Francis matched a career high with 36 points and made a running layup with less than a second remaining that gave the Rockets a thrilling 99-97 victory over the Detroit Pistons.
Francis missed nearly a month with a foot injury before returning on December 28 in a win over Golden State. But he missed Houston's next game, an 87-86 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday due to the flu.
"It feels so good to have him on the court," Rockets guard Cuttino Mobley said. "Thank goodness he was out there tonight. When he made that shot, it was like I felt it. It's almost like I made it, that's how close we are."
 Cuttino Mobley is pleased with the Rockets' triumph. Bill Baptist NBAE/Getty Images |
Francis was defended by Chucky Atkins and the play broke down when he momentarily lost the ball with four seconds left. He regained his dribble and blew past Atkins, nailing a one-handed runner with two-tenths of a second left.
"I didn't mean to lose it but I wanted to run off as much time as I could and take a shot the last possible second," Francis said. "The first time I have made a shot like that to win a game and doing that in my first home game back was special."
After Francis was mobbed by Mobley and his teammates, the Pistons' final inbounds pass was stolen.
"Francis made a play," Pistons coach Rick Carlisle said. "He's the guy that makes the tough shots. He's a great player and great players make tough shots."
Atkins knew that he was at Francis's mercy.
"I was trying to keep him in front of me," he said. "But it's a tough situation because he's in total control of the ball, he handles the ball so well."
Francis got off to a quick start with 15 points as Houston took a 27-26 lead after one quarter. Houston took a 56-47 lead at halftime on a 3-pointer by Mobley at the buzzer.
Francis made 12-of-19 shots and 11-of-14 at the free-throw line for Houston, which is 11-1 in its last 12 home games against Central Division opponents.
"Everything was flowing, I felt really good out there," Francis said.
Detroit rallied behind 13 points from Jerry Stackhouse and took a 78-74 lead into the final period. Stackhouse finished with 29 points on 11 of-23 shooting.
Kevin Willis scored off a feed from Francis for a 97-93 advantage with 1:42 left to play. The Pistons got a basket by Corliss Williamson and Clifford Robinson scored with 13 seconds left for the game's final tie.
"We played a great second half after a poor first half," Carlisle said. "I know we can score points but it's about winning the game."
Rookie Eddie Griffin had 19 points, seven rebounds and five blocks while Mobley finished with 15. The Rockets converted 13-of-17 foul shots.
"We got a good performance from Eddie," Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich said. "He had some big blocks and hit some real big threes."
Willis added a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds for Houston, which has won nine straight home meetings with the Pistons.
The Rockets improved to 9-6 with Francis available -- they are 1-16 without him.
"Great players can do that for their teams," Tomjanovich said. "It was amazing how he played tonight."