3/11 - 3/17 Rockets Games
- Jennifer Mazina
- Mar 18, 2018
- 11 min read
Updated: Apr 15, 2018
Rockets vs. Mavericks
A new winning streak begins! On March 11th, the Rockets traveled to Dallas to take on the Dallas Mavericks who were 13th in the Western Conference standings. The Rockets were saying before the game that they just need to stay swaggin’ and hoopin’. Harden wasn’t playing in this game because he suffered a minor knee injury in Toronto, and they were saving Nenê for the Spurs the following night.
With the first possession of the game, Gordon was open and went for a 3 and missed, but then Ariza got the Rockets on the board with a 3. The Rockets were off to a nice, easy start with Tucker hitting a long 2 from the corner, Gordon for a 3, and splashed for another. With seven minutes left in the first quarter, the Rockets were up by two touchdowns. Mbah a Moute went for the 3 and it rolled around and popped back in for the score. Mavericks received two offensive rebounds, but Capela blocked the last one. After that, Capela drew a foul and went to the line, but unfortunately missed both shots. Black brought a lot of energy when he checked in to the game, and the Rockets ended the quarter 25-14.
At the start of the second quarter, the Rockets turned over the ball, and Mbah a Moute stepped out of bounds on the following possession which created another turnover. Powell, a Mavericks player, began to get dunk after dunk, and he even shot a 3 proving that centers can knock down 3s as well. Even though Gordon made the 3 with three seconds left on the shot clock, the Rockets pace began to slow down which allowed the Mavericks to catch up. Within eight minutes, the Rockets created 8 turnovers. Five minutes left in the quarter and the Mavericks actually took the lead for the first time. Gordon, the only Rocket with double figures at that point, got an and one and tied the game. Ariza went for a reverse attempt but it was blocked, and the Rockets tied the game once again with Mbah a Moute, followed by Paul scoring which took the lead from the Mavericks by one ending the quarter at 48-47.
The third quarter; aka the quarter of 3s. Capela scored the first two points of the quarter. Even though he was off balance, Gordon got a 3, then Paul got a 3, then Gordon for another 3 followed by a wide open 3 for him, and Tucker for a corner 3. Less than four minutes into the quarter, The Rockets had made five 3s, and they only made a total of 6 in the first half. Paul then made yet another 3 which brought the lead to 11. Tucker was the one to miss the first 3 of the quarter for the Rockets. At this point, both Gordon and Ariza had managed to pick up 4 fouls each. Black took a hit to the head and had the chance to shoot two shots but missed one. Paul with a quiet but sensational game, hit a 3 followed by yet another 3 with under a minute to go bringing the lead to 18 points.
Green started the fourth quarter with a 3 bringing the lead to 20. At this point Paul now had a double-double. Halfway through and the Rockets had a 25-point lead. Black made an incredible block pinning the ball to the glass. When Johnson was going for a shot, Smith Jr. jumped and landed on him, and Johnson got to shoot two free throws. With a season sweep on the Mavericks and a secure spot in the playoffs, the Rockets won their 52nd game of the season 105-82.
Rockets vs. Spurs
On March 12th, the Rockets took on their rivals, the San Antonio Spurs who are 7th in the Western Conference standings, for the third time this season, and beat them for the third time this season taking their new winning streak to two games. This was the first home game for the Rockets in a little while. Both Harden and Nenê were back in for this game, and for the Spurs, Aldridge, Ginobili and Leonard were all out. The Spurs wore cool camo uniforms for the game that night.
Tip-off went to the Spurs for their chance to score the first points of the game, but they missed and it ended up being Chris Paul who scored the first two points of the game. Following that, Ariza hit the first 3 of the night. The Spurs stole the ball and went for a layup but missed, and Paul stole it back from them. Harden went for a 3 but drew a foul while in the shooting motion, so he was able to shoot three free throws and he made all of them. At this point, the Rockets were off to a great start, and the Spurs were definitely struggling with miss after miss and only 4 points in the game thus far. Mbah a Moute took a rough smack to the face and went on to shoot two free throws but unfortunately missed both. With about 3 minutes left in the quarter, the Spurs finally made their third basket of the night and slowly started to pick up the pace. With it being a Rockets possession, Johnson went for a 3, missed, got the rebound, passed the ball to Gordon who then shot for a 3 but also missed. Nenê caught that rebound and passed to Harden who also went for a 3 but missed as well. The Rockets' pace slowed down and the Spurs sped up with it being a 12-0 Spurs run towards the end of the quarter until Mbah a Moute hit a buzzer beater followed by the Spurs hitting a buzzer beater as well. The Rockets ended the quarter 25-21.
