Rockets Rise Past Suns, 114-110, Win Third Straight at Home
Home, Sweet, Home. Rescued by Rookies. Tough Stretch Continues.
The Rockets continued their impressive play at home, as they rallied from an early deficit to beat the Phoenix Suns, 114-110, on Friday night. The victory gives Houston their third straight home win, as they held off a talented Suns team at Toyota Center. Kevin Durant led Phoenix with 28 points, Devin Booker added 25 points, and Bol Bol came off the bench to almost spoil this game for Houston. Bol had his best game of the season, scoring 25 points and grabbing 14 rebounds.
Fred VanVleet led the Rockets with 23 points. Jabari Smith Jr. had a fantastic game, scoring 22 points and grabbing 16 boards. Alperen Sengun contributed 17 points and 12 rebounds, but it was the rookies, Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore, who came off the bench to spark Houston. The Rockets faced an early 16 point deficit in the first half, but the rookies fueled a comeback that allowed Houston to outscore Phoenix 37-24 in the second quarter. Thompson and Whitmore both finished with 15 points, with Amen grabbing 10 boards for another double-double as he continues to get better with each game. Houston is now 20-9 at home on the season, compared to a dreadful 5-22 on the road. The Rockets will have one more home game on Sunday night against the Oklahoma City Thunder, before heading off on a tough three-game road-trip.
Up next, Houston has a home-and-home against the Thunder, before facing this same Suns team twice in a row in Phoenix next week. It’s arguably one of the toughest stretches of the season for the Rockets, but with Friday’s win, they’re off to a solid start. Hopefully they can protect home court on Sunday night against a very good Thunder team. Houston has been terrible on the road all season, so the next game is the Rockets best chance to get another win during this brutal five-game run.