Rockets Force Game 6

It's amazing how badly the Utah Jazz look when the Houston Rockets disrupt Utah's rhythm with physical play.

The Rockets routed the Jazz 95 to 69 in Game 5 Wednesday night to send the best-of-seven series back to Utah for Game 6 on Friday night.

Both teams shot poorly in the first quarter; but, the Rockets led 18 to 16 at the end of the game's first 12 minutes.
The Rockets limited the Jazz to 16 more points in the second quarter while Houston's bench players scored 18 points in second stanza alone. Bobby Jackson scored nine of those points.

The Rockets led the Jazz 43 to 32 at halftime.

The third quarter was much of the same as the Rockets outscored the Jazz 31 to 23.

Tracy McGrady finished the game with 29 points; five rebounds; and five assists. Luis Scola scored 18 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. Rafer Alston scored 14 points and Carl Landry added eight points and five rebounds.

The Rockets out rebounded the Jazz 46 to 38 in the game. Dikembe Mutombo helped Scola on the glass by pulling down 10 boards.

The Jazz shot a pedestrian 27 for 74 (36.5%) from the field for the game and a sorry 13 for 23 (56.5%) from the foul line.

Rockets' Game 5 at 8:30

Here is the definite game NBA Playoffs schedule for Tuesday, April 29.

Game 5 -- Philadelphia at Detroit, 6:00 PM -- NBATV.

Game 5 -- Dallas at New Orleans, 6:00 PM -- TNT.

Game 5 -- Utah Jazz at Houston, 8:30 PM -- NBATV.

Game 5 -- Phoenix at San Antonio, 8:30 PM -- TNT.

Rockets lose Game 4

Despite outscoring the Utah Jazz in three of the four quarters in Game 4, the Houston Rockets late rally fell short as the Rockets lost 86 to 82. The Rockets now trail the best-of-seven first round series three games to one.

The Rockets cut a nine point (82 to 73) deficit to just two with seven straight points in the final seconds of the ball game.

But, lack of rebounding, bit the Rockets in the butt once again.

Jazz guard Deron Williams, whose two drives had given the Jazz a late five-point lead, had gone to the line to ice the win, then missed both attempts with 7.3 seconds left. However, Jazz big man Mehmet Okur went past Tracy McGrady to the board, drew a foul and hit both free throws to give the Jazz a 3-1 first-round series lead.

Game 5 is Tuesday night in Houston.

Landry Seals Win for Rox

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah -- Late Thursday night / early Friday morning, trailing 76 to 70 at the end of the third quarter, the Houston Rockets outscored the Utah Jazz 24 to 16 in the final period and eked out a 94 to 92 road win in Game 3 of the first round of the 2008 NBA Playoffs in Salt Lake City. Utah now leads the series two games to one.

With the game clock winding down and the Rockets holding on to a 93 to 92 lead, Rockets rookie forward Carl Landry blocked a driving off-balance shot attempt by Utah's Deron Williams. Then, Landry saved the ball from going out of bounds and passed the ball to teammate Luis Scola. Scola was fouled with 0.2 seconds left in the game. Scola missed the first free throw; and, though he was trying to make the second attempt, he made it to give the Rockets the 94 to 92 lead.

After a Jazz time out, Utah's desperation inbound pass was picked off by Dikembe Mutombo to seal the Rockets victory.

Utah's offense went into self-destruct mode much of the fourth quarter and the Rockets took advantage.

Tracy McGrady scored seven of his team-high 27 points in a key 10 to 0 run late in the fourth quarter to put the Rockets ahead 93 to 86 with less than two minutes remaining.

Then, the Jazz found some life as Williams passed to Kyle Korver and Korver made a three-point shot to trim the Rockets lead to 93 to 89.

After McGrady was called for an offensive foul, Williams passed the ball to a wide open Mehmet Okur and Okur swished a three-point shot with 37 seconds remaining to trim the Rockets lead to just one point.