The second quarter began with the Rockets getting a quick 4 minutes in just under 35 seconds of the quarter starting. Capela put up a shot with his left hand and it went in, Green got his first 3 of the night, Capela then blocked a Spurs shot but the refs said it was goaltending. That call didn’t affect Capela’s game because he then took the ball down the court for a score. The Rockets brought it to a 14-point lead with seven minutes left, and the Spurs bench were doing better than their starters. Harden bumped Spurs player, Paul, into the front row of the Spurs bench, and then turned around, shot, and made a corner 3. Capela was in the dunk spot when he caught Tucker’s pass for the two points, but it wasn’t counted because his left foot was on the line. The Rockets ended the quarter with an 11-point lead.
Capela started off the third quarter with an incredible dunk followed by a steal from Tucker for a drive and score, and then Ariza hit a quick 3. Unfortunately, Capela took on his fourth foul so he was taken out of the game but luckily, they had Nenê to step in. Ariza, making it do what it do, hit yet another 3 that went out and back in. Harden went for and made a 3, and the following possession going for another 3, drew a foul to which he went to the free throw line and shot and made all three shots. The quarter ended with a 21-point Rocket lead.
The fourth quarter started off with Green, who sprang up to make an incredible block followed by Tucker making a corner 3. Green then proceeded to make another 3 which was the Rockets 10th 3 of the night. Then Paul went on to make yet another 3 for the Rockets to where the Spurs had to take a timeout to regroup. Green played an impeccable game with a great quick release 3, and the Rockets won 109-93 for their 53rd win of the season. The game was a blowout but none the less still exciting to watch.
Rockets vs. Clippers
On March 15th, the Rockets took on the Los Angeles Clippers, who were currently 7th in the Western Conference standings, for the fourth time this season. This was a Clutch City Cares for Kids charity game, and the Rockets’ second home game in a row but the last one before they hit the road again.
The starting lineup for the Rockets was Harden, Paul, Capela, Tucker, and Ariza, and for the Clippers, Williams, Rivers, Jordan, Thornwell, and Harris. The game started with the Rockets getting tip-off, and Harden shot the first 2 points of the game. Following that, a technical foul was drawn on Thornwell so Harden shot and made one. Halfway through the quarter and the Rockets finally got their first 3 of the night which brought the lead up by 1 point. Ariza scored his first 2 points after he caught the Clippers rebound. Harris shot and made a 3 which took the lead for the Clippers, but Capela then scored to tie the game. Harden made a 3 and one. Nenê went for a big move but missed the layup, and following that Johnson went for a 3, missed, and Nenê caught the rebound while falling out of bounds. The Rockets kept the ball and scored 2 points. The Rockets were up 28-26 at the end of the quarter.
Gordon started off the second quarter with a nice 3. Nenê wasn’t doing good at following through on the layups that game so he and Mbah a Moute went out and Capela and Tucker came back in. With it being a Clippers possession after a steal, they went for a shot but it bounced off Paul’s knee. They did have another chance to score, but they missed. Gordon got a quick 3 from the parking lot and the Rockets stole the ball, but Harden instantly got fouled for a charging foul. The Rockets lost the ball a few times allowing the Clippers to take the lead by 3 halfway through. Paul went for an attack and made the layup, and then Harden passed to Capela for the dunk tying the game with less than two minutes left. Unfortunately, the Clippers led at the end of the quarter 51-47.
Starting the third quarter, Tucker missed his first corner 3 but made the second one. Harden sent an alley-oop to Capela for the score, and during another Rockets possession, Harden threw yet another pass to Capela for a dunk. The Rockets were hustling to catch up and Harden made a quick 3. It wasn’t enough though because the Clippers were suddenly at a 10-point lead with seven minutes left in the quarter. The Rockets just weren’t doing well on 3s especially since Tucker had only made 1 of 5. Capela blocked Harris’ shot, Mbah a Moute drew a foul, and Harris went to the line and made both free throws. The Rockets finally started to fire up as Gordon made a 3 at the 5:30 mark, he then made another 3, and following that a pass to Capela tied the game with a 12-0 run for the Rockets. Harden drew a foul which took it to a 14-0 run, but that ended when the Clippers finally scored again. Capela was at a career high with 6 blocks. Gordon hit yet another 3 from way back, and with .7 seconds left, Paul drew a foul and made both shots. The Rockets took the lead ending the quarter 78-74, and were outscoring the Clippers 31 to 23.
