Rockets Escape Detroit with Narrow 117-114 Win Over Pistons
Revved Up. The Lucas Show. Hustle & Hard Work.
Houston trailed by 3 points entering the final period on Saturday night. After witnessing so many of these close games evolve into blowouts, the Rockets finally broke the trend, and stormed back to win a nail-biter, 117-114, over the Pistons. The win is Houston’s 5th road win of the year, and 12th overall on the season. Coming into Detroit, the Rockets were missing three starters and severely shorthanded. Fortunately, the squad had tremendous performances from Eric Gordon, KJ Martin, and Tari Eason, among others. EG led Houston with 24 points and 7 assists. KJ Martin had some clutch plays in the final minutes to help secure a Rockets victory. K-Mart finished an impressive 15-point, 13-rebound double-double on the evening. Tari Eason also had a double-double, putting together an impressive 16 point, 10-rebound outing. Houston were without arguably their three best players (Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, and Kevin Porter Jr.) due to injuries, but the squad found ways to get the job done in the Motor City. Many from hustle and hard work ethic. It’s simple, but the Rockets played harder than the Pistons, especially down the stretch, the garner this road victory.
Stephen Silas wasn’t in the building for this game, as he was attending a memorial service for his father, Paul Silas. However, Houston had the right man ready to take the coaching reigns. Another John Lucas Production, another Houston Rockets victory. The Rockets are now 2-0 when Lucas is the Acting Head Coach. They played a last-place Detroit team in their latest win, but they were down three starters, and it was on the road. For some reason, Houston seems to play harder under Lucas. The veteran assistant is the ultimate Players’ Coach, and seems to get more accountability out of this Houston roster than Silas. It’s only a small sample display, but the players sure respond when he’s leading the locker room. I have nothing against Silas, but sooner or later, the Rockets have to win more games when he’s leading the team. Maybe this victory spurs Houston to more wins during the final 32 games of the season.
“I would say 98% of this win cam from hustle and hard work,” Lucas said postgame on Saturday night. And he was exactly right. The Rockets were undermanned, but they competed as hard as we’ve seen all season. If Houston can ignore their record, the win is nice, but the Rockets are still comfortably in last place in the West, with a 12-38 record. They’ll be in the Victor Wembanyama Sweepstakes this summer, but they need to finish the season playing with the effort they displayed in Detroit. Houston won’t win many games regardless, but if they play hard, and truly try and improve as a team, they can potentially win a little over 20 games. 20 victories still keeps the Rockets with one of the worst records in the league, something they’ve all but guaranteed. And 20 wins is a stretch. Houston will have to play much better basketball than they did over their first 50 games of the season to reach 20 victories. It’s possible, and it’s a goal the team should shoot for to keep the players motivated as the season winds down. Up next the Rockets return home for a rare three days off before hosting the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night. Hopefully, Houston will be seeing the return of some starters by then, as OKC is a much tougher beast than the Pistons. With hustle and hard work, the Rockets have a shot to win two in a row.