http://www.msnbc.com/news/881369.asp?cp1=1 “I HAVE TO THANK my teammates for their faith in me. I don’t think I played that well in the first half and they continued to give me the ball in the second half,” Yao said through a translator. “This kind of trust grows my confidence.” The 7-foot-6 rookie center shot 9-of-17 and grabbed nine rebounds before a crowd filled with fans from Toronto’s Chinese community. He attracted approximately 50 media members from the city’s Asian television, radio and newspaper outlets. A Rockets spokesman said it was by far the biggest media turnout for Yao in any NBA city. “Sometimes it is difficult to tell my fans apart from everybody because this arena is so big and you look in the crowd and see a small head,” Yao said. Steve Francis added 19 points for the Rockets, who moved ahead of Golden State for ninth place in the Western Conference and within 1½ games of Phoenix for the final playoff spot. The Suns hosted Portland later. “This is definitely a huge victory for us,” Francis said. “We needed a win any way we could get it.” Yao appeared to block Antonio Davis’ dunk attempt with 35 seconds left, but the officials ruled it a foul and Davis made two free throws to tie it at 92. After Yao missed a layup, he grabbed the rebound and was fouled. Yao then made both free throws with 26.7 seconds left. “I was able to anticipate where the ball was going to come off the rim,” Yao said of his big rebound. Vince Carter, who scored 21 points for Toronto, missed a driving layup with 10 seconds left. Carter felt he was fouled by Yao on the play. “Anytime somebody sticks their leg out and knocks you down it’s a foul,” Carter said. Yao said he thought a call could have been made. The Raptors fouled James Posey, who made two free throws to give Houston a 96-92 lead with 8.4 seconds remaining. Toronto’s Alvin Williams followed with a 3-pointer, cutting Houston’s lead to one with 2.8 seconds left. Yao made one of two free throws to give Houston a 97-95 lead with 2.1 seconds to go. Williams made a baseball pass to Voshon Lenard, whose potential tying jumper at the buzzer hit off the back of the rim and the side of the rim before rolling out. “The ball just rimmed out on Vo,” Toronto’s Jerome Williams said. “It was a great shot. He had a good look.” Advertisement
