The San Antonio Spurs hosted the Houston Rockets in Game 1 of their Western Conference Semifinals series. It was the first time that these two teams met in the postseason since the 1995 Western Conference finals. AT&T Center in San Antonio was fully packed with 18,000 fans ready to see the duel between the Texas rivals. Entering Monday's matchup The Rockets won five straight postseason games in San Antonio and they wanted to extend that streak to six. The last time the Spurs won a playoff game at home against Houston was May 30, 1995. A lot was at stake in Game 1 since neither team wanted to start their second round with a loss.
Houston wins in a blowout fashion
Houston and San Antonio met four times during the regular season with Spurs winning three of those four matchups. All four of those games were closely contested and decided by six points or less. The Rockets started off Game 1 with no fear whatsoever and played great basketball from the opening tip. They outscored San Antonio 34-21 in the first quarter and played even better in the second period. Early in the second quarter Houston went on a 15-4 run and took a comanding 49-25 lead. At halftime they were up by 30 points (69-39) with 12 three-pointers made. Houston was absolutely sensational in that first half as they shot 48.9 percent from the field, 44 percent from behind the arc, and 100 percent from the free throw line.
They showed no signs of slowing down in the third quarter as they were up by 35 points (85-50) midway through the third period. Entering the fourth quarter, Houston held a 96-67 lead. Their biggest lead of the game was 39 points (119-80), and they ended up winning the game 126-99. It was the worst home playoff loss in Spurs' franchise history and the worst loss in a series opener under coach Gregg Popovich.
Houston was 22-for-50 from the three-point line in Game 1, the most ever attempted and made against San Antonio in their postseason franchise history. The Rockets finished with 30 assists on 40 field goals.
Harden leads the way in Game 1
James Harden led the way for Houston in Monday night's victory. He finished the game with 20 points and a playoff career-high 14 assists.
The Rockets had six different players finish in double-digit scoring. Trevor Ariza was the leading scorer with 23 points while Clint Capela added 20 points and 13 rebounds.
The only bright spot for San Antonio in this game was Kawhi Leonard. Leonard finished with 21 points, 11 rebounds and six assists in 32 minutes of playing time.
Game 2 of this series will be played on Wednesday night in San Antonio.
