Without McGrady, Yao leads Rockets over Warriors
(AP)
Updated: 2006-02-25 14:31

"I don't think Yao gets the credit defensively for the improvements he's made in lateral quickness and mobility," Van Gundy said. "He's made great strides, and it's a nuance of the game that very few want to recognize."

Richardson had a nifty one-handed dunk to pull Golden State within two with about 30 seconds left, but the Warriors would get no closer.

"J-Rich had a monster game and he needed some help from other people," Warriors coach Mike Montgomery said.

Houston tied the game when rookie Luther Head hit a 3-pointer with under 5 minutes to go, and two free throws by Yao put the Rockets ahead 84-82.

Golden State tied the game at 76 early in the fourth when Richardson capped an 8-0 run with his second 3-pointer of the quarter. His dunk less than a minute later gave the Warriors their first lead of the game.

The Rockets didn't score for the first six minutes of the fourth quarter. Instead their offense consisted of bad passes and poor shots. Wesley's 20-footer with under 6 minutes remaining ended the drought.

"We were caving in and I thought they found a spirit and resolve in the last six minutes," Van Gundy said.

Houston led throughout the third quarter, but the Warriors threatened late in the third when a 3 by Richardson cut the lead to 66-65.

The Rockets answered with a dunk by Yao and two straight 3-pointers by Head, including an acrobatic one as the shot clock expired, to stretch the lead to 74-65.

Richardson's seven 3-pointers tied a franchise record. It's the second time he's matched the total.

Head had 11 points and Rafer Alston and Wesley each added 10.

Golden State got 16 points from Fisher and 15 from Troy Murphy.