Hornets-Rockets Preview

By ALAN FERGUSON
Posted Apr 13 2010 2:16PM

Having missed the playoffs for the first time in four years, the Houston Rockets will have to take consolation in their fourth consecutive winning season.

The Rockets conclude 2009-10 on Wednesday night with a road game against the New Orleans Hornets, losers of 19 of 25.

Despite knowing its fate since April 2, Houston (42-39) has won five of seven this month. The latest victory, 117-107 over Sacramento on Monday night, clinched the franchise's longest run of winning seasons since 1990-91 through 1996-97.

"I think it's really important because our guys have played hard all year long," coach Rick Adelman said. "We've had a lot of ups and downs like every team has, but we haven't quit. Our goal when we weren't going to make the playoffs was let's finish with a winning record and get as many wins as we can."

The Rockets' late surge has been due in large part to them averaging 109.6 points in April - 8.1 more than in their first 74 games. Their defense, however, has not improved, as they have given up 6.5 more points per game in the past seven contests.

Former Kings player Kevin Martin had his best performance in a Rockets uniform Monday with 39 points, with Trevor Ariza adding 29.

"It was a great time tonight," Martin said. "Hopefully, it will be even better in the future."

After being acquired in a three-team deal Feb. 18, Martin couldn't help Houston beat the Hornets three days later, scoring 13 off the bench in a 102-94 road loss.

The Rockets also fell 99-95 in New Orleans on Jan. 2, but have won four straight home matchups in the series, earning a 108-100 victory at Toyota Center on Dec. 29.

Unlike Houston, the Hornets (36-45) are laboring down the stretch, needing a 114-86 win over lowly Minnesota in their home finale Sunday night to end a five-game slide.

New Orleans is assured of finishing with its fewest victories since posting a franchise-low 18 in 2004-05. The Hornets will miss the postseason for the first time in three years, with injuries that kept All-Star point guard Chris Paul out 36 games a major factor.

Rookie guard Darren Collison has been a bright spot in Paul's absence, averaging 19.2 points and 51.0 percent shooting in the past 32 games. He scored 26 points with nine assists and four steals Feb. 21.

Collison, though, has been unable to prevent New Orleans from dropping five in a row and 12 of 13 on the road.

"You can take the past and try to get better from it, but for the most part you want to leave all that (losing) in the past and just focus on getting ready for next year,'' Collison said. "I think we've got a good team coming in next year."

Fellow rookie Marcus Thornton has averaged 21.2 points during the Rockets' 6-19 stretch.

Veteran forward David West has dominated the Rockets this season, scoring a career-high 44 points Dec. 29 and averaging 28.7 points in the three meetings.

Copyright 2010 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Rockets fade into sunset with loss to Hornets

By Matt Miller, for NBA.com
Posted Wednesday April 14, 2010 11:57PM

HOUSTON (NBA.com exclusive) -- The Houston Rockets couldn't ask for much more than a winning season, considering they played 82 games without Yao Ming.

But when the big man from China officially returns from left foot surgery next season, their fans will ask for a much-improved defense.

With a winning season already in hand, the Rockets' defense appeared to be "gone fishing" Wednesday and allowed the New Orleans Hornets to torch the nets en route to a 123-115 victory before an announced sellout crowd of 18,191 at Toyota Center.

"We're very happy with the way we played and finished off the season," New Orleans coach Jeff Bower said. "I was pleased with our execution and our passing. David West had a great offensive game, and we scored a lot off his post-up positions."

The Hornets entered Wednesday riding a five-game road losing streak and losers of four straight in Houston, but their offense didn't struggle much. The Rockets had no answers for Darren Collison's penetration and crisp passing or David West's domination in the post, as they allowed New Orleans (37-45) to shoot 63.8 percent overall

In a highly efficient performance, West (game-high 35 points, team-high 10 rebounds) set the tone early by scoring 12 of New Orleans' first 21 points. Because the Rockets couldn't contain West, they often sent an extra man to collapse on West whenever he caught the ball in the post. This later led to six assists for the forward, including three beautiful bounce passes to guards cutting toward the basket.

"We finished the way we wanted to. We wanted to come out with a good effort, and we wanted to feel good about ourselves when we got on the bus to the airport," said West, who made 16 of his 20 shot attempts. "When you miss a guy like C.P. [Chris Paul] for 37 games, it's just too much to be able to make up."

