http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/sports/1855581 Had Washington not gone into Boston earlier Sunday and beat the Celtics, the Orlando Magic would have been in position to clinch a playoff spot against the Rockets. But, robbed of their incentive by that surprising bit of road Wizard-ry, the heavy-legged blokes from down Mickey's way decided to take the night off -- again -- thereby giving the Rockets what amounted to a free pass in their own desperate quest to sneak into the postseason. "Orlando did not play good today," said Yao Ming, who, some four months after his first American Thanksgiving dinner, can recognize a turkey when he sees one. Doc Rivers' gang, which dumped its fourth in a row, needs medical attention quickly. The Rockets, picking up exactly where they left off in the second half at Philadelphia on Friday, charged ahead 9-0 -- nailing three quick treys -- before the Magic successfully executed a pass. Although they did rally back to even in the second quarter as Tracy McGrady, ignoring a painful rib injury, gamely attempted to whip the Rockets one-on-five, the spurt did them in. The Magic's effort in the second half was somewhere between comically inept and flat-out nonexistent. "That disturbs me," a grumpy Rivers said of the Magic's extreme lethargy coming off a paddling in Dallas on Saturday night. He accused his players of behaving as though they were already locked into a postseason berth, which, truth to tell, they are for all practical purposes. The Rockets, for their part, played just shy of magnificently in the 114-93 rout, save for some patchy ball-handling, which produced 21 turnovers. But they shared the wealth on offense while forcing the Magic into 24 turnovers and destroying them on the boards 46-28. It was, fittingly, as convincing a single-game effort as their sweep of the Magic in the 1995 NBA Finals had been. Looking like the Rockets we remember from that championship season, right down to their retro red-glare uniforms, they scored one of their easiest and most significant victories of a season that has been far longer and harder than it ever should have been. Too many late belly-flops have left them on the outside of the Western Conference playoff bracket peering in, but they can't fix the mistakes of the past now. They must put their reflective remorse on hold, keep their heads down and continue bulling forward, hoping Portland will show up as catatonic Wednesday as the Magic proved to be in completing their Texas oh-fer. By Saturday, Seattle's slim playoff hopes should be terminal as well, and Memphis, the Rockets' final regular-season Compaq Center opponent ever, has been out of the hunt since roughly late November. If the Rockets run what's left of their home-court table, then finish with a win at Denver -- one game they can't possibly lose should it mean anything (can they?) -- the odds favor them bringing their three-year playoff drought to a tense but ultimately satisfying conclusion. "We just have to take it one at a time," Steve Francis said, "and stay aggressive." Although some might question the Rockets' frantic desire to return to the second season given how the team they're going to be paired with -- Dallas, San Antonio or Sacramento -- will have beat them at least thrice in four tries during the first one, they know they have to advance to provide concrete proof they're making progress. The giant rookie Yao's personal slate, of course, is pristine, and his memory of the Rockets skips over the recent lean years back to when they were the reigning kings of the basketball world, wearing the same duds he found draped on his 7-5 body this night. "(The uniform) felt comfortable," he said. "I remember the uniform from television. But I never thought I would wear it." While he grapples with the demands of the NBA on-court wars, he has also yet to grasp the nuances of capitalism. So, does Yao think the playoffs are in his immediate future? Absolutely, as long as the recent six-quarter trend continues. Although he candidly dissed the Magic, he added that the Rockets contributed to Orlando's miserable showing "with our defense," and said it must come on just as strong against the Trail Blazers. "That game," he pointed out, "is just around the corner." In the NBA, Yao has learned, the next game is always just around the corner. Five of them remain, then maybe at least four more if, he said, "We continue to trust each other." He also suggested the Rockets "should pray" for the Suns to lose. Which they did later Sunday night, when the Lakers rallied to win in overtime, cutting Phoenix' lead to half a game. "They've kept the pressure on us," Cuttino Mobley said, "but we can keep the pressure on them by winning, too." It's definitely a concept.
