The Warriors let a golden opportunity slip through their fingers Tuesday night.
Golden State blew a fourth-quarter lead to the Denver Nuggets, losing 119-115, and will have to travel to Houston to face the Rockets in the NBA Cup quarterfinals at 6:30 p.m. PT on Wednesday, Dec. 11.
The winner of the Warriors-Rockets game will face the winner of the other quarterfinal matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Cup semifinals on Saturday, Dec. 14 in Las Vegas.
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The NBA Cup championship game is on Tuesday, Dec. 17 in Las Vegas.
The Warriors entered Friday's game against the Nuggets as the No. 2 seed in the West and could have moved up to the No. 1 seed if they had won in Denver, while the Rockets lost to the Sacramento Kings.
One of those things happened as the Kings upset the Rockets 120-111 at Golden 1 Center.
Golden State Warriors
But the Warriors couldn't close the door on the Nuggets and now must win a road game to advance to the NBA Cup semifinal.
Golden State had a 115-108 lead with 2:30 remaining in the game, but Denver outscored them 11-0 to finish the contest.
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The loss is the Warriors' fifth in a row, and they are 12-8 this season.
The Warriors have three games to figure things out before the NBA Cup quarterfinals contest. Coincidentally, Golden State's first tune-up comes against the Rockets on Thursday night at Chase Center.