West reclaimed the paint in the third quarter, scoring 12 points to lead the Hornets to a 95-90 lead entering the fourth. In that quarter, he added seven of New Orleans' first nine to push its advantage to 104-96 with 9:07 remaining.

Collison (26 points, game-high 11 assists), meanwhile, continued to set up his teammates with penetration. But he also stepped outside and drained a few daggers, including back-to-back jumpers from the top of the key in the fourth that gave the Hornets a 12-point lead it never relinquished.

"I just wanted to have fun out here and compete," Collison said. "At the end of the day, playoff or not, you still have to be professional about things. I thought today, we showed growth in that aspect.

Despite becoming the permanent starting point guard when Chris Paul officially announced that he would sit out the rest of the season, Collison is looking forward to Paul's return.

"We haven't been worrying about who's the point guard here. Obviously, this is Chris Paul's team. ... Whatever the team wants me to do, that's my role."

New Orleans' defense was also guilty of checking out early, as Houston shot 54 percent from the field. But the Hornets committed only 14 turnovers to keep the Rockets from finding a rhythm in transition. The Hornets also used ob-ball pressure around the perimeter to limit Houston's 3-point opportunities (6-of-19 overall).

New Orleans hopes for better health next season but still has a few questions to answer, which could fall into the lap of a new owner. With the club's majority owner George Shinn negotiating to sell his shares of the team to minority owner Gary Chouest, a man from Louisiana who owns a company that supports the offshore oil and gas industry, the Hornets' future remains cloudy.

"We will begin [evaluating] everything tomorrow, but we won't be in a rush to come to conclusions," Bower said. "There are a lot of things that you have to take a deep, deep look at and we won't be in a hurry to finish."

For Houston (42-40), Wednesday's defeat was a disappointing way to wrap up an otherwise surprisingly successful year. Despite playing every game without its best player and dealing with numerous other injuries, the Rockets finished with a winning record for the third consecutive season. Houston also went 7-3 after they were eliminated from playoff contention, showing other teams around the league it plans to contend for an NBA title when Yao returns.

"It's been an enjoyable season. We tried to stay in the playoff hunt as long as we could, but it looks like you had to win 50 to get there," Rockets coach Rick Adelman said. "They didn't give in to the fact that we didn't have Yao. Not having him there at both ends of the court was a huge challenge for everybody."

"With Yao out there, you can be a much more aggressive team defensively than we've had to be this year. We've had to kind of hold back this year just to keep teams from doing things to us."

All five of the Rocket' starters scored in double figures, including Trevor Ariza, who recorded his first career triple-double with team-highs of 26 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds. Kevin Martin chipped in 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting, while Kyle Lowry came off the bench to dish out seven assists.

But Houston's offensive success couldn't mask one of its poorest defensive efforts of the season. The inside-out combination of West and Collison continually wreaked havoc, making the Rockets' appear as if they were playing a meaningless pick-up game in a park.

"I thought we would come out with more energy than what we did tonight. It's just typical of what happens with this team is that we just have to come out with energy and aggressive, and we didn't do it," Adelman said. "They had two guys who were killing us. West just killed us. Collison killed us."

• Hornets: Diogu
• Rockets: Andersen, Harris, Ming

• Hornets: --
• Rockets: --

• Lead Changes: 16
• Times Tied: 7

• Arena: Toyota Center, Houston, TX
• Officials: #15 Bennett Salvatore, #46 Matt Boland, #75 Eric Dalen
• Attendance: 18191
• Duration: 2:4

