SAN FRANCISCO -- Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry scored 29 points in 26 minutes Sunday night against the Houston Rockets, delivering a loud return performance from a 27-game absence that was missing only the final punctuation point.
Curry brought the Warriors back from 10 points down in the final five minutes and lined up a winning 30-footer at the buzzer, but the jumper missed long and the Warriors lost 117-116.
"Looked great when it left his hands," Rockets forward Kevin Durant said. "I was a little nervous seeing that ball in the air."
Curry's night started with a sputter. He volunteered to come off the bench to help manage his minutes and subbed in to the game for his brother, Seth Curry, with 4:54 left in the first quarter, getting a standing ovation from the crowd. In his first sequence, Curry had a flailing miss and committed a travel violation.
"First run was rough," Curry said. "Second run was great."