Steph Curry had 18 points, four rebounds, and five assists on just seven shots in the first half of Friday’s contest. The Golden State Warriors were so dominant on the whole, though, that the MVP’s brilliance was somehow easy to overlook. But then the third quarter happened.
Spurred by a 25-point lead at intermission over the overmatched and uninspired Houston Rockets, Golden State won Game 3 by a mind-bending score of 115-80. Curry had 40 points, five rebounds, and seven assists on 12-of-19 shooting, a virtuoso performance that will go down in league annals as an all-time classic. But he had help from the opening tip, too, as Draymond Green scored 17 points and corralled 13 rebounds while Andrew Bogut had 12 points and 12 rebounds of his own.
James Harden couldn’t continue his stellar Conference Finals play, managing 17 points on dismal 3-of-16 shooting. And though a spry Dwight Howard had his moments en route to 14 points and 14 rebounds, his impact wasn’t near enough to keep the sluggish Rockets close.
Curry’s dominance was easy to to miss in the first two quarters, but certainly not in the third. As Houston made a tepid run to try and make things competitive, the MVP shouldered the Warriors’ scoring load with ease. 11 of Golden State’s first 12 points were scored by Curry, a crucial stretch that culminated in the team regaining complete control of the game after it let down immediately following halftime. He finished the quarter with 19 back-breaking points.
But Curry made history even before inducing a widespread social media frenzy. With this casual 28-footer in the second quarter, he broke Reggie Miller’s record for three-pointers made in a single postseason.
Steph Curry just made his 59th three-pointer of playoffs.
…Nobody has more in a single postseason, NBA history. pic.twitter.com/joYSZWSHqs
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) May 24, 2015
Just how far will Curry take his three-point record? Well, certainly further if Houston hadn’t ceded a 3-0 series advantage to Golden State. With a Finals appearance seemingly imminent, though, it’s safe to say Curry won’t mind. He and his team will be playing for a title soon enough.
The Warriors have the chance to win the Western Conference crown in Monday night’s Game 4.
