Houston Rockets Redux: Week 12: 01/10/2015

Another week is in the books and the Houston Rockets were somewhat victorious throughout.

They ended the week with a 2-3 record after facing the Utah Jazz, Brooklyn Nets, Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Golden State Warriors.

It was certainly a saga that had us fans proud at moments but then scratching our heads trying to figure what the heck happened.

Let’s take a look at how they did:

Jan 10, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Utah Jazz forward Gordon Hayward (20) is guarded by Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard (12) in the first half at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Rockets 97, Jazz 82: This was a win that took a while to put together after the Jazz just would not go away. This young team full of prospects gave the Rockets all they could handle through to about the end of the 1st half, where they seemed to run out of gas. That’s when the Rockets started to pull away. James Harden continued to draw fouls left & right and ended up being 10-for-11 from the free throw line along with leading the team with 30 points and five rebounds. He also shot 8-for-14 from the field and 4-of-8 from beyond the arc. The Rockets had a brief scare toward the end of the game when the Jazz went on a 8-0 run to cut their deficit to nine points making the score 84-75. But two back-to-back shot clock violations allowed the Rockets to score off those opportunities to come out victorious. Trevor Ariza once again owned Gordon Hayward, limiting him to nine points and 2-for-10 shooting after limiting him to eight points, 3-for-11 back in their last meeting Oct. 29th. The Rockets forced 30 turnovers on the Jazz — a feat that had not been undertaken in 10 years by professional basketball team. Wow!

Jan 12, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward Kevin Garnett (2) is pushed by Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard (12) during the first quarter at the Barclays Center. Garnett was ejected from the game. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

Rockets 113, Nets 99: In the span of less than a week, the Rockets headed back up to the Big Apple to face some competition. This time it was the against the Nets. The highlight to this game was a brief altercation between Dwight Howard and Kevin Garnett with 7:53 left in the first quarter. Both of them had been going at it for quite some time in the paint and after Garnett got called for a foul, Howard used his forearm to push Garnett back a bit infuriating him. He not only threw a basketball at him but head-butted Howard in the process. Both were slapped with double technical fouls and Garnett was ejected from the game because of his actions. This was another scenario where D12’s patience was tested but he still remained calm and cool through the situation. It took both benches to help pull each other away to prevent the situation from escalating. As far as the game itself, the Rockets maintained their poise and control throughout. The lead by as much as 23 points by the time the game was over and Kevin McHale had an opportunity to empty his bench out early. Harden finished with 30 points, six dimes and two steals while shooting 9-for-13 from the field, 4-for-7 from behind the arc, and a perfect 8-for-8 from the charity stripe. Josh Smith had his best game of the week with 13 points, six rebounds, three assists and two blocks in 27 minutes of the bench. Harden netted his 16th game of the season where he has scored 30+ in a game. Excellent job by the men in red winning their 4th straight.

Jan 14, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard (12) and guard James Harden (13) talk against the Orlando Magic during the second quarter at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Magic 120, Rockets 113: This was the most peculiar game of the week. Right from the tip, the Rockets didn’t seem enthusiastic about playing this team. They only managed to score 19 points in the 1st quarter as they it took a while for them to knock their rust out of the gate. It wasn’t until the 3rd quarter where they took their first lead of the game with Harden and D12 going to work to get the Rockets out of the gutter. It was a game of tug-o-war all the way until the end but the Magic got the best of them. It was the tenacious play of Victor Oladipo, Nikola Vucevic and Elfrid Payton that did them in. Oladipo had 32 points, Vucevic had 25/12. The Rockets had 20 turnovers causing the Magic to convert 26 points off of those. Harden had 26 points and 10 assists while D12 reeled in 23/8 including a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Smoove had 10 boards, five dimes and one block in 24 minutes of action.

Jan 15, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard (12) blocks out Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) in the second half at Toyota Center. The Rockets won 112 to 101. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports

Rockets 111, Thunder 102: This game was one of total domination from the start. The Rockets had jutted out to 16-4 lead and it wasn’t even close from that point forward. Their lead was as much as by 26 points through the game. The Thunder did pull within 10 points at the midpoint of the 3rd quarter making the score 75-65 but Rockets went on a 7-0 run to put themselves back up by 17. The Rockets cruised, the bench was in to complete the rest of the game. Harden had 31 points, 10 dimes and nine rebounds in this win. The Rockets also hit 15 three-pointers, their 11th game of the season where they 15+ three-pointers as a team. This was definitely a win one could be proud of.

Jan 17, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets forward Josh Smith (5) scores a basket during the second quarter as Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) defends at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Warriors 131, Rockets 106: The Rockets hung tough through all the way until the 2nd half. But Stephen Curry went out of his mind, got his teammates involved and helped the team score 38 points in the third quarter to lead the Rockets 102-80 at the end. They never recovered from that event and the game was already in the bag for the Warriors. They took away what the Rockets do best — shoot three-pointers and utilizing James Harden. The Rockets made only seven of their 23 three-point attempts (30.4 percent) while Harden had 12 points off 4-for-15 shooting (26.6 percent) from the field. The team will have another chance to attempt to defeat them this Wednesday as part of a three-game, four-day West coast road trip.

Houston Rockets Redux: Week 12: 01/10/2015 – 01/17/2015

By Brian K. Patterson | Jan 19, 2015