With a chance to close out their first-round playoff series against the Golden State Warriors, the Houston Rockets instead delivered a playoff flop to end their season Sunday night.
The Rockets won consecutive games to claw back from a 3-1 deficit and force a Game 7 but played their worst game of the series to be sent packing with a 103-89 loss .
"We had our chances in this series," coach Ime Udoka said. "We all expected to continue to be playing so it's a letdown. It's going to sting now but use it as motivation and let's all come back better. Don't be satisfied."
Houston won 52 games to capture the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference and return to the postseason for the first time since 2020. The seven seed Warriors eliminated the Rockets in the playoffs for a fifth time after doing so four times between 2015 and 2019.
"We had whatever amount of wins and second place and all that, but nobody cares about that right now," Udoka said. "It's about where we finished."