Hardened Heartbreak: Rockets Collapse in Final Minutes, Fall to Clippers, 106-100
Clock Mismanagement. Snapped. Desperation Road.
Houston held a 99-94 lead with a little over two minutes remaining in their battle against Los Angeles on Friday night. The Rockets would only score one more points, as the Clips closed on a 12-1 run to defeat Houston, 106-100. James Harden hit a go-ahead three-pointer and got fouled with a little over six seconds remaining that put the game out of reach for the Rockets. This was Harden’s best game since joining the Clippers six games ago. The Beard finished with 24 points on an efficient 8-for-11 shooting, and also had 9 boards and 7 assists. Jae’Sean Tate fouled Harden on the play, but the Rockets lost this game way before that shot.
Clock mismanagement was a huge issue down the stretch for Houston. The squad loves to play at a fast pace, but when there’s roughly two minutes left in the game, and you have a five-point cushion, you need to use the clock to your advantage. And the Rockets pushed the ball and committed way too many turnovers that gave the Clips extra chances. 14 of Houston’s 18 turnovers were in the second half. Alperen Sengun led the Rockets with 23 points and 8 boards. Fred VanVleet had another solid game with 19 points and 10 assists. Jalen Green added 20 points, and Tari Eason provided a boost off the bench by scoring 12 on the night. Houston now falls to 1-1 in the West Group B Standings for the In-Season Tournament. The Clippers improved to 1-2. The Rockets are in third and have remaining tournament games hosting the Denver Nuggets and finally traveling to play the Dallas Mavericks. This is by far the toughest group in the entire league. If the Rockets somehow find a way to advance into knockout play, it would be extremely impressive.
This young Houston squad competed toe-to-toe with one of the most talented, and desperate teams in the NBA. The Clips weren’t going to keep losing forever. It’s a shame they had to snap their six game losing -skid at the expense of the Rockets’ six-game winning streak. It’s a tough loss for Houston, who lost their first close game of the season (not including the overtime that got out of hand in San Antonio earlier in the campaign), after coming off two straight close nail-biting come-back victories. The Rockets got a little taste of their own medicine tonight. But this team has nothing to be ashamed of, they left it all out on the floor. The Clippers benefited from some late mistakes by a young Houston team, and hit some clutch shots. This is the type of loss the Rockets will definitely learn from moving forward in the season. Losses like these and necessary. It’s part of the growing pains that come with a rebuilding, rising team, like Houston.
Up next, the journey doesn’t get any easier as the Rockets continue traveling on Desperation Road. After facing a desperate Clippers team that had lost six straight, Houston now faces the other L.A. team, the Lakers, who are desperately trying to stay above .500 with a record of 7-6. LeBron and company is seeking revenge after the Rockets blew them out in Houston back on November 8th. Since that blowout, the Lakers have gone 4-1, and are a very impressive 5-1 at home. It’s a tough task for the Rockets, who then face a Golden State Warriors team the next night looking to snap a six-game losing streak. It’s the longest skid of the Steve Kerr era (which began 8 years ago) for Golden State. At least Houston won’t be traveling for their second road game of this three-game trip. They’ll stay in the same city and play in the same building when they meet the Lakers on Sunday night. For now, the squad needs to keep their confidence, and get some rest on this brief off-day, before embarking on their first back-to-back of the season.