http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/3684905.html Rockets scrape for win Yao helps offset T-Mac's absence against Warriors By JONATHAN FEIGEN Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle The lead and Tracy McGrady were gone. The game seemed certain to follow. By then, all that was going against the Rockets had become so obvious, they might as well have put 0-13 — their record this season without McGrady — on the Toyota Center scoreboard. With McGrady out to be with his family after the death of his fiancée's mother, the Rockets went into the final six minutes reeling, just as they had in so many games without him. But when pushed to that brink again, they pushed back to take a 91-88 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Friday night, their fourth consecutive home win and ninth in 11 games this month. "We were caving in and then I thought they found a spirit and a resolve in the last six minutes defensively," Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "I liked our fight in the last six minutes." That fight was the difference between their late surge and so many of the defeats without McGrady. "The last six minutes of the game were like Van Gundy's game," Yao Ming said. "We had struggled to score because of energy, low field-goal percentage, turnovers. But we came with defense." It did not hurt that Yao added a season-high 21 rebounds to his 22 points. "Yao on the boards tonight was a monster," Van Gundy said. But for all the numbers Yao compiled, his most significant play had no column in the stat sheet. The Warriors were down to their last shot, trailing by two in the final seconds. On the previous possession, and with Yao on the bench as Golden State replaced its centers with 3-point shooters, Jason Richardson had knifed through the Rockets' defense to finish with a slam. The Rockets worked the clock, but could not get a shot until David Wesley had to force a runner to beat the shot clock with 10.1 seconds left. Richardson had matched the Warriors' record and the most against the Rockets this season with seven 3-pointers. His dunk had given him a season-high 39 points. Inbounding with six seconds left, the Warriors put the game in his hands and he went for the game-winner. But Yao came around a Troy Murphy screen to challenge Richardson's shot 24 feet from the basket. Trying to shoot over Yao, Richardson missed. "I don't think Yao gets the credit defensively for the improvements he's made in lateral quickness and mobility," Van Gundy said. "He's made great strides. That last play, he was up and out and made (Richardson) take a much more difficult shot." Richardson blamed himself. "I didn't know (the time remaining), and I put the shot up too early," he said. "I didn't execute the play, and I didn't know who was on me." Richardson hit consecutive 3s in the fourth quarter to complete the Warriors' comeback from a 15-point deficit, then went in for a slam that put Golden State in front for the first time, 78-76. By then, the Rockets were in an offensive meltdown. They missed their first eight shots of the fourth quarter, turning the ball over five times and showing their panic with every blunder. The Warriors took their lead to as much as 82-76 with a 14-0 run to begin the fourth quarter. But with that, the Rockets applied defensive clamps. The Warriors missed seven consecutive field-goal attempts and three free throws. Wesley knocked down a jumper and a layup. Luther Head hit a 3. And Juwan Howard (22 points) sank consecutive jumpers to give the Rockets a 90-86 lead. That was enough to do something they had not done all season, win without McGrady. jonathan.feigen@chron.com
Let's not forget something very important that was subtly introduced. Quote: "The last six minutes of the game were like Van Gundy's game," Yao Ming said. "We had struggled to score because of energy, low field-goal percentage, turnovers. But we came with defense." Yao What's the difference between most good teams and most great teams? Execution in the clutch. Great teams don't let the situation get to them. Great teams keep pushing on defense, and don't lose their poise. Even if they're down by 2 with :30 seconds to go. Quote: "By then, the Rockets were in an offensive meltdown. They missed their first eight shots of the fourth quarter, turning the ball over five times and showing their panic with every blunder." But they kept their poise, and fought back into the game. Panicking will never win you the ball game, even if you're down towards the end, you've got to play with confidence and a swagger. I think the Rockets did a great job of focusing and not letting the score affect their play. We need to see more of that, with or without McGrady. Tracy McGrady isn't affected by in-game big-pressure situations. He always plays with a great deal of confidence and poise. Now, the team needs to have that type of confidence. Playoffs: You better have that seed ready for the Rockets!!
Thanks for the recap. I missed the game. We only beat the Warriros by 3 at home w/out Baron Davis??? A win is a win, but that still concerns me. Lets hope Tmac gets back quick.
Was it me or did Jason Richardson travel on his way to that dunk in the 4th quarter? It looked to me like he took one too many steps.
A theory that I have but can't prove is that (due to the toe surgery) Yao benefitted greatly from 6 weeks of rest the likes of which he probably hasn't had since his early teens.
I have been thinking the same thing; certainly a factor. It is downright exciting to see Ming play with such confidence. He looks comfortable out there. If he continues to play at this level, a quiet turning point is occurring for this team with significant implications for next year, maybe this year. I am very proud of him.
I would subscribe to your theory GATER. When I watch Yao over the last couple of weeks, they guy looks VERY fresh. He is moving around. He didnt look tired at all last night and played 37 minutes. His conditioning has really improved and thus it helps in his later quickness and not making stupid fouls because he is tired. In addition to looking fresh, he looks rather aggressive out there. I wonder with him being out and seeing our team struggle, if he is just playing as hard as he is, thankful that he is actually OUT there and not injured.
I dvd-recorded it and watched it frame-by-frame. He traveled all over the place. It was a pretty poorly officiated game. There were a lot of bad calls against both teams. I think, overall, the Warriors got ripped-off by the refs more than we did.
That was the biggest thing I noticed last night. Head, Wesley, Bogans, Howard and Yao showed a fight that wasnt there earlier in the season. They looked determined not to lose that game last night.