After a Rockets time out, McGrady took his time dribbling the ball near half court before dribbling to the right side of the three point line; he jacked up an off-balance jump shot which completely missed the rim and clanged off the backboard. Utah rebounded the missed shot and Williams worked his way up the floor as the game clock was ticking down. Williams missed Carlos Boozer in the paint for a lay up attempt; passed the ball to Korver -- Korver passed the ball back to Williams; and Williams drove toward the basket only to be denied by Landry.

After sitting out the first two games with a sore hamstring, Rafer Alston played his first game of the series; and, his presence clearly had a positive impact on the Rockets. Alston scored 20 points and despite missing to bad three-point shot attempts down the stretch made eight of his 14 field goal attempts. Alston also dished out five assists and helped provide good floor spacing for the Rockets' offense.

Scola added 16 points (4 for 13 from the field) and 10 rebounds. Shane Battier scored 12 points. Landry scored seven points; grabbed 11 rebounds; and blocked two shots including the game clinching blocked shot on Deron Williams.

Williams scored a game-high 28 points. Boozer scored 15 points and pulled down 13 rebounds; however, Boozer missed five of his eight free throw attempts. Okur added 12 points and 11 rebounds.

The Jazz missed 13 of 33 from the foul line for a woeful 60.6%.

Game 4 is Saturday night in Utah; but, with the Rockets winning Game 3, there will indeed be a Game 5 back in Houston Tuesday night.

Rockets lose Game 2

Updated (quotes added)--- April 22, 6:20 a.m.

HOUSTON, TX -- The Houston Rockets fought hard; scratched and clawed; but, suffered a 90 to 84 loss to the Utah Jazz Monday night at Toyota Center. The Rockets now trail the best-of-7 series two games to zero with Games 3 and 4 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Fans and local announcers can criticize the referees in tonight's game until their blue in the face; but, the refs didn't shoot 16 for 26 from the free throw line nor did the refs miss numerous lay ups in the first half like the Rockets did.

"Trying to get me fined. You can't say anything, you can't," said Rick Adelman. "All I can say is, you look at that play and I just saw briefly. I didn't look at it very long. He (Luis Scola) put his hand on Kirilenko's shoulder. Kirilenko fell back like a truck just hit him and you're going to make that call at that time of this game with just six seconds before Luis went to the basket and he got hammered? The same guy didn't make the call. All that stuff that went on in the game, you're going to make that call at that time? I really have a hard time with that."

"I don't like to put the loss on the ref," Scola said. "I don't think that's fair. It was part of the game and sometimes they make good calls and sometimes they make mistakes just like we do. I don't think we lost because of them."

"It was a foul," Kirilenko commented. "It was a game rule violation and it was called a foul. It was the right call in my opinion. It was one of the key plays in the game but there were a number of key plays in the fourth quarter."

Tracy McGrady was spectacular in the game -- for the first three quarters. McGrady finished the game with 23 points; 13 rebounds; and nine assists; however, McGrady seemed to run of gas and he scored just one point in the fourth quarter.

"I'm pretty tired. Fourth quarter I didn't have anything. It's tough man, banging with these guys. It's a physical team but I didn't like how we came out. What really got me going was that Matt Harpring has a football mentality. He's a very physical guy and we kind of got into it down there and that kind of got me going a little bit but from that point on, my team followed me."

Deron Williams led the Jazz with 22 points. Carlos Boozer scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half. Mehmet Okur added 16 points and 16 rebounds including two cold-blooded three-point baskets at the end of the second quarter to give the Jazz a 47 to 41 lead at halftime.

Bobby Jackson scored 18 points in the game; but, Jackson's two missed free throws late in the fourth quarter added to the Rockets' woes from the charity stripe. McGrady shot 5 for 9 from the free throw line while Luis Scola made just six of his 10 foul shot attempts.

Aaron Brooks scored 11 points off the Rockets' bench. Brooks used his speed and quickness to attack and finish at the basket. Chuck Hayes pulled down 10 rebounds in 26 plus minutes off the bench.

