Rockets Collapse Late in 121-115 Loss to Mavs, Fail to Advance in Tournament
Unfortunate Trend. Down the Stretch. Rocky Turnaround.
For a moment, it appeared the Rockets were on their way to advancing to the knockout stage of the In-Season Tournament. Houston held a four-point lead entering the final frame, but were outscored by Dallas 37-27 in the fourth, as the Mavs rallied to deal the Rockets a 121-115 defeat. The loss prevents Houston from advancing in the In-Season Tournament, and keeps the squad winless on the road. The Rockets trailed by 7 after the first period, but battled back to hold a lead entering the fourth quarter. However, Houston’s unfortunate trend of losing close games on the road in the final minute continued. This game wasn’t as close as the losses in L.A., but a Jabari Smith Jr. three-point shot cut the lead to 2 points with 10 seconds remaining. The Rockets just couldn’t foul anyone in time to get another reasonable chance, and ended up losing another nail-biter in the final minutes. Alperen Sengun scored a season-high 31 points to lead Houston, as he continues to impress his teammates and opponents with his vastly improved play this season. Dillon Brooks and Jabari Smith Jr. chipped in 16 points apiece. Jalen Green regressed to his inefficient shooting, scoring only 12 points. Fred VanVleet contributed 10 points and 12 dimes as he continues to be the perfect playmaker running the point for this young Rockets squad.
Houston played well enough to win this contest, but they lost this game because of decision making on both ends of the court. And Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving combing for 68 points certainly didn’t help matters for the Rockets. Doncic scored 41 points to go along with 9 rebounds and 9 assists. After a slow start, Kyrie Irving sparked Dallas’ fourth quarter comeback, as he finished with 27 points on the night, including some huge shots to deter any hopes of a Houston comeback win.
The Rockets need to improve their fourth quarter play and execution down the stretch of games. Houston is 0-6 on the road, but besides the opener, all of these road games have been close and completive contests. And almost all of them have been decided in clutch time or the final minute. The Rockets need to learn how to close games on the road. They’ve been able to win close games at home, as evidenced by their 8-1 home record. Houston has a capable squad to win these close road games, they’ve just had the toughest schedule so far in the NBA. And it’s not close. If you’re hesitant to believe this, just check the results and the opponents the Rockets have played so far. It’s impressive this squad is 8-7 and still above .500 despite the torturous schedule they’ve had to endure in the early going of this season.
It doesn’t get any easier for Houston in their next game. In fact, the Rockets next matchup could be the toughest of the season. Tomorrow, they travel to Denver to battle the Nuggets on the second night of a back-to-back. Denver has already lost to Houston twice this season, and will be licking their chomps at the chance at revenge. The Rockets will need to dig deep and compete harder, and most importantly, smarter, if they want a chance to pull off the huge upset on Wednesday night.