NBA: James Harden after Rocks defeat in Game 3: “Too slow and too soft”.

The Houston Rockets got pretty bogged down in Game 3 at the Golden State Warriors: 41 points difference were on the scoreboard at the end. James Harden and Co., however, were self-critical after the game and praised the improvement.

“It was one thing leading to another. We played soft and you can’t afford that against these guys – they’re too good for that,” said coach Mike D’Antoni after the match. “If you want to score, you have to play well. But we didn’t hit our shots early and dropped the balls. It wasn’t a good game and we have to improve for Tuesday.”

Superstar James Harden reaffirmed his coach’s words: “We weren’t as aggressive as we should have been. We came into the game quite solidly, but then let them gain self-confidence at the end of the first quarter. “They didn’t feel us defensively, and we saw that tonight.”

Harden was the Rockets’ best scorer with 20 points, but often only lagged behind in the defence against Stephen Curry. “We started the second half too slow, too slow and too soft. We didn’t have any penetrating power on the offensive and they used it mercilessly,” The Beard added.

“It was 22-22 in the first quarter and then they were suddenly leading 31-22, so we have to be better,” said Chris Paul, who finished the match with a meager 13 points (5-16 from the field). “We must play more aggressively and not let them control the game. We knew they would be strong in front of the home crowd, but still we just have to be better in game 4.”

“They gave us a catch and we went down,” D’Antoni closed and urged us to focus on game 4. “We have to forget about this now. It’s 1-2 and we have to get a game here. The next one we have to win.”