Exhale.
The Houston Rockets are all smiling on their way back to Texas after a 103-102 victory over the Detroit Pistons Friday night.
Despite playing without Christian Wood (single strain) and John Wall (sore knee), the Rockets built up a substantial lead against the Pistons, leading by as much as 20 points in the second quarter.
The Rockets lead is with balloons thanks to strong energy from the Rockets reserves. Sterling Brown, David Nwaba and Ben McLemore became the first Rockets trio to score from the bench in double figures this season, and their lead increased with the start of the game. When Nwaba and McLemore kicked in with 5:48 left in the first quarter, the team had a seven-point lead. At the end of the first quarter, the lead was 13.
The positive off the bench is also with veterans Eric Gordon and PJ Tucker, who have both had highly offensive nights. Gordon led all Rockets by 20 and was the primary ball handler for the Rockets tonight. Meanwhile, after many offensive problems and leaving Wednesday’s game with an awkward one, Tucker scored a season-high 15 points at 5-8.
The Pistons were able to bounce back after a sluggish start with accurate three-point shooting and took advantage of the Rockets’ deflation of energy, which began once the Rockets were comfortable at 20. The Pistons shoot 15-32, good for 46.9%, from outside the three-point line.
Wayne Ellington was Detroit’s most effective scorer, scoring 18 points at 6-10 from the depths. Jerami Grant started badly, but he found his three ball late in the game and shot 3-6 out of three.
The Pistons eventually overturned the Rockets and led by four points in the fourth quarter.
The Rockets brought the Pistons back into the game with isolated offensive efforts from Victor Oladipo and DeMarcus Cousins. Oladipo struggled to generate and create on the floor without Christian Wood and shot just 4-16 off the field for 13 points. Cousins, who started the season for the injured Wood, was strong on the boards but scored just five points at 2-16.
The Rockets’ second unit, however, was able to shake back the lead with the right.
With an 18-6 run, the Rockets took the lead, while Brown, Nwaba and McLemore scored all but two points.
The Pistons were able to hold on, despite missing four consecutive free throws in the piece.
Blake Griffin nailed a try from the top of the key to reduce the lead to one. Then a Rockets miss by Eric Gordon put the ball back in Detroit’s hands, with 3.8 seconds left.
Then a ride from Grant was a second too short, as the ball remained in his hands just after the clock expired and the Rockets ran away with a victory.
It’s hard to know if the Rockets deserved to win this game or not. If you make the effort in the first term and the bank in the fourth term, the answer is yes. But if you look at the whole game, the answer is no. It’s just the Rockets’ luck that they encountered the weakest team in the league, which had several chances to put the Rockets away and could not do so.
Despite a frustrating game, the Rockets ended on top. Since wins have been so rare for the team lately, you will take what you can get.
The Rockets will be on the floor again tomorrow night against the Dallas Mavericks on the road. Tipoff is at 20:00 CT.