The Golden State Warriors’ NBA Cup run is over in remarkable circumstances as they surrendered a six-point lead with just over a minute to go against the Houston Rockets.
Leading 90-84 with 1.15 on the clock, the Rockets went on a 7-0 run to lead with the Warriors taking a timeout in the last 3.5 seconds.
Ime Udoka’s men expertly shackled that play as Brandim Podziemski air-balled a frantic three to see his team crash out at the quarterfinals stage.
It had been a defensive masterclass from Draymond Green till that point and Jonathan Kuminga continued his ascent, top-scoring with 20 points.
However, despite all that, the fans were clear that only one man was responsible for the loss, which nobody saw coming with over a minute left on the clock.
The Warriors looked well on their way to reaching the semifinals of the NBA Cup when they were sitting comfortably with a six-point lead.
However, what transpired after that was straight from the stuff of nightmares. Draymond Green set the ball rolling with a bad pass that went out of bounds and ceded possession.
15 seconds later, Green had his fourth personal foul followed by Alperen Sengun’s layup which cut the lead down further.
Steph Curry missed a three-point shot going the other way and even though Gary Payton pulled down the rebound, he proceeded to lose possession.
That is when the most contentious moment of the game arrived as Jonathan Kuminga was adjudged to have committed a personal foul when there was a loose ball on the floor.
With the Warriors being at their foul limit, it sent Jalen Green to the line for two free throws which he made successfully to bring Rockets into the lead.
Steve Kerr was left stunned at the referee calling a foul instead of a loose ball, as was the rest of the Warriors team and it ultimately cost them the game.
Kerr said after the game he had never seen anything like it, calling it “unconscionable” in scathing remarks.
Referee Bill Kennedy was firmly in the crosshairs of the Warriors fans after the game, with most targeting their ire towards him for the loss.
“Billy Kennedy should be booed every second he’s inside Chase Center for the rest of his life. They also missed not 1 but 2 fouls on Curry 3s…I wonder if Steph correctly having 6 more free throw attempts in a 1 point game makes the difference too,” ranted one fan.
Another said: “In a game where something is on the line it’s got to be called a jump ball, it’s just insane how the refs just bailed the rockets out with a bad call.”
A third insinuated that Kennedy wilted to the home crowd pressure: “When in doubt, refs don’t want to anger 18,000 people. They’re human too.”
A fourth echoed similar sentiments: “Worst call u can make in that situation fire that ref!!!”.
Another laid out the timeline of events which reflected even worse on the referee in his opinion: “GP2 grabbed the rebound and Kerr called timeout but ref didn’t pay attention, Huston got the ball back and they called time out and ref gave them free throw.”
The Warriors’ NBA Cup adventure is finished but they will look to get their season back on track with a home game against Klay Thompson’s Dallas Mavericks.
Related Posts
