friday night's NBA doubleheader featured a nightcap with the Houston Rockets hosting the San Antonio Spurs. Harden and the Rockets were looking to gain a 2-1 series lead with their first game at home in the series. However, the Spurs got a combined 52 points from LaMarcus Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard to grab a double-digit victory. Here's a look at how San Antonio went into Houston and captured Game 3 of this best-of-seven NBA playoffs series.
How the Spurs got the win
Both Leonard and Aldridge stepped up in the latest Spurs' victory with 26 points apiece.
Leonard went 9-for-20 from the floor while Aldridge was 12-of-20. The MVP candidate Leonard also had ten boards and seven assists in his night along with a steal. Also chipping in for the win were Patty Mills off the bench with 15 points and five rebounds, as well as Pau Gasol who started and finished with 12 points and nine rebounds.
San Antonio was without their veteran guard Tony Parker who was hurt during Game 2. The NBA champion point guard had surgery for his left quadriceps on Friday and could be sidelined for as long as eight months. That also could lead to those lingering rumors of an impending retirement, depending on how Parker recovers and feels.
As a team, the Spurs shot just over 45 percent from the floor, but the Rockets shot a disappointing 36.4 percent including a 12-for-39 rate for three-pointers taken.
Ironically, the Spurs also had a whopping 20 turnovers compared to 14 for the home team, but San Antonio grabbed the rebounding edge 49-39.
James Harden led the Houston Rockets, and all players for that matter, with 43 points but in the losing effort. The NBA All-Star guard went 14-for-28 including his 5-for-13 three-point shooting.
Harden also had five assists and three steals in the game.
The rest of Houston's starters combined for 39 points on the night. Trevor Ariza finished with 12 points which included five three-pointers made. The bench, which usually gets a charge from Eric Gordon and Lou Williams, added just 10 points for the game.
When do they play again?
The Houston Rockets will host the San Antonio Spurs for Game 4 of their NBA playoffs 2017 series on Sunday. Game time is scheduled for 9 p.m. Eastern Time. TNT will show the live television coverage of the game in its entirety. Live streaming is available through the TNTDrama website or WatchTNT apps. There's also a live stream feed for TNT available through the SlingTV service which offers a free one week trial to new customers.
A Game 5 will also be played, and that takes place on Tuesday, May 9th from San Antonio. TNT will televise game coverage with a time "to be determined."