Rockets Crumble in Second Half, Fall to Spurs, 124-105
Dog Days. Bench Disparities. The Torrid Third.
After facing a seven point deficit after the first period, the Rockets stormed back in the second quarter to take a two-point edge heading into halftime. However, Houston was undone by another torrid third quarter, as they were outscored by San Antonio 32-14 in the period. The Rockets never got much closer than the 16 point deficit they faced entering the fourth, en route to another disappointing loss, 124-105, to the Spurs on Monday night. San Antonio didn’t even have their best player, Keldon Johnson, who lit Houston up for more than 30 points in the first matchup between these squads in the Alamo City. The Rockets couldn’t take advantage of the friendly confines of Toyota Center, as they were easily outmanned for the third straight time at home. This all comes after Houston won their previous five matchups at home. Right now, this squad looks out of sorts. As Stephen Silas said in his post-game presser, we’ve reached the “dog days” of the NBA season, where tired legs start to emerge and the big picture of this long 82-game season truly grasps the attention of the league’s younger players. The Rockets are one of the youngest teams in the NBA, and maybe they’ve hit a wall. After playing so well, they’ve seemed to be stuck in a fog, against inferior completion compared to the teams they beat during their home-winning streak.
Houston’s latest disappointment stems from a lack of bench production, and another horrible third quarter. Five bench players for San Antonio scored in double figures, as the Spurs reserves combined to drop 62 points on the Rockets, outscoring Houston’s bench by 21 points. That’s too many points from reserves for a team that’s near the bottom of the standings. Houston’s defense has been nonexistent lately. They gave up 124 points to the Spurs, and they were outscored 64-43 in the second half. The Rockets seem to be running out of gas over the past few games as we reach the finish line. Houston had a halftime lead against the Spurs, before scoring only a meager 14 points in the third quarter to start the second half, the same amount they scored in the third period in their previous loss to the Portland. These performances coming out of the half will only put the Rockets in a position to lose on a nightly basis. Houston needs to quit this habit, before they become the front-runner for the worst record in the NBA.
The Rockets were outmanned by a balanced Spurs attack, despite lacking Keldon Johnson. Devin Vassell led San Antonio with 26 points, and the Spurs had seven players total score in double-figures. Alperen Sengun led Houston with 22 points. Jalen Green and Kevin Porter Jr. both had subpar nights, scoring 13 and 15 points respectively, on a combined 9-for-28 shooting. This kind of performance from the Rockets backcourt will only result in losses for the squad, as Green and KPJ are two of Houston’s most important players. Jabari Smith Jr. couldn’t find the rim either, scoring only 9 points on 4-of-14 shooting. The rookie did grab 8 boards, but the Rockets are struggling mightily on both ends of the floor during this recent losing streak. They’ll try and get back on the winning track on Wednesday night as Orlando comes to town… Houston will try and steal some of that magic to find a win, and break this current home-skid.