Utah's bench outscored the Rockets reserves 26 to 15. Ronnie Price scored eight of the points including a three-point shot at the end of the third quarter to give the Jazz a 69 to 67 lead heading to the fourth period.

After Andrei Kirilenko rebounded a brick by teammate Kyle Korver, with 20 seconds left in the game, Korver put the Jazz ahead 87 to 82 as his putback attempt just beat the shot clock buzzer.

Game 3 is Thursday. Tip-off is set for 9:30pm.

Is T-Mac a Superstar?

The question or debate of is Tracy McGrady is a superstar was kicked around this evening on KCOH 1430 AM (www.kcohradio.com) on Ralph Cooper's Sports Rap.

Houston's own Astro Mike (a sports radio legend) has his own "Superstar Theory".

Take a look:

Add up the career averages of points per game; rebounds per game; assists per game; steals per game and blocks per game.

Then, subtract (from that total) the turnovers per game.

A score of 35 or better is a Superstar -- according to Astro Mike.

Here are McGrady's career numbers:
22.4 ppg
6.2 rpg
4.7 apg
1.3 spg
0.9 bpg

The sum of those numbers is 35.5.

Next, subtract McGrady's 2.35 turnovers per game.

The answer is 33.15.

Therefore, McGrady is not quite a superstar.

What do you think?

Did you need that theory to tell you McGrady wasn't a superstar? Or, is T-Mac a superstar regardless of any theory?

Jazz take Game 1, 93-82

HOUSTON, TX --- The Houston Rockets played hard; but, they didn't play well for 48 minutes Saturday night; and, the Utah Jazz took a 1 to 0 lead with a solid (and convincing) 93 - 82 victory in a 2008 NBA Playoffs First Round match up.

The Jazz won every quarter -- 23 to 18 (first); 24 to 23 (second); 21 to 19 (third); and 25 to 22 (fourth).

Despite Shane Battier's game-high 22 points on perfect shooting (7 for 7) from the field, the Rockets simply could not stop the Jazz offense. Utah shot 38 for 73 (52.1%) from the field -- including 5 for 10 on three-point shots -- and dished 22 assists on the made field goals. The Rockets shot just 36.7% (29 for 79) from the field.

"We've just got to make more shots," said Battier. "I thought we had a lot of shots at the bucket that we just couldn't convert and those are real killers."

Tracy McGrady scored 20 points in the ball game; however, McGrady was scoreless in the fourth period. McGrady made just seven of his 21 field goal attempts in the game.

Utah's Dynamic Duo of Deron Williams (20 points and 10 assists) and Carlos Boozer (20 points and 16 rebounds) simply proved too much for the Rockets. However, Utah's Andrei Kirilenko scored a team-high 21 points and set the tone with 12 points in the first half.

"I was trying to be aggressive from the beginning," said Kirilenko. "And, I was very active all game. We play as a team and this was a team victory. I did a good job on T-Mac in the second half and that is why coach kept me in (the game)."

The Jazz dominated the glass in the first quarter out rebounding the Rockets 12 to 5 (7 to 2 on the offensive boards). The Rockets trailed the Jazz 38 to 25 in the second quarter before used a 16 to 9 run to end the first half down by just six points (47 to 41). The Rockets carried that momentum into the third quarter and led 53 to 51 before Boozer scored six straight points to put the Jazz ahead 57-53. McGrady split two free throws to tie the game at 57; but, Deron Williams scored a lay-up to give the Jazz a 59-57 lead which they never relinquished the rest of the game.

The Rockets clearly missed Rafer Alston (injured hamstring) in tonight's game. Bobby Jackson started the first playoff game of his long NBA career tonight; and, Jackson struggled all game. Jackson shot 3 for 15 (1 for 7) from the field and dished out only three assists compared to two turnovers.

With Jackson in the starting line up, the Rockets' bench lost some firepower; and, the Jazz bench took full advantage outscoring the Rockets reserves 28 to 17.

Luis Scola produced a double-double (14 points and 13 rebounds) for the Rockets in his NBA playoffs debut.

"We didn't play the way we have to," Scola said. We played hard and we tried. We competed. We didn't play completely bad defense. We had a very bad shooting percentage; and, we were never able to execute our offense in the right way."

In the history of the NBA Playoffs, the winner of Game 1 has won the series 83 percent of the time; however, the Jazz did lose Game 1 of last year's playoffs versus the Rockets.

Game 2 is Monday night. Tip is set for 8:30 pm.

HRR Playoffs Predictions

Let's start with the Rockets - Jazz series. Last season, I correctly predicted the Jazz would defeat the Rockets in 7; so, let's see if I can be right once again...

#4. Utah Jazz vs. #5 Houston Rockets
HRR Prediction: Jazz in 6.

Why?
No Yao Ming. Yes, Luis Scola and Carl Landry make a difference; but, did you miss what I wrote -- "No Yao Ming." Rick Adelman replaces Jeff Van Gundy; so the offense should flow better. Scola and Landry are quick and can provide scoring and rebounding; but, Tracy McGrady is banged up. Rafer Alston is injured. Bobby Jackson is banged up.

In last year's playoff match up, Utah's Andrei Kirilenko cried about his role (or lack thereof) in the series. Well, AK's role is set this time around. Carlos Boozer; Deron Williams; Mehmet Okur; Paul Millsap; Kyle Korver; Matt Harpring, et al.

Rebounding. Rebounding. Rebounding.

The Jazz can win one game (at least) in Houston; I don't believe the Rockets can win in Utah. Period.


The rest of the 2008 NBA Playoffs

Western Conference
#1 Los Angeles Lakers vs. #8 Denver Nuggets
HRR Prediction: Lakers in 5.

Why?
The Nuggets play no defense at all. Period. AI (Allen Iverson) and 'Melo (Carmelo Anthony) will score a lot of points; but, Kobe, Pau Gasol and the rest of the Lakers have too much firepower for the Nuggets to contain.

#2 New Orleans Hornets vs. #7 Dallas Mavericks
HRR Prediction: Mavs in 6.

Why?
Chris Paul had a fantastic '07-'08 regular season; and, he may have an outstanding playoff series; however, I have doubts the rest of his teammates will rise to the challenge versus the Mavs. Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Josh Howard, and Jason Terry don't want to bow of the playoffs in the first round two years in a row. The Mavs will find a win to advance.

#3 San Antonio Spurs vs. #6 Phoenix Suns
HRR Prediction: Spurs in 7.

Why? The series is a toss up. The Suns acquired Shaq to beat the Spurs. Well, the Suns will beat the Spurs in this series. 3 times. Just not 4 times. The Spurs' bench is getting older; but, guys like Michael Finley; Brent Barry; Fabricio Oberto will do just enough to lighten the load on the Spurs' Big Three of Tim Duncan; Tony Parker; and Manu Ginobli.

To steal a phrase from a famous wide receiver "Get your popcorn ready."


Eastern Conference
#1 Boston Celtics vs. #8 Atlanta Hawks
HRR Prediction: Celtics in 4.

Why? Get real. The Hawks are a young team with some talent; but, KG; Paul Pierce; and Ray Allen are on a mission. The schedule makes this series longer than it will be.

#2 Detroit Pistons vs. #7 Philadelphia 76ers
HRR Prediction: Pistons in 5.

Why? Despite Philly's ability to run and gun in the open court, a focused and motivated Pistons team could sweep the 76ers. Rasheed Wallace will help determine which Pistons' team will show up in this series. Detroit's depth is young and not playoff tested; so, it will be interesting to see how many minutes the "Zoo Crew" gets in this series.

#3 Orlando Magic vs. #6 Toronto Raptors
HRR Prediction: Magic in 6.

Why? The key to the series should be three-point shooting. The Magic live and die by the 3; so, if the 3s are falling, the Magic will roll. Toronto's Chris Bosh has battled a nagging knee injury the last part of the season. The Magic will dare T.J. Ford to beat them from the outside. Dwight Howard will be a beast in the series; but, he needs to shoot better than 50 percent from the foul line.

