rockets in race for home court
Yao Ming scored 30 points, Tracy McGrady got 11 of his 25 points in the final five minutes and the Houston Rockets snapped a three-game home losing streak with a 123-112 win over the New Orleans Hornets on Saturday night.
Rafer Alston added 21 points and a season-high 13 assists for the Rockets, who started the night one game ahead of Utah in the race for home-court advantage in their first-round playoff series.
McGrady had 10 assists for the Rockets, who reached a season-high point total at the Toyota Center. Houston's 33 assists were also a season high.
David West matched his season high with 33 points and Chris Paul added 20 points and 15 assists for the Hornets, who are all but mathematically eliminated from playoff contention. New Orleans started the night two games behind Golden State and the Los Angeles Clippers in the race for the No. 8 playoff spot in the West.
New Orleans center Tyson Chandler missed his fifth straight game with an injured left big toe. The 7-foot-1 Chandler defended Yao well in two previous matchups this season. Without him, the Hornets struggled to stop the 7-foot-6 Yao, who hit 11 of 16 shots and went 8-for-11 from the free-throw line.
Yao reached 30 points for the sixth time since returning from a broken right leg. McGrady recorded double-digit assists for the 11th time.
| Team Stat Comparison | ||
| NO/OKLAHOMA CITY | HOUSTON | |
| Points | 112 | 123 |
| FG Made-Attempted | 45-83 (.542) | 49-84 (.583) |
| 3P Made-Attempted | 5-17 (.294) | 9-19 (.474) |
| FT Made-Attempted | 17-20 (.850) | 16-20 (.800) |
| Rebounds (Offensive-Total) | 10-33 | 8-30 |
| Assists | 26 | 33 |
| Turnovers | 12 | 9 |
| Steals | 5 | 8 |
| Blocks | 3 | 4 |
| Fast Break Points | 8 | 8 |
| Fouls (Tech/Flagrant) | 16 (0/0) | 17 (0/0) |
| Largest Lead | 1 | 15 |
| Top Performers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| NO/OKLAHOMA CITY | HOUSTON | ||
 | C. Paul Points: 20 Reb: 8 Ast: 15 Stl: 1 Blk: 0 |  | T. McGrady Points: 25 Reb: 7 Ast: 10 Stl: 3 Blk: 1 |
| Game Leaders | ||
| NO/OKLAHOMA CITY | HOUSTON | |
| Points | D. West 33 | Y. Ming 30 |
| Rebounds | C. Paul 8 | T. McGrady 7 |
| Assists | C. Paul 15 | R. Alston 13 |
| Steals | D. West 2 | R. Alston 3 |
| Blocks | D. West 1 | Y. Ming 2 |
Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home