New Orleans Hornets (37-45)		Houston Rockets (42-40)
Start of 1st Quarter
(12:00) Jump Ball Scola vs Okafor (Collison gains possession)
West Jump Shot: Made (2 PTS)	11:46 [NOH 2-0]
	11:27	Ariza Turnover : Bad Pass (1 TO) Steal:Okafor (1 ST)
West Jump Shot: Made (4 PTS) Assist: Thornton (1 AST)	11:19 [NOH 4-0]
	11:09	Martin 3pt Shot: Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)	11:06
Thornton Driving Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS) Assist: Collison (1 AST)	11:04 [NOH 6-0]
	10:38	Ariza Jump Shot: Missed
Okafor Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)	10:37
	10:25	Hayes Foul : Shooting (1 PF)
Okafor Free Throw 1 of 2 (1 PTS)	10:25 [NOH 7-0]
Okafor Free Throw 2 of 2 Missed	10:25
	10:25	Ariza Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)
	10:08	Ariza 3pt Shot: Missed
Okafor Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)	10:07
	09:56	Scola Foul : Personal (1 PF)
West Jump Shot: Made (6 PTS) Assist: Thornton (2 AST)	09:52 [NOH 9-0]
	09:36	Scola Jump Shot: Missed
	09:35	Team Rebound
	09:35	Team Timeout : Short
	09:31 [HOU 2-9]	Martin Jump Shot: Made (2 PTS) Assist: Ariza (1 AST)
West Driving Jump shot: Made (8 PTS) Assist: Collison (2 AST)	09:12 [NOH 11-2]
	09:02 [HOU 5-11]	Ariza 3pt Shot: Made (3 PTS) Assist: Brooks (1 AST)
Thornton 3pt Shot: Made (5 PTS) Assist: West (1 AST)	08:42 [NOH 14-5]
	08:26 [HOU 7-14]	Scola Jump Shot: Made (2 PTS) Assist: Brooks (2 AST)
Peterson 3pt Shot: Made (3 PTS) Assist: West (2 AST)	08:12 [NOH 17-7]
Thornton Foul : Shooting (1 PF)	08:00
	08:00 [HOU 8-17]	Martin Free Throw 1 of 2 (3 PTS)
	08:00 [HOU 9-17]	Martin Free Throw 2 of 2 (4 PTS)
West Fade Away Jumper Shot: Made (10 PTS) Assist: Collison (3 AST)	07:46 [NOH 19-9]
	07:26 [HOU 11-19]	Hayes Reverse Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS) Assist: Ariza (2 AST)
Peterson Jump Shot: Missed	07:05
	07:04	Hayes Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)
	06:54 [HOU 13-19]	Scola Turnaround Hook Shot: Made (4 PTS)
Okafor Turnover : Traveling (1 TO)	06:33
Okafor Foul : Shooting (1 PF)	06:19
	06:19 [HOU 14-19]	Hayes Free Throw 1 of 2 (3 PTS)
	06:19 [HOU 15-19]	Hayes Free Throw 2 of 2 (4 PTS)
West Step Back Jump shot: Made (12 PTS)	05:56 [NOH 21-15]
Thornton Foul : Shooting (2 PF)	05:45
	05:45	Team Timeout : Regular
Thornton Substitution replaced by Wright	05:45
	05:45 [HOU 16-21]	Martin Free Throw 1 of 2 (5 PTS)
	05:45 [HOU 17-21]	Martin Free Throw 2 of 2 (6 PTS)
Okafor Turnaround Jump Shot: Made (3 PTS)	05:28 [NOH 23-17]
	05:03 [HOU 20-23]	Ariza 3pt Shot: Made (6 PTS)
West Layup Shot: Missed Block: Hayes (1 BLK)	04:49
	04:47	Ariza Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)
	04:43	Martin Layup Shot: Missed
	04:42	Ariza Rebound (Off:1 Def:2)
	04:42 [HOU 22-23]	Ariza Tip Shot: Made (8 PTS)
Okafor Jump Shot: Missed	04:23
	04:22	Brooks Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)
	04:10	Ariza Jump Shot: Missed
Peterson Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)	04:08
	04:00	Brooks Foul : Personal (1 PF)
Collison Driving Layup Shot: Missed Block: Hayes (2 BLK)	03:48
	03:47	Brooks Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)
Peterson Foul : Shooting (1 PF)	03:43
	03:43 [HOU 23-23]	Martin Free Throw 1 of 2 (7 PTS)
	03:43 [HOU 24-23]	Martin Free Throw 2 of 2 (8 PTS)
Okafor Dunk Shot: Made (5 PTS) Assist: Collison (4 AST)	03:27 [NOH 25-24]
	03:09	Scola Jump Shot: Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)	03:07
