The Golden State Warriors (10) defeated the Houston Rockets (0 - 1), 110 - 106, on Tuesday at the Oracle Arena in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. In a matchup that featured the top two finishers in the MVP voting this season, Golden State's Stephen Curry and Houston's James Harden lived up to the billing. Curry hit six three pointers on his way to scoring 34 points on the night and Harden barely missed notching a triple - double as he posted 28 points, 11 rebounds, and nine assists. Houston battled until the final buzzer, but some costly turnovers down the stretch proved to be too much to overcome. The Warriors went on an 110 run over a three minute stretch in the fourth quarter to create a lead that the Rockets could n't overcome. These teams will be back in action Thursday for Game 2 at the Oracle Arena. Houston got a tremendous performance from Harden, but Dwight Howard had a limited impact on Game 1. Howard injured his knee early in the game and finished with just seven points in 26 minutes of action. His inability to take advantage of Golden State's smaller lineup combinations hindered Houston's chances to take Game 1 on the road. If Howard's knee injury lingers, it will have a massive impact on how this series unfolds. The Rockets will need bigger contributions from their front court in Game 2 to even the series at one game apiece. Golden State is well known for its fast paced style that can lead to big runs, and Tuesday's contest was no different. The 11 point run in the fourth quarter exemplified why Golden State locked up the number one seed in the Western Conference. In addition to Curry's strong outing, Shaun Livingston created a big spark off the bench. Livingston had 14 of his 18 points in the second quarter to help the Warriors gain the lead going into halftime. The Warriors will look to take advantage of turnovers again on Thursday to take a two game advantage in the series.
["TeamStat(G,'Warriors') has 110 Losses ,has 1 Total points ."
 "TeamStat(G,'Rockets') has 1 Losses ,has 106 Total points ,has 0 Wins ."]