The Golden State Warriors will go back to Chase Center tied at 1-1 in their first-round series against the Houston Rockets, having suffered a 109-94 loss at Toyota Center on Wednesday night.
While the loss was one thing, the Warriors will be far more concerned with the health of Jimmy Butler after the 6x All-Star landed hard on a rebound in the first-quarter and exited with a pelvic contusion.
All eyes will be on Jimmy Butler's injury after the Warriors' Game 2 loss
Houston quickly took advantage of Butler's absence, extending their lead to 20 early in the second-quarter after Steve Kerr started the period with an unusual lineup of Pat Spencer, Buddy Hield, Jonathan Kuminga, Draymond Green and Quinten Post.
That was the sort of night it was for Golden State though, with Butler's injury adding to Brandin Podziemski's illness which saw the second-year guard go scoreless and without a single stat in 14 minutes.
The Warriors did battle on and looked at times like they were one big run away from parachuting back into the game, including in the fourth-quarter where a 9-0 run cut the Rockets lead to 11 with over seven minutes still to play.
Jalen Green's eight threes and 38 points meant Houston had an answer on every occasion, with Steve Kerr eventually pulling the plug in removing Stephen Curry with just under four minutes remaining.
Curry had 20 points, five rebounds and nine assists, but Butler's exit meant it was the familiar early season tale of a one-man band. Moses Moody and Quinten Post combined to go for 24 points on 7-of-14 shooting from 3-point range, while Kuminga and Spencer also reached double-digits with 11 apiece.
