Sengun’s Career Night Boots Rockets Past Spurs, 114-101
Sleeping Giant. Steady Freddy. Fantastic Four.
San Antonio’s rookie sensation, Victor Wembanyama, may have been the headlining name on the national stage entering this matchup, but Alperen Sengun managed to temporarily humble the hype. Houston’s center had the best game of his career, exploding for a career-high 45 points, 16 rebounds, and 5 steals, as the Rockets rallied past the Spurs for a 114-101 victory on Tuesday night. Sengun played as if someone had just woken a sleeping giant, dominating Wemby on both sides of the floor. Sengun didn’t just outplay Wembanyama, he attacked the rookie. Sengun scored 11 baskets with Wemby as his primary or closest defender, tied for the most baskets by one player against another all season in the NBA.
Fred VanVleet continues to be a steady leader at the point for this young Houston squad. FVV finished with 21 points and 10 assists on a clean 8-for-15 shooting. VanVleet has quietly been the second best player on this Rockets team all season, behind only Sengun, who is having a true breakout-season. Jalen Green added 23 points despite a dismal 1-for-10 shooting from beyond the arc, although he was 10-for-13 on two-point attempts, suggesting Green needs got attack the basket more instead of relying on outside jumpers. And Cam Whitmore continues to shine in limited minutes off the bench. Whitmore scored 19 points and grabbed 8 boards in only 19 minutes of action.
Despite trailing at the half, Houston dominated the second frame en route to their 21st home win of the season. Houston’s defense did a solid job on Wembanyama, who scored only 10 points, well below his average. Wemby did register a ridiculous 7 blocks to go along with 11 rebounds, but overall, the Rockets forced the rookie into a below-average game, as Sengun got the better of this matchup on Tuesday night. Houston’s defense suffocated Wemby after halftime, as the Rockets didn’t allow him to score a point or even attempt a shot in the second half. Houston had four players combine to score 108 of the team’s 114 total points in this game. Those players were the aforementioned Sengun, Green, VanVleet, and Whitmore. Besides those fantastic four, the rest of the roster managed to score only six points. The Spurs are last place in the West, and obviously not the toughest opponent. But on nights against tougher opposition, the Rockets will need contributions from more players on the roster as well if they want to come out victorious.
The squad is right back in action tomorrow night as they host the Kawhi, The Beard, PG-13, and the Los Angeles Clippers. It’s James Harden’s first visit to Houston this season, as the Rockets will look to deal the Clips a loss after losing the first matchup in L.A. in a tightly-fought battle. With another big night from Sengun, and some added help… Houston may be able to upset the star-studded Clippers tomorrow night.