[ESPN CLASSIC] Rockets v. Mavericks April of 96' on right now

Just a heads up

 

not sure ...at first, i thought this was the game where Dallas beat us with Kidd hitting a ton of 3s, but this is not the game

here is a recap of the game from the Chronicle:

Rockets 112, Mavericks 111/Nick of time just enough for Hakeem/Buzzer beater eases frustration

By EDDIE SEFKO
Staff

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Even when all their top players finally regained health, the Rockets still had problems with Nies - as in referee Jack Nies, which rhymes with ""T's."

It was another sign the rebuilt Rockets are nowhere near playoff caliber as they let their inconsistent play put them at the mercy of a ref's whims down the stretch.

They managed to pull out a 112-111 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday at The Summit. A game high on entertainment value featured the first action for Sam Cassell since March 3 , meaning the Rockets had their top eight players on the active roster for the first time since Jan. 17.

But the game also had to recover from the ejection of Mario Elie and Clyde Drexler, who drew two technical fouls apiece from Nies with less than four minutes to play. Given one last glimmer of hope, the Rockets won the game at the buzzer when Hakeem Olajuwon took a perfect inbounds pass from Robert Horry and swished a six-foot jumper in one motion.

It never should have come to that, of course, considering they were playing a Dallas team that is 30 games below .500 and the Rockets had a 22-point lead late in the first half that shriveled up like a worm on a hot sidewalk.

""Obviously, we have a long way to go," coach Rudy Tomjanovich said. ""But the positive side is that we got into a pressure situation late in the game and we were able to execute and get it done."

The Rockets seemed to be destined for failure when they lost Elie and Drexler.

And yet, after the pair was tossed, the Rockets outscored the Mavs 8-1 in the final 3 :22, cranking up the defense as Dallas missed four shots and had three turnovers in that span.

""Losing that type of game, you couldn't have justified it," Olajuwon said. ""It was a very good test for our team. It was an exciting game. We had the game under control and before you knew it, the momentum changed. We had a letdown, which we shouldn't.

""But you can also look at the positives. We were down six without much time left and came back. That's very positive."

To some, Olajuwon's shot conjured up memories of another last-gasp heave of some note. In 1986, Ralph Sampson caught and shot the ball as the buzzer sounded to win the Western Conference finals against the Los Angeles Lakers.

That was a playoff-tense play. This one was essentially meaningless in the big picture.

""They were sort of similar," said Kenny Smith, who had 15 points and nine assists. ""But Ralph's was twisting and it came in the playoffs."

Big difference. But Olajuwon's shot did carry a lot of weight in that it showed the Rockets have a flair for getting and making a clutch shot when they need it. And it came on a play they never had run.

""Believe it or not, it's the first time we did it," Olajuwon said. ""We had four-10ths of a second left, so we couldn't catch the ball (and come down). We had to catch it and fling it."

Tomjanovich pointed out the little things, like the pass from Horry and a screen from Cassell that freed Olajuwon's path to the left side of the lane.

""It's amazing," Olajuwon said. ""That was exactly the play the coach drew up and the execution was good. Sam Cassell did a great job setting the pick and the pass was right where it needed to be."

And, of course, the shot was, too.

""That's why they call him the Dream," Elie said.

Just before that shot, the Rockets had forced a 24-second violation on Dallas. Sam Mack got a pass with about three seconds left, but his shot was off the mark. The ball went out of bounds off the Mavs with just four-10ths showing on the game clock.

The histrionics leading up to Olajuwon's game-winner were every bit as exciting as the final moments.

Elie's ejection came first, and seemed damaging with the game tied at 104. He got whistled for a foul with 3 :39 remaining as Jim Jackson (33 points, 29 in the second half) posted up.

""Jim Jackson was playing great," Elie said. ""He had his way with me all night. But I just told the ref I wanted it called the same way at both ends. We were doing a lot of banging down low and all of a sudden, I got called for a weak foul.

""I clapped a little and he gave me the second one. It was his (Nies') show and he didn't want anybody showing him up.

""But if it took me getting kicked out to fire up the guys, then that's OK."

Drexler must have felt the same way. On the Rockets ' next possession, Olajuwon was double-teamed in the low post and had the ball knocked away and out of bounds. Drexler told Nies there was a foul and, suddenly, there was - a technical foul. Two of them and an ejection, to be exact. Drexler didn't say much about his heave-ho.

""I just wanted to watch the rest of the game in the comfort of the locker room," Drexler said. ""We all saw what happened, there's no need to say anything else about it."

After the ejections, the Rockets were in a desperate position.

They were down 110-104 after Jackson made all six free throws in a span of 11 seconds.

Quickly, it was cut to four as Olajuwon hit two free throws. The Mavs suffered back-to-back turnovers, and the Rockets finally took advantage with Olajuwon's three-point play with 2:13 to play.

An illegal-defense call against the Rockets gave the Mavs their only point of the final 3 :22, a Jackson free throw.

But Mark Bryant countered with one of two freebies at the 1:02 mark.

The Rockets had to stop the Mavs twice, and they did as Jason Kidd missed, then Horry blocked Jackson and the 24-second clock expired with 12.2 seconds left.

It was plenty of time for the Rockets to pull out the win.

 

boy Jack Nies lost it in that game