#4 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. #5 Washington Wizards
HRR Prediction: Cavs in 7.

Why? When Michael Jordan ruled the NBA, it was common knowledge to "never tug on Superman's cape". Well, in the year 2008, LeBron James is King James; and, the Wizards' Gilbert Arenas has called out the King. Uh oh. Yes, LeBron has battled back spasms. Yes, Ben Wallace has battled back spasms. Yes, the Wizards are healthier than the previous two times they played the Cavs in the playoffs. But, as long as LeBron is able to play, he'll find a way to carry the Cavs into the second round.

Alston Out 1 Week at Least

Here's some not so good news from the Rockets:

Houston Rockets guard Rafer Alston underwent an MRI test this afternoon at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center which revealed a moderate to severe strain of his right hamstring. Alston suffered the injury in the third quarter of Sunday’s game at Denver and did not play in last night’s game at Utah. He is expected to miss a minimum of a week.

Alston's injury comes as the Rockets get ready for the 2008 NBA Playoffs which begin this weekend.

Rockets 101, Suns 90

On a night, Hakeem Olajuwon was honored with a sculpture outside of Toyota Center, the Houston Rockets spotted the Phoenix Suns a 13 to 2 lead Friday night inside Toyota Center and then tied the game at and took a 29 to 28 with 21.3 seconds left in the first quarter.

"I couldn't be prouder of our team," said Rockets head coach Rick Adelman after the game. "The way Phoenix started this game, they really ran at us, had a lot of energy and we withstood that rally; got back in it and from the middle of that first quarter on, we just played a solid game all the way through and kept them in control."

The Rockets never trailed the rest of the ball game and defeated the Suns 101 to 90. The Rockets (54 - 25) led by as many as 18 points during the game as the Suns (53 - 27) simply couldn't defend the rolling Rockets offense whatsoever.

Phoenix made 12 of their first 16 shots in the first quarter; but, the Rockets trailed by just three points (28 to 25) with 1:24 remaining in the period.

The Rockets' bench outscored the Suns 23 to 19 in the second quarter. Rookie guard Aaron Brooks led the reserves with seven points; Bobby Jackson added six points; Carl Landry powered in five points; and Steve Novak (three points) and Chuck Hayes (two points) scored the final five points. The Rockets outscored the Suns 30 to 19 in the second period.

Despite 22 first half points from Suns big man Amare Stoudemire, the Rockets led the Suns 59 to 47 at halftime. Phoenix shot 56.3% (18 for 32) in the first half; but, only 6 for 14 in the second quarter. The Suns turned the ball over 11 times in the opening 24 minutes while the Rockets kept the Suns' from running with just three first half turnovers.

The Suns offense continued cooling off in the third quarter making just six of their 21 shots. Tracy McGrady scored 10 points in the period helping the Rockets outscore the Suns 23 to 19 in the third. Amare Stoudemire scored 13 of the Suns' 19 points.

The Rockets didn't allow the Suns to get closer than 13 points in the fourth quarter.

Suns guard Steve Nash finished the game with only six points (2 for 9 from the field) and nine assists.

"We answered the challenge tonight," McGrady said. "They got out to a 13 to 2 lead; but, once we settled down; ran our offense; and buckled down on the defensive end -- that's what I was most impressed about -- our defense holding that team to 90 points."

Rockets to Unveil Dream Sculpture

Before the April 11 home game versus the Phoenix Suns, Leslie Alexander, owner of the Houston Rockets, will honor Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon for his many contributions to the Rockets organization with the unveiling of a commissioned bronze sculpture during a special pre-game ceremony. The team will also pay tribute to the legendary player for his upcoming induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame during a halftime ceremony.

The public is invited to attend the pre-game unveiling ceremony that will be held outside Toyota Center near the main entrance.

The unveiling ceremony should begin at 6 pm and end at about 6:30 pm.

Olajuwon in HoF Class of 2008

Hakeem Olajuwon, who led the University of Houston to three straight Final Fours and the Houston Rockets to back-to-back NBA titles was announced today as one of seven members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2008.

