SAN FRANCISCO – Facing the league’s most physical and handsy defense without his fearless costar, the Warriors asked the 37-year-old Steph Curry to put the offense on his shoulders in the third game of Golden State’s playoff series with the Rockets.

Three games into the NBA postseason, and the Warriors already have some schtick going. That was evident after Game 3, a game that saw star forward Jimmy Butler sit out with a pelvic contusion. More responsibility was heaped onto Curry, and he certainly responded.

But Houston cannot afford to let bench players Gary Payton II and Buddy Hield make major impacts. Payton finished with a postseason career-high 16 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter, and Hield was 5-for-11 on 3-point attempts to help finish with 17 points in 29 minutes.