article link Houston's 22-game win streak Utah Jazz: Houston's season took off with run By Steve Luhm The Salt Lake Tribune Article Last Updated: 04/19/2008 03:09:50 AM MDT When the Jazz went to Houston on Jan. 27 and scored a 97-89 victory, nobody would have suggested - at least with a straight face - that the Rockets wouldn't lose again for 51 days. But that's what happened. After losing to the Jazz on a mid-winter Sunday night, the Rockets won 22 straight games. Even more amazing, the second-longest winning streak in NBA history was strung together despite the loss of All-Star center Yao Ming, who was injured halfway through it. There is no question Houston took advantage of a soft spot in its schedule. During the streak, the Rockets played 15 home games, 11 games against lottery-bound opponents and three against Denver and Atlanta, which would end up as No. 8 seeds in the playoffs. Still, Houston's accomplishment remains mind-boggling - a credit to veteran coach Rick Adelman, perennial All-Star Tracy McGrady and members of the supporting cast who, in some cases, played the best basketball of their lives. "It's all about confidence," McGrady said late in the streak. "We have great chemistry and guys know their roles. We are all playing so well. . . . We really believe. We're hustling every night. We're playing extremely hard, diving for loose balls. Defensively, we're locking people down. Whatever it takes to win ball games, we're doing it." Shane Battier The keys to the historic winning streak? 1. DE-FENSE, DE-FENSE Houston finished second in the NBA in field-goal percentage allowed (.431) and fourth in points allowed (92.1), but the Rockets were even better during the streak. In the 22 victories, only Golden State in the first game and Indiana in the third game scored more than 100 points. Over the last 12 games, the Rockets held the opposition to an average of 86.9 points on 39.6 shooting. Five of those final 12 opponents scored 80 points or less. "We think we're a pretty solid defensive team," said Shane Battier. "When we clamp in and concentrate, we can do some really nice things on defense." 2. MAKING A POINT Houston acquired veteran Mike James, signed free-agent Steve Francis and drafted Aaron Brooks during the offseason because it was worried that holdover Rafer Alston couldn't handle the job. Wrong. During the winning streak, Alston averaged 15.7 points and 6.6 assists. His assist-to-turnover ratio was 3-to-1 and he outplayed such high-profile opponents as Chris Paul, Baron Davis, Kirk Hinrich and Raymond Felton. "He's playing at a very high level, and that's what we need," Adelman said at the time. "We need to have him at a level like this." 3. ROCKING ROOKIES Power-type forwards Luis Scola and Carl Landry were already playing important roles for Houston, but when Yao went down with a stress fracture in his foot, they become indispensable. Scola moved into the starting lineup on Jan. 29 when, coincidentally, the Rockets started their streak with a 111-107 win over Golden State. In March, he averaged 13.4 points and 8.9 rebounds. During the same 15-game stretch, Landry averaged 11.4 points, shot 60 percent from the field and found his niche as the Rockets' first big man off the bench. "We have confidence in him," McGrady said. "He's a guy that somehow, some way can read defenses. We know where he is going to be. . . . He's going to be one hell of a player."
