the quarter, and then 25-23 in the fourth to claim the victory. The Rockets were incredibly bad at shooting three pointers in this game, missing 27 straight attempts. They were just 7 of 44 beyond the arc. They weren’t very good from the free throw line either, hitting just 13 of 22 (Golden State was just 7 of 14 from the line so it wasn’t a showcase of good free throw shooting). Kevin Durant led the Warriors with 34 points, Stephen Curry had 27, plus 10 assists, and Klay Thompson added 19 points.

James Harden led Houston with 32 points. Chris Paul was ruled out due to a hamstring injury; we can only speculate if that would have made enough of a difference in that third quarter especially. But the Warriors have proven time and again they are the team to beat in the West, and in the NBA itself. Golden State beat the Cavaliers in 2015 and 2017, with the Cavs winning in 2016. Golden State is considered a heavy favorite in the Finals, which begin in Oakland on May 31st.