Spurs rout James Harden, Rockets 114-75 to win series

Leonard still led the Spurs with 22 points and 15 rebounds.

As of publishing, the Rockets are 6.5-point favorites in tonight’s matchup. Houston’s performance was pitiful.

The Rockets’ 75 points were by far their fewest in a game this season.

Leonard sat out much of the fourth quarter of Game 5 on Tuesday and didn’t take the court for overtime after he came down on the foot of James Harden while turning to run up the court with 5:37 remaining in the third quarter.

By all accounts, James Harden and the Houston Rockets were horrendous on Thursday night. Keep in mind that the Spurs did beat the Warriors in their last postseason meeting in the 2013 Western Conference Semifinals. So did Mike D’Antoni, in a terrific comeback effort to the National Basketball Association, that ended in yet another playoff disappointment when facing Gregg Popovich.

After barely making the playoffs previous year, the only major personnel change was the hiring of coach Mike D’Antoni. Thursday’s win over the Rockets is just another reminder of why San Antonio can just let the work speak for itself. Pau Gasol and Danny Green scored 10 apiece.

“I’m a hooper”, Harden said. Missing their best player, they collectively chipped in to make up for his absence. Will Pop be willing to play small against the Warriors, even if that means succumbing to their pace? It’s the most losses to a single team by the Warriors during that stretch.

NOTES: Spurs F Kawhi Leonard hopes to return to action Sunday for Game 1 of the Western Conference finals at Golden State.

But around newcomer Kevin Durant, things have smoothed for the Warriors since. You take the Warriors in anything less than six and it feels like you’re disrespecting the Spurs. Jonathon Simmons has been announced as the starter. Murray had a double-double off the bench with 11 points and 10 rebounds. San Antonio led by as many as 42 points in the second half, administering a thorough beating before a rapidly thinning crowd.

This was, without a doubt, the worst game the Rockets played all year, and there really is nothing to sugarcoat about this game. Back-to-back threes gave the crowd a little more energy, though. The Spurs also are concerned about an injury to their most important player, Kawhi Leonard.

Of course, the Spurs will have no chance if Leonard isn’t healthy. The two top dogs of the Western Conference had their fate officially sealed on Thursday night, when the Spurs eliminated the Houston Rockets in the Western Conference Semifinals.

The Rockets were miserable in Game 6, to be sure. However, his shooting touch betrayed him, the Thunder turned Tim Duncan into a pile of mush, and San Antonio lost three straight games.