The other six people named to the Class of 2008 are Patrick Ewing, Pat Riley, Adrian Dantley, Dick Vitale, Cathy Rush, and William Davidson.

Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon spent the majority of his basketball career in Houston, Texas, where he led the Houston Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995 and the University of Houston to three consecutive Final Four appearances from 1982 to 1984. A two-time Defensive Player of the Year, Olajuwon still holds the NBA record for blocked shots (3,830) and is the only player to record more than 3,000 blocked shots and 2,000 steals in a career. Olajuwon was also a five-time member of the NBA All-Defensive First Team, a six-time All-NBA First Team performer, and the 1994 NBA MVP. He recorded 26,946 points and 13,748 rebounds in 18 NBA seasons, good for ninth and fourteenth respectively on the all-time NBA leader board.

Ewing, Olajuwon and Riley were elected in their first year of consideration for election into the Hall of Fame, while Dantley, Davidson, Rush and Vitale have been named Finalists in prior years.

To be elected, a Finalist needs 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee for election into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The Class of 2008 will be enshrined during festivities in Springfield, MA September 4-6, 2008.

Woods re-signed; NBA Honors

"Rockets sign Woods to second 10-day deal"

Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey announced today that the team has signed center Loren Woods to a second 10-day contract. Woods has averaged 3.0 points in two games with the Rockets this season.


"Joe Johnson, Chris Paul Named Players of the Month"

The Atlanta Hawks' Joe Johnson and the New Orleans Hornets' Chris Paul today were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Month for games played in March.

Johnson, who has led the Hawks into playoff contention for the first time since the 1998-99 season, averaging 24.9 points and 7.0 assists in 42.2 minutes in March. Johnson scored 20-or-more points 12 times, including eight straight with 20-plus, and 30-or-more points three times.

Paul led the Hornets to an 11-4 mark, averaging 24.0 points, 13.3 assists and 2.67 steals. Paul collected at least 10 assists in 12 of the Hornets 15 games and tallied 199 assists in March. Over the last 10 seasons, Steve Nash is the only player to record 200 assists in one month.


"Doc Rivers, Jerry Sloan Coaches of the Month"

The Boston Celtics' Doc Rivers and the Utah Jazz's Jerry Sloan today were named the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Coaches of the Month, respectively, for games played in March.

Rivers, who captures his second Coach of the Month award this season (October/November), guided the Celtics to an NBA-best 13-3 (.812) record in March, which included wins over the Pistons, Spurs, Rockets, Suns and Hornets. The Celtics averaged 101.2 points on .478 shooting from the field while limiting opponents to a league-low 88.6 points on .408 shooting. Boston's 12.6 ppg margin of victory was the league's highest differential in March.

Sloan led Utah to a 12-4 (.750) record in March. Six of Utah's 12 wins came against teams which currently would be in the playoffs. The Jazz, owners of the NBA's best home record (33-4), had their franchise-record-tying 19-game home winning streak snapped on March 20, but is still 23-1 at Energy Solutions Arena in 2008. Utah averaged 113.4 points on .527 shooting from the field in March.


"Al Horford, Kevin Durant Earn Rookie Honors"

The Atlanta Hawks' Al Horford and the Seattle SuperSonics' Kevin Durant today were named the Eastern and Western Conference T-Mobile Rookies of the Month, respectively, for games played in March.

Among Eastern Conference rookies in March, Horford ranked first in scoring with 11.9 points per game, as well as rebounds with 8.7 per game. He tied career highs of 20 points and six assists on March 19 at New Jersey, while pulling down 15 rebounds. In addition, Horford recorded six double-doubles. Horford has had double-figure rebounds in 37 games and scored 10-plus points on 32 occasions this season.

Among rookie qualifiers in March, Durant ranked first in scoring with 21.8 points per game. He also ranked second in the league in free throw percentage with .903 and sixth in field goal percentage with .526. For the season, Durant ranks first among rookies in scoring with 19.9 points per game, second in steals, third in three-point percentage and fourth in blocks.