PrintRockets Escape New Jersey With 98-93 Win
Landry's 26 points help lift Houston to victory
Jason Friedman
Rockets.com Staff Writer
Houston - Aesthetically pleasing, it wasn’t. But when push came to shove, the Rockets’ crunch time formula calling for heavy doses of Carl Landry and clutch shot-making from Aaron Brooks proved just enough to push Houston past the woeful New Jersey Nets 98-93.
Saturday night’s contest featured far more nervous moments than one might have anticipated given the Nets’ current standing as the NBA’s worst team. But the Rockets’ sloppy third quarter opened the door for a possible New Jersey upset and it took another monster fourth quarter performance from Landry and a circus shot in the final minute from Brooks to slam it shut once and for all.
“It wasn’t pretty but it was a good win for us,” said Rockets Head Coach Rick Adelman after the game. “I thought early in the game we were playing pretty good and then, whatever their record is, you give guys life and they start getting some confidence and we were lucky to get the win at the end.”
As Adelman mentioned, Houston actually fared fairly well in the opening stages of Saturday night’s contest. The Rockets owned a 27-20 lead after one quarter of play and finished the half with 57 points on .525 shooting from the field, while looking well on their way to recording a seventh straight win over the Nets.
But the third quarter Rockets hardly resembled their first half counterparts. Houston’s offense, so free-flowing and on point through the opening 24 minutes, suddenly stalled amid a litany of missed shots (Houston was 5-of-21 from the field in the third quarter) and stagnant offensive sets. By the time Keyon Dooling converted a three-point play just before the quarter expired, New Jersey had crept within 70-69 and served notice that the Rockets would have to pick up their play if they wanted to avoid an embarrassing defeat.
“I thought the third quarter we did not play as we normally do,” Adelman said. “I thought we played very selfish; selfish in that we were trying to attack one side, we didn’t pass the ball, we didn’t move the ball and everybody was doing it, which is why we didn’t score. We just got totally out of sync. We can’t play that way. I thought that was about as poor as we’ve played offensively.”
Fortunately, the Rockets responded and to no one’s surprise, it was Landry who led the way. Showing off the skills which have made him one of the NBA’s top fourth quarter scoring threats, Landry torched the Nets by scoring 13 of his game-high 26 points in the final frame.
Yet the back-and-forth affair still hung in the balance until Brooks dipped into his bag of tricks during the game’s final minute. With the score tied at 91 and the shot clock close to expiring, the third-year point guard drove baseline where he was eventually greeted by the 7-foot frame of Yi Jianlian. With his path to the basket effectively blocked, Brooks rose up and double-clutched before banking in a twisting one-hander to give Houston a lead it would not relinquish.
So while the game itself may not have been pretty, the end result still looked beautiful to the players on their way out of the arena.
“We just find ways to get it done,” said Trevor Ariza, who nearly recorded his first career triple double, falling just short with 13 points, 11 rebounds and 8 assists. “That’s the good thing about this team: One day somebody steps up and then the next game somebody else steps up. We have a diverse team. It’s extremely fun because other teams never know who the ball’s going to or who you’ve got to stop.”
QUOTES
RICK ADELMAN
It wasn’t pretty but it was a good win for us. I thought early in the game we were playing pretty good and then, whatever their record is, you give guys life and they start getting some confidence and we were lucky to get the win at the end. We turned the ball over too many times down the stretch which is something we have to learn (from) but I’ll take the win.
(second half issues): I thought the third quarter we did not play as we normally do. I thought we played very selfish; selfish in that we were trying to attack one side, we didn’t pass the ball, we didn’t move the ball and everybody was doing it, which is why we didn’t score. We just got totally out of sync. We can’t play that way. I thought that was about as poor as we’ve played offensively.
(pressure playing down the stretch against a team like this?): I don’t know. We’ve talked so much about trying to get better in that situation. I talked to them at halftime: I don’t care what their record is, they’re professionals, they’ve got good players and if they get some confidence it can be one bad bounce or made shot and you lose the game. We had a chance to pull away with the lead and we just didn’t do it. We turned it over too many times. Fortunately we got a couple key stops and were able to win the game.
CARL LANDRY
It was a dogfight tonight. We knew going into this game that it was going to be tough They had a lot of rest and a lot of time to prepare for us and, man, we scrapped and scrapped and came out with a win but, like I said, it was tough.
(on issues down the stretch): I think I was just thinking too fast; thinking about scoring the ball and getting the game over and going home with a win. I’ve got to go back and watch some film. I’ve got some growing up to do. I’ve got to make better decisions, especially in the fourth quarter.
(on difference without Yao Ming)
“Yeah it’s different. Yao is slower, we come down on the offensive end, we throw the ball in to him on the block and when he is in the paint, throw the ball in very high. On the defensive end, his presence, if he doesn’t block a shot, he’s always there to alter it.”
(on being an undersized big man)
“This whole team is undersized. It is not about the height or the size, it is about the heart, courage, and toughness.”
TREVOR ARIZA
We just find ways to get it done. That’s the good thing about this team: One day somebody steps up and then the next game somebody else steps up. We have a diverse team. It’s extremely fun because other teams never know who the ball’s going to or who you’ve got to stop.
Nets Interim Head Coach Kiki Vandeweghe:
(On the game)
“You’re not going to win many games when you give up 16 offensive rebounds. That’s not any one guy, it’s all of us. We did a lot of good things in the game; we worked very hard, played very good defense especially in the second half. We got the shots that we wanted. Again you see progress, you see young players getting better, but I’ve been through this a lot. There are a lot of different situations where losses start to pile up a little bit. You’ve seen it tonight, the law of averages would have fallen our way but it didn’t happen. We just have to come out and keep working and keep doing the things we are doing.”
(On positives)
“The first thing you have to talk about is energy and the way guys have played together. I thought it was really good, we moved the ball really well. I thought that Josh Boone did a good job coming off the bench and thought Yi did a good job getting to the rim. Terrence did a really good job getting to the rim. I thought we played hard and we played pretty well. Like I said before the game, it’s just the little things and tonight it was the offensive rebounds. I think we had four in a row where the Rockets had offensive rebounds. Even though your defense was good, you just can’t sustain that.”
Brook Lopez:
(On another close game that ends in a loss)
We’re right there. A few non block out’s hurt us late and I know I was definitely a culprit of that. But we are right there.
(On Terrence Williams’ and Josh Boone’s play off the bench)
They were very good for us. Josh is always Josh. He brings rebounding and his offensive game is underrated. I’m confident throwing him the ball and knowing he is going to score. Whether he is down in the post, like tonight, or the jumper of his.
Yi Jianlian:
(On another tough loss)
“I think the whole team played hard. We had a chance, we fought for 48 minutes. We have to stick together and learn from it. We have to really improve our offensive and defensive rebounding.
(On his first start since coming back from injury)
In the first quarter it was a little tough to breathe, but after that I felt better.
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