AnotherHotCornerHasBeen

I watched the Houston Rockets’ game against the Los Angeles Lakers this afternoon and I was really shocked, almost as much as the Lakers appeared to be! The Rockets had lost their best player, Yao Ming, to a leg injury. Most expected to see the Lakers dismantle the decimated Rockets, but the reverse was the reality. The Rockets played their hearts out and blasted the Lakers. The final score was only 99-87, but the Lakers never led in the game and trailed by as much as 29 at one time. It was very sweet if you are a Rockets’ fan.

Not many people gave the Houston Rockets of winning a game in the playoffs series against the Los Angeles Lakers, much less to win the series. The Lakers had won all the 4 meetings between the two teams in the regular season. But the Rockets put together a solid game defensively and a nice game offensively in the first game. They won by eight points on the court in LA, and never trailed by more than one point at any time in the game!

I am a fan of the Houston Rockets and totally enjoying the phenomenal winning streak they are on right now. But I wonder if 22 are enough. There are 16 games left in the season. The next four games are against playoff teams. If they were to split those four games the streak would be over and the Rockets would be able to get the streak off their minds and the playoffs in focus!

Now that the Houston Rockets’ winning streak has reached twenty two, and it includes having beaten the Lakers, whom many have picked to win the NBA Championship, maybe the national sports media will have to admit that the Rockets have become legitimate contenders. But probably not!

Just as the Houston Rockets were making a move in the standing, with twelve wins in a row and a new chemistry that had the team and the community excited, one of their best players and biggest stars went out for the season with a fractured foot. Yao Ming will not be back this season. The rest of the team will have to pick up a big burden if they are to continue the recent success.

The Houston Rockets had a chance to close out the playoff series with the Utah Jazz last night. With about eight minutes left in the game, it was a one point contest. Then the Rockets went six minutes in which they only made two baskets. As a result, there will be a game seven in Houston on Saturday night.

Can the Houston Rockets win the series with the Utah Jazz? They have to play game six in Utah and they have not been close towinning in either of the earlier games there in this playoffs. Tracey McGrad and Yao Ming have played well enough to win, but the supporting cast have not played well on the road. I expect a game seven.

The Houston Rockets really stunk up the gym in Utah last night! They would have shot themselves in the foot, but they could not hit what they shot at! Less than 35% shooting percentage, missed free throws, YUCK! And still they were in the game till the last couple of minutes, Utah does not hveany great shooters either. So the Rockets still have hope of winning the next game, but they will need to score about 80 points or so!

I hope the Houston Rockets can keep up their winning ways when they get to Utah. Historically it has been a tough place for the Rockets to win, and the Jazz this year seems pretty disciplined. So what else is new with team coached by Jerry Sloan? He always has his team ready and will likely make it hard for the Rockets to win there. I would be happy with a split of the games there and to have the Rockets come home with a thre to one advantage in the series.

The Houston Rockets playoff run began with a satisfactory outcome on Saturday night against the Utah Jazz.  In the early goings, it did not seem like the Rockets were up to the task.  Tracy McGrady could not hit a shot, and finished the half with only one point.  He was getting open looks for his teammates, but none of them was hitting anything either.

 

In the second half McGrady took over the game and was able to lead the Rockets to a substantial victory.  It was a good start, but if the Rockets want to go as far as possible, they’re going to have to have more production than just from Tracy McGrady and  Ming.