HOUSTON -- Sans Stephen Curry, the Golden State Warriors stumbled, righted themselves incredibly and then suddenly lost to a James Harden game-winner, 97-96. In one moment, a superstar claimed the game from a team that had battled admirably without theirs.

It was easy to indulge the fantasy that missing Curry was no big deal. It was easy to espouse caution with a 2-0 lead. Ease was illusory, though, as it often is in the playoffs. On the road, in the postseason crucible, role players can struggle and the crowd can galvanize the opponent's supporting cast.

So perhaps the start of Game 3 was inevitable, even if the Houston Rockets had previously looked like a squad divided. Simply put, the Warriors couldn't score, seemingly working twice as hard for shots. As for defense, their lack of it stoked at least one Steve Kerr tirade on the bench. At the end of one, it was Rockets 31, Warriors 18.

In the second quarter, the Rockets built the lead to 17 points. Here is a sampling of illustrative moments from the first half: Dwight Howard viciously blocked Festus Ezeli's dunk. Harden mixed up the usually masterful defender Andre Iguodala, knocking down a 3-pointer after knocking Iguodala off kilter. Michael Beasley beasted Harrison Barnes in the post with a spin move for a layup.

But thanks in large part to Marreese Speights, the tide turned. Golden State found an oasis of offense in Speights' jump shot (14 points in eight first-half minutes) and subsequent spacing, closing the gap to seven by the end of the half.

In the fourth quarter, it was Shaun Livingston pushing the Warriors (16 points) with, well, his push shot. He did it alongside a spirited, surprise performance from Ian Clark, who claimed the lead for Golden State with 1:21 left on a push shot of his own.

The wild sequence between 13 seconds and 2 seconds remaining ultimately decided the game. Trevor Ariza overthrew an inbounds pass that was stolen by Livingston and turned into a layup by Clark. Warriors by one with 10 seconds left. Houston did not rest, though. Without a timeout, the Rockets raced down the floor and Harden nailed a short, step-back game-winner.

Golden State botched the ensuing inbounds, effectively ending the thriller. The Warriors had come close to ending Houston's season (in all but the technicalities) by the hand of Ian Clark. That might be an accomplishment, but it's cold comfort to team that's now in a series, with the status of their best player in doubt.