The Houston Rockets lost 95-85 to the Golden State Warriors in Game 1 of the first round of the Western Conference.
The home team was badly offensive in the first half, scoring just 34 points and ultimately winning over them.
The Rockets no longer have a home court advantage in the series, and Game 2 is suddenly broken.
Udoka shared what he said to the players shortly after the defeat and how his team could bounce back on Wednesday.
The Rockets went up the game in the second half, surpassing the Warriors three times, but were too little and too late to win Game 1.
Udoka looked back at the loss and pointed out that despite the disappointing performances of several players, they still had “a chance.”
He told reporters at a post-game press conference: “It’s always a good formula to get quality shots without flipping the ball over and get quality shots, and when we didn’t do that, they came out and ran, especially in the first half.
“We got the second best and got a better quality look, but even when it was said, we didn’t get particularly well shot. Obviously look at Fred (Van Vriet), Jalen (Smith) and Amen (Thompson).
“I told the group, “We’ve kept well. We need to do a better offensive show and take care of the ball with lower intervals.”
Of course, I don’t want to lose a playoff game, but the Rocket can take something positive by keeping it relatively close despite filming less than 40% off the field.
The Rockets were significantly better in the regular season, but the Warriors were a clear favorite to win the series.
Udoka’s teams seriously lack playoff experience, but Steph Curry, Draymond Green and Steve Kerr all have won four championships.
After the first game, the Rockets are currently the major underdogs who will make it to the Western Conference semifinals, but it’s still too early to write them down.
However, they need to level the series by winning Game 2. Otherwise, they will need to beat the Warriors twice at Chase Center.
The key to Wednesday’s victory is improving shooting from 3-point range. Ideally, you want to double the efficiency of just 20.7% from Game 1.