The AP reports: As poorly as they were playing, the Philadelphia 76ers knew they still had time to catch the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night. Thanks mostly to Andre Iguodala, they did. Iguodala hit a baseline jumper with 36 seconds left and finished with 20 points to help the Sixers overcome a late 14-point deficit in a 95-93 victory over the Rockets… Andre Miller added 16 points and seven assists, and Louis Williams had 17 points for the 76ers, 9-2 in their last 11. Elton Brand had 14 points, seven rebounds and a season-high six blocks in his third game back from a dislocated shoulder… Tracy McGrady scored 24 points, and Luis Scola had 18 points and 10 rebounds for Houston. The Rockets have lost three of their last four, even as McGrady, Ron Artest and Yao Ming have finally gotten healthy.
Category: Houston Rockets Blog
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Knicks beat Rockets 104-98 as Chandler scores 18
The AP reports: Wilson Chandler was removed from the starting lineup after his recent struggles and responded with 18 points in a 104-98 win over the Houston Rockets on Monday night. Fellow reserve Nate Robinson continued his strong play to lead New York with 19 points… The Rockets were playing without center Yao Ming (sore right knee) for the second straight game. Yao went out just as Tracy McGrady and Ron Artest were returning from injuries of their own. Artest (right ankle) had 24 points in Sunday’s win at Detroit, but struggled to 4-of-19 shooting against the Knicks. McGrady (left knee) had 20 points with more then five minutes left in the game then missed his last five shots.
Yao-less Rockets beat slumping Pistons 108-105
The AP reports: The Houston Rockets figured out a way to win without Yao Ming. The Detroit Pistons only wish they could do the same with Allen Iverson and Richard Hamilton. Ron Artest scored three of his 24 points at the line in the final 14 seconds, helping the Houston hold off Detroit for a 108-105 win Sunday night… Allen Iverson, who had 17 points and eight assists, acknowledged he’s frustrated… Tracy McGrady scored 15, Shane Battier and Rafer Alston both added 14, and Von Wafer scored 10… Richard Hamilton scored 27, Wallace had 22 points and Rodney Stuckey had 14 points and eight assists.
Granger leads Pacers past Rockets
The AP reports: Yao Ming, the Houston Rockets’ 7-foot-6 center, left Friday night’s game because of a sore right knee and did not play after halftime. The Pacers made 26 free throws in the second half of their 107-102 victory… Houston already was missing Tracy McGrady and Ron Artest because of injuries. Artest missed his 13th game of the season because a bone bruise in his right ankle. McGrady sat out his 16th game with a sore left knee. Luis Scola, who scored a career-high 25 points for the Rockets, said the injuries weren’t an excuse for failing to play better in the second half… Indiana led 50-40 at halftime before holding the Rockets at bay with the free throws. Danny Granger scored 12 of his 25 points from the line, and T.J. Ford scored 13 of his 21 points on free throws. Troy Murphy had 14 points and 16 rebounds for the Pacers, who snapped a two-game losing skid. Carl Landry and Rafer Alston each scored 17 points for the Rockets, who had won three straight.
Official 2009 All-Star starters
Here are the official starters for the 2009 NBA All-Star game:
East: Dwyane Wade, Allen Iverson, LeBron James, Kevin Garnett, Dwight Howard
West: Chris Paul, Kobe Bryant, Amare Stoudemire, Tim Duncan, Yao Ming.
Read basketball fan reaction and discuss your own opinion in this forum topic.
Yao, Alston carry Rockets past Jazz 108-99
The AP reports: No matter who’s in the lineup, no matter when they meet during the season, the Houston Rockets always expect a tough game against the Utah Jazz. Yao Ming had 19 points and 12 rebounds, Rafer Alston scored 23 and the Rockets built a big lead, then hung on to beat the Jazz 108-99 on Wednesday night. Deron Williams had 32 points and 11 assists and Ronnie Brewer had 23 points for the Jazz, who’ve dropped seven of their past 10 road games. Andrei Kirilenko sat out for Utah after leaving Tuesday’s game against Minnesota with a right ankle injury… “It’s really hard for them to give up,” said Luis Scola, who had 19 points and nine rebounds for Houston. “That pretty much guarantees it’s going to be a close game.”
Yao, Alston lead Rockets past Nuggets 115-113
The AP reports: The Denver Nuggets felt a bad call cost them a win against the Houston Rockets. Yao Ming scored 31 points, Rafer Alston added 18 points and 11 assists and the Rockets beat the Nuggets 115-113 on Monday. Denver’s Kenyon Martin missed two foul shots with 2.6 seconds left, and Yao got the rebound to clinch the win. But the Nuggets felt they had the go-ahead basket wrongly taken away on their previous possession. Yao missed with 18 seconds left, Martin rebounded and Denver coach George Karl called timeout. Linas Kleiza drove into the lane and passed to Nene for a dunk. But the basket didn’t count because referee Bennett Salvatore called a charge on Kleiza for running into Chuck Hayes… J.R. Smith scored 24, Nene had 23 and Martin 22 for the Nuggets, who lost for just the third time in 12 games… Von Wafer had 18 points and Luis Scola finished with 16 for the Rockets, who have won five of their last six games. Yao went 13-for-19 from the field— 5-for-8 in the fourth quarter.
Perfect Yao leads Rockets past Heat
The AP reports: Yao Ming wasn’t counting his shots Saturday night, but he knew how easily they were coming. Yao set a Houston record by going 12-for-12 from the field, and finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds in the Rockets’ 93-86 victory over the Miami Heat. Yao’s perfect shooting night eclipsed Joe Meriweather’s 10-for-10 game against Atlanta in 1976. Yao’s only miss came at the free-throw line, where he was 2-for-3… Rafer Alston added a season-high 22 points to help the Rockets improve to 2-1 since Tracy McGrady and Ron Artest were shelved to recover from injuries… Dwyane Wade shook off a bad first half to score 29 points for Miami.
Luther Head out one week
Houston Rockets guard Luther Head is expected to miss one week due to a sore right foot. Head also sat out Tuesday’s game with the L.A. Lakers (1/13/09).
For the season, Head only playing 14.6 minutes per game and averaging 4.8 points and 1.6 assists on 38.6% shooting.
Von Wafer making name for himself
The Los Angeles Times (Broderick Turner) reports: Von Wafer signed a non-guaranteed contract with the Houston Rockets last September for $797,581 and appears to have found a home. He has been starting while Tracy McGrady heals from a sore left knee, and Ron Artest gets well from a sore right ankle. “I told him during the game how I was proud of the way he’s been playing,” Kobe Bryant said. “He’s doing a fine job.” Wafer was 10 for 14 from the field (three for four from three-point range) in 39 minutes in Houston’s 105-100 loss to the Lakers at the Toyota Center. The athletic Wafer did much of his work against Bryant. “He told me he was proud of me,” Wafer said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for Kobe. He told me he was proud of me, that I’ve come a long way and just keep it going.”