Last night the Rockets traveled to New York City to play in the world's most famous arena: Madison Square Garden. Prime time NBA basketball on Saturday night, and it did not disappoint. At least from an entertainment standpoint.
With each team sitting at fourth place in their respective conferences, both sides were trying to cling onto home court advantage. After somewhat up and down seasons, each organization might be underachieving a little bit, but ultimately satisfied with their overall spot in the league.
The building was rocking early, as Amen Thompson darted to the rim with a tomahawk finish to get the scoring started for Houston. Offense would be much more of a struggle for a while after that, though.
Turnovers were yet again to blame for the Rockets getting outscored, miraculously finishing the first quarter down by only six. Less than a minute into the second quarter, their sixth giveaway resulted in OG Anunoby’s 16th point and extended New York’s lead to double digits.
The same issues were still plaguing this Houston team. With defenses clogging the lane and loading up on their stars, it can get pretty difficult to make clean passes. This was made clear by Durant and Şengün’s ten combined turnovers, and 19 team miscues.
When the stars are getting all of that attention, they need guys who to rely on who levitate that pressure. This month, Jabari Smith Jr. has been that guy, as previously covered on Roundtable. Houston would’ve been in a much worse predicament if it wasn’t for his efficient 21 point night.
He started a perfect 4/4 from the field, draining a pair of threes and hitting a free throw to tie it up at 50. Even with ten turnovers, Jabari’s stellar play was a big reason they entered halftime up 54-53.
Jalen Brunson being held without a field goal in the first half was arguably a much bigger factor in Houston gaining the lead, and he’s not one to stay quiet for an entire evening. Amen kept him without a bucket for a majority of the third quarter, ultimately helping Houston get a double digit lead of their own.
Entering the final quarter with a 16 point lead, the Rockets outscored New York 70-48 in the two middle quarters. Impressive stuff on the road, but the job wasn’t done.
With just over ten minutes left, Şengün lost the ball for only their second turnover of the half. The first one came from a shot clock violation in the opening possession, so more than a full quarter without a turnover.
After fixing their turnover issues from the first quarter, everything went up in smoke again. Just a minute later, Tari Eason didn’t establish position before getting the ball, making it a backcourt violation.
In the next nine minutes of game-time, there were six more turnovers, reigniting the previously silenced Knicks crowd. They fueled Jalen Brunson to drain clutch shot after clutch shot, completing the 18 point fourth quarter comeback. Final score: 106-108.
Another difficult loss for Houston before heading home to face the Jazz on Monday. A game that I previously called a must win based on their remaining schedule this month, and now seems even more needed after the loss in New York.