Harrell started the fourth quarter with a foul for body checking Paul to which they took the lead to 6. Mbah a Moute went for a corner 3, missed, Paul got the rebound and passed to Mbah a Moute for another corner 3 but missed again. That spot just wasn’t working for the Rockets. Luckily, Gordon hit a 3 from way back making it his 7th of the night. Third times the charm because Mbah a Moute finally made that corner 3, and following that Harden came back in the game and shot a 3 as well. Mbah a Moute tried for that corner 3 yet again but missed and he was 1 of 6. At the 5:22 mark, the Rockets had an 8-point lead and counting. Capela had a double-double making it his 34th of the season. Harden went for a crossover, missed, but Capela tipped it up and in. With two minutes left, it was a 6-point Rockets lead, and Tucker threw it away for a quick Clippers dunk which took the lead down to 4. With 29 seconds left though, Harden stepped back from Rivers for the score, and they won 101-96 for their 3rd win in a row.
Rockets vs. Pelicans
The Rockets traveled to New Orleans, Louisiana on St. Patrick’s Day to play against the Pelicans for 1 of 3 road games in a row. The Pelicans were currently 6th in the Western Conference standings, and the Rockets still managed to beat them. Ryan Anderson finally came back after missing 9 games because of a hip injury, and Chris Paul hit 2,000 career steals.
The Pelicans got tip-off, but Ariza was the one to score the first points of the game with a solid 3. Following that, Harden hit a 3 as well with only 1 second left on the shot clock. Ariza was able to get the rebound for a run and dunk, and Tucker hit a 3 which took an early 7-point lead for the Rockets. Davis, aka “The Brow”, lost the ball and the Rockets got it, but Capela didn’t catch it cleanly allowing the Pelicans to get it back but they threw it away. Halfway through the quarter, Davis tied the game while on a solo 8-point run, but luckily Ariza scored a 3 taking back the lead for the Rockets. Harden made an amazing pass to Mbah a Moute for 2 points. Anderson finally came into the game with just a few minutes left, and went for his first 3 but missed. Johnson scored a 3 over Mirotic, then Mirotic tied the game with a 3, and Paul knocked down a 3 as well. The Rockets ended the quarter 32-29.
Gordon started off the second quarter with a quick dunk in the first minute, and Anderson went for another 3 but unfortunately missed again. Clark then hit a 3 taking the lead for the Pelicans by 2. Diallo knocked the ball out of bounds from Capela, Paul scored to tie the game again, but the Pelicans took the lead yet again. Ariza went for a fake, drive, and score which tied the game 40-40. A technical foul was called on Rondo, and Ariza shot and scored one. Following that, a jump ball was called, and the Pelicans got the possession. The third time wasn’t the charm for the Rockets when Harden dived into the paint and missed. Gordon got the rebound and passed to Harden who went for a 3 and missed again. Capela got that offensive rebound and passed to Ariza for a 3 but he also missed. The next possession though, Harden hit a 3. Tucker picked up a technical foul, and the Pelicans took the lead for a quick second until the Rockets took it back. Harden passed to Capela for the score and he also drew a foul and made the free throw. Harden shot his first free throws of the night and made both with 2:59 left. Paul got up and over Davis for a 3 and with the height difference, that was pretty impressive. Harden scored the last 2 points ending the quarter 60-54.
Ariza scored the first 3 points in the third quarter which took the lead to 9; the largest of the night. At the 8-minute mark, Tucker was left wide open for the corner 3 and made it. There was good defense for the Rockets when Davis went for a pass but it went off Paul’s foot. Harden and Miller both had in and out 3s, but later on Harden pulled back and made the 3 which took it to a 17-point lead. With the Rockets on fire as always, Ariza hit a corner 3 taking the lead to 20, but Davis scored ending the run for the Rockets. Harden crossed over Clark for the drive and score. The quarter ended with the Rockets up 84-72.
The fourth quarter began with Miller hitting a quick 3. Following that, he hit another and drew contact for a 4-point play. The Pelicans seemed to step up their game because it was then a 4-point game until Tucker came in hot for the corner 3 taking it to a 7-point game. At this point, Harden had a double-double and 8 minutes left to play. Capela rose above 6’11 Davis for the dunk. Then, Harden drew a soft foul on Holiday while going for a corner 3, but he only made 2 of his 3 free throws. Capela followed Mbah a Moute’s miss with a slam but it popped out. With 3 minutes left, another jump ball was called between Harden and Moore and this time the Rockets got it. Harden had scored 31 points thus far when he hit another 3. With just 23 seconds left in the game and the scores close, the refs had to review a call to determine whether the ball went out of bounds off Tucker’s hand or Clark’s shin last, and the Rockets got it. The Pelicans were closing in on the Rockets, and Holiday got an and one and missed maybe so the Pelicans could get the rebound and score again, but the Rockets got the rebound. The Rockets took the win 107-101 for their fourth in a row. Harden was two assists away from a triple-double.
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