HOUSTON -- The Rockets offence is one of the best in the NBA. Cheap Pacers Jerseys . However, against Golden State on Friday night, it was the defence that was the key. Houston leaned on its defence in the first quarter while jumping out to a double-digit lead it didnt relinquish. James Harden scored 34 points, Dwight Howard had 22 points and 18 rebounds, and the Rockets beat the Warriors 105-83. Terrence Jones added 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets, who had lost two straight. Harden shot 13 for 22 from the field and 7 for 9 on free throws two nights after shooting 3 for 17 -- including 0 for 10 on 3-pointers -- against Phoenix. Howard was 12 for 20 on free throws as the Rockets finished 25 for 39 from the line. Houston was also 45 per cent from the field. "Thats the way we play," Harden said. "If we dont get after them on the defensive end, its going to be tough for us. We were getting huge stops and getting out in transition. We did a good job early in the game of putting pressure on their guards, and we got things going our way." Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 22 points and five assists, but was just 5 of 14 from the field while making all 11 free-throw attempts. Harrison Barnes had 14 points and seven rebounds, Kent Bazemore added 12 and David Lee 11 points as the Warriors saw their two-game win streak end. Golden State shot 36 per cent from the field, including 2 for 16 on 3s. "Theyre a tough team," Houston coach Kevin McHale said. "They shoot a lot of 3s. They shoot them at a really high percentage. We were trying to get them off the line and keep pressure on them and keep our bids up so they just couldnt walk into shots. For the most part, we did a very good job of that." Golden State coach Mark Jackson said it was a bad loss. "The way we started the ball game, there have been times when our bench has been bad, and we let them know, and tonight, the starters did a poor job of setting the tone," Jackson said. "We got outworked. They played with more force and that set the tone the rest of the way." The Rockets led 61-37 at halftime and pushed the advantage to 28 on Hardens three-point play less than 2 minutes into the third quarter. Golden State pulled to 74-50 on Jermaine ONeals jumper midway through the third, and the Warriors resorted to Hack-a-Howard with 5:40 remaining in the period. Howard made 2 of 4 from the line, and the Warriors pulled to 76-54 on ONeals layup with 5:06 to go in the quarter. Howard connected on the next two free throws, and the Warriors went away from hacking him. Golden State got no closer than 15 points the rest of the way. "Its like tonight we didnt hit shots early, and we have a tendency to dwell on that, and we werent getting stops and we cant turn the ball over on offence," Curry said. "We gave them extra possessions early in the game to get their confidence going." Houston opened up a 31-12 lead after the first quarter on 60-per cent shooting from the field. The Rockets hit nine of their first 11 field goals as Jones led the way with 11 points in the quarter and Howard had nine. "We did the best job we could on making sure those guys didnt get 3s off tonight, and thats where it started," Howard said. "Our defence was great from the beginning. We had a lot of deflections. We ran the floor well and put pressure on their guards to make plays to other guys instead of them coming off and scoring." Golden State opened the second with five straight points to pull within 14 on Currys 3, but the Rockets responded with a 16-6 spurt over a 5-minute stretch to open up a 55-30 lead on Patrick Beverleys layup with 1:30 to go in the half. Harden had eight points in the run. The Warriors shot 27 per cent from the field and hit 1 of 8 from beyond the arc in the first half after scoring 19 points in the first quarter three nights earlier against Toronto and trailing by 17 at the half. "I know there is a reason for it thats excusable," Klay Thompson said of the slow starts. "Its very disappointing. As a starter, we have to come out there with unlimited energy." NOTES: Houston forward Chandler Parsons returned after missing the last two games with back spasms. Parsons finished with eight points and five assists on 3-of-13 shooting in 34 minutes. ... The Warriors 12 first quarter points tied a season low for a quarter and was the Warriors fewest points in a first quarter. ... The 12 first-quarter points was also a season-low for points in a quarter allowed by the Rockets. Indiana Pacers Shirts . And fellow Leaf, Jake Gardiner, hiking in Whistler. Indiana Pacers Gear .J. -- Kevin Gilbride retired Thursday as offensive co-ordinator for the New York Giants. https://www.cheappacers.com/ . Rajon Rondo had 18 of Bostons season-high 38 assists and the Celtics committed just seven turnovers in a 118-111 win over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night.Michael van Gerwen will face a rejuvenated Phil Taylor in Sundays World Matchplay final after both players eased through their semi-finals. The worlds top four players clashed in the last four, with current holder and world No 1 Michael van Gerwen easing past 2013 finalist Adrian Lewis 17-9 before 15-time champion Phil Taylor turned back the clock to dismantle back-to-back World Champion Gary Anderson 17-8.Taylor, who has only lost seven times in Blackpool since 1994, produced a demolition job over The Flying Scotsman, averaging 101.63 to book his place in the final. He also landed nine maximums and finished with an impressive 49 per cent on the doubles to lay down his marker ahead of Sundays showdown with Dutchman Van Gerwen.The Power averaged a remarkable 114.99 during the early stages of his clash and broke twice, winning five legs on the trot to move 7-2 up before the Borders thrower held in the 10th leg. The 55-year-old was in electrifying form on the Winter Gardens oche, throwing metronomic and fluid arrows to go eight clear at 12-4.Anderson was receiving a major hiding, despite averaging just under 100, and although the Scot broke his opponents throw for the first time in the match in the 17th leg, Taylor stepped on the gas to set up a repeat of the 2014 final. Phil Taylor will face Van Gerwen in the final after The Power thumped Gary Anderson Taylor admitted he punished Anderson at crucial times as he looked to be back to his ruthless best on the second biggest stage on planet darts.He put himself under pressure and he knows that. I was something like 11-4 thinking I need another six legs here, thinking this is hard work, he told Sky Sports.He is now expecting another classic encounter against top-ranked Van Gerwen which is a clash he is truly relishing.It will be a good game, of course it will. I fancy my chances. Hes in for a battle. Im over the moon to be in the final, he added. Van Gerwen triumphs [picture courtesy of Lawrence Lustig/PDC] Van Gerwen returned to the final with a destructive 17-9 victory over Adrian Lewis in the first semi-final.The world No 1 improved on the form which saw him overcome Jamie Caven, Kyle Anderson and Dave Chisnall so far this week in his bid to add a 12th tournament victory of 2016. Taylor is not a normal 55-year-old Phil Taylor has the belief to beat Michael van Gerwen in Matchplay final, says Wayne Mardle Van Gerwen completed a sixth win in his last seven televised meetings with Lewis, whose only win came in the final of the World Cup of Darts last month, in emphatic style.Stoke thrower Lewis fought back from an early deficit to level up at 3-3, but then the 27-year-old went into overdrive, winning five legs in a row to move 8-3 up. Michael van Gerwen felt he was lucky to win after his 17-9 victory over Adrian Lewis World No 4 Lewis landed his arrow in wrong bed when aiming for double top just when he looked like making a comeback at 8-5, and Van Gerwen duly punished him for the lapse in concentration. Indiana Pacers Store. .At 12-9, the game looked in the balance but Mighty Mike turned on the afterburners to accelerate away, winning the last five legs to complete the job.He finished with an impressive 101.23 three-dart average, with eight maximums and 49 per cent success on the doubles to reach his third World Matchplay final on the spin. Wayne Mardle and Rod Harrington share their views on the final between Taylor and Van Gerwen I thought I was lucky, Van Gerwen told Sky Sports Rod Studd. Im a lucky man tonight and Im really glad I won.Van Gerwen was left furious with Lewis antics on stage as he tried to slow the Dutchmans play down, which he felt was wrong.I dont know why the top players in the world try to slow me down and need to try everything in the book. I think thats out of order. I just want to play a good darts game. I dont need all the hassle, he added.Theyre probably a bit scared, I think Im a fair player but I won the game and thats the most important thing.And on Taylor, Van Gerwen added: You can never underestimate Phil Taylor. Hes a fantastic player. Check out daily Darts news on skysports.com/darts, our app for mobile devices and iPad and our Twitter account @skysportsdarts and watch the final between Michael van Gerwen and Phil Taylor, live on Sky Sports 1 HD this Sunday. By purchasing a Sky Sports Day Pass for £6.99 or Sky Sports Week Pass for £10.99, you can enjoy access to all seven Sky Sports channels and watch on a TV with a NOW TV Box or on a range of devices. Also See: As it happened... Sky Bets darts odds Live on Sky Player Profiles NOW TV ' ' '