Okafor Turnaround Hook Shot: Made (7 PTS) Assist: Collison (5 AST)	02:59 [NOH 27-24]
	02:43 [HOU 26-27]	Hayes Layup Shot: Made (6 PTS) Assist: Scola (1 AST)
Wright Reverse Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS) Assist: West (3 AST)	02:29 [NOH 29-26]
	02:19	Brooks Driving Layup Shot: Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:3)	02:17
Peterson Layup Shot: Made (5 PTS) Assist: Collison (6 AST)	02:13 [NOH 31-26]
	01:56 [HOU 28-31]	Martin Jump Shot: Made (10 PTS) Assist: Ariza (3 AST)
West Foul : Offensive (1 PF)	01:42
West Turnover : Foul (1 TO)	01:42
Team Timeout : Regular	01:42
	01:42	Scola Substitution replaced by Jeffries
	01:42	Brooks Substitution replaced by Lowry
	01:32 [HOU 30-31]	Martin Jump Shot: Made (12 PTS) Assist: Jeffries (1 AST)
Peterson Running Jump Shot: Missed	01:13
	01:11	Hayes Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)
	00:59.5 [HOU 32-31]	Jeffries Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS) Assist: Lowry (1 AST)
Collison Jump Shot: Missed	00:41.9
	00:40.9	Martin Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)
Okafor Foul : Personal (2 PF)	00:36.5
	00:36.5	Ariza Free Throw 1 of 2 Missed
	00:36.5	Team Rebound
	00:36.5	Ariza Free Throw 2 of 2 Missed
Peterson Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)	00:36.5
Collison 3pt Shot: Made (3 PTS)	00:26.4 [NOH 34-32]
	00:04.9 [HOU 34-34]	Hayes Layup Shot: Made (8 PTS) Assist: Lowry (2 AST)
End of 1st Quarter
New Orleans Hornets (37-45)		Houston Rockets (42-40)
Start of 2nd QuarterBack to Top
	11:51	Hill Foul : Offensive (1 PF)
	11:51	Hill Turnover : Foul (1 TO)
West Turnover : Bad Pass (2 TO) Steal:Martin (1 ST)	11:36
Gray Foul : Shooting (1 PF)	11:31
	11:31	Hill Free Throw 1 of 2 Missed
	11:31	Team Rebound
	11:31	Hill Free Throw 2 of 2 Missed
Posey Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)	11:31
West Turnover : Lost Ball (3 TO) Steal:Lowry (1 ST)	11:08
Gray Foul : Shooting (2 PF)	11:03
	11:03 [HOU 35-34]	Hill Free Throw 1 of 2 (1 PTS)
	11:03	Martin Substitution replaced by Taylor
	11:03	Hill Free Throw 2 of 2 Missed
Posey Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)	11:03
West Hook Shot: Made (14 PTS) Assist: Posey (1 AST)	10:42 [NOH 36-35]
	10:24	Hill Jump Shot: Missed
	10:24	Team Rebound
Thornton Foul : Personal (3 PF)	10:18
Thornton Substitution replaced by Collison	10:18
	10:02 [HOU 37-36]	Hill Slam Dunk Shot: Made (3 PTS) Assist: Budinger (1 AST)
Gray Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS)	09:43 [NOH 38-37]
	09:32	Budinger 3pt Shot: Missed
Posey Rebound (Off:0 Def:3)	09:31
Gray Layup Shot: Missed Block: Jeffries (1 BLK)	09:23
	09:21	Lowry Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)
	09:16	Jeffries Layup Shot: Missed
Collison Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)	09:13
West Layup Shot: Made (16 PTS) Assist: Wright (1 AST)	09:09 [NOH 40-37]
	08:41 [HOU 39-40]	Lowry Driving Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS)
Collison Pullup Jump shot: Made (5 PTS)	08:35 [NOH 42-39]
	08:17 [HOU 41-42]	Jeffries Layup Shot: Made (4 PTS) Assist: Taylor (1 AST)
West Jump Shot: Missed	08:02
Gray Rebound (Off:1 Def:0)	08:00
Gray Putback Layup Shot: Made (4 PTS)	07:58 [NOH 44-41]
	07:41	Budinger Jump Shot: Missed
Wright Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)	07:39
Posey Driving Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS)	07:23 [NOH 46-41]
Team Violation : Delay Of Game	07:20
	07:10	Jeffries Turnover : Lost Ball (1 TO) Steal:West (1 ST)
	07:10	Lowry Foul : Personal (1 PF)
Timeout : Regular	07:10
West Substitution replaced by Songaila	07:10
Songaila Jump Shot: Missed	06:48
Wright Rebound (Off:1 Def:1)	06:46
Wright Tip Shot: Made (4 PTS)	06:46 [NOH 48-41]
	06:27 [HOU 43-48]	Taylor Driving Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS)
	06:20	Hill Foul : Personal (2 PF)
Collison Turnover : Bad Pass (1 TO) Steal:Hill (1 ST)	06:10
Wright Foul : Shooting (1 PF)	06:05
	06:05 [HOU 44-48]	Taylor Free Throw 1 of 2 (3 PTS)
	06:05	Jeffries Substitution replaced by Scola
	06:05	Taylor Free Throw 2 of 2 Missed
Gray Rebound (Off:1 Def:1)	06:05
Songaila Jump Shot: Missed	05:51
	05:50	Taylor Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)
	05:37	Taylor 3pt Shot: Missed
	05:36	Budinger Rebound (Off:1 Def:0)
	05:30	Budinger 3pt Shot: Missed
	05:29	Hill Rebound (Off:1 Def:0)
	05:18 [HOU 46-48]	Scola Jump Shot: Made (6 PTS) Assist: Lowry (3 AST)
	04:59	Lowry Foul : Personal (2 PF)
	04:59	Team Timeout : Regular
	04:59	Budinger Substitution replaced by Martin
	04:59	Taylor Substitution replaced by Ariza
	04:51	Hill Foul : Shooting (3 PF)
Posey Free Throw 1 of 2 (3 PTS)	04:51 [NOH 49-46]
	04:51	Hill Substitution replaced by Hayes
Posey Free Throw 2 of 2 (4 PTS)	04:51 [NOH 50-46]
	04:34 [HOU 48-50]	Hayes Reverse Layup Shot: Made (10 PTS) Assist: Ariza (4 AST)
Songaila Jump Shot: Missed	04:22
	04:21	Martin Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)
Songaila Foul : Personal (1 PF)	04:05
	04:05	Lowry Substitution replaced by Brooks
Gray Substitution replaced by Okafor	04:05
	04:05	Scola Free Throw 1 of 2 Missed
	04:05	Team Rebound
	04:05 [HOU 49-50]	Scola Free Throw 2 of 2 (7 PTS)
Posey 3pt Shot: Missed	03:51
	03:50	Scola Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)
	03:42	Martin Turnover : Bad Pass (1 TO) Steal:Posey (1 ST)
Posey Layup Shot: Missed Block: Brooks (1 BLK)	03:39
	03:36	Scola Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)
	03:31	Ariza 3pt Shot: Missed
Songaila Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)	03:29
Collison Jump Shot: Missed	03:25
	03:23	Ariza Rebound (Off:1 Def:3)
	03:17 [HOU 51-50]	Martin Jump Shot: Made (14 PTS) Assist: Ariza (5 AST)
	03:02	Martin Foul : Personal (1 PF)
Wright Free Throw 1 of 2 Missed	03:02
Team Rebound	03:02
Wright Free Throw 2 of 2 (5 PTS)	03:02 [NOH 51-51]
	02:47 [HOU 53-51]	Brooks Pullup Bank shot: Made (2 PTS)
Songaila Turnover : Bad Pass (1 TO)	02:30
Team Timeout : Regular	02:30
Wright Substitution replaced by West	02:30
	02:15	Brooks 3pt Shot: Missed
Collison Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)	02:14
Collison Turnover : Bad Pass (2 TO)	02:11
	01:54 [HOU 56-51]	Brooks 3pt Shot: Made (5 PTS)
Collison Driving Jump shot: Made (10 PTS)	01:33 [NOH 53-56]
	01:26 [HOU 58-53]	Ariza Alley Oop Layup shot: Made (10 PTS) Assist: Brooks (3 AST)
Songaila Layup Shot: Missed	01:15
	01:13	Team Rebound
	00:57.9	Ariza 3pt Shot: Missed
	00:56.3	Team Rebound
	00:47.9	Brooks Driving Finger Roll Layup Shot: Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:4)	00:46.4
West Fade Away Jumper Shot: Missed	00:32.8
Okafor Rebound (Off:1 Def:2)	00:30.5
Collison 3pt Shot: Made (10 PTS) Assist: Okafor (1 AST)	00:28.2 [NOH 56-58]
	00:17.0	Scola Jump Shot: Missed
	00:17.0	Ariza Rebound (Off:2 Def:3)
	00:17.0 [HOU 60-56]	Ariza Tip Shot: Made (12 PTS)
	00:02.9	Hayes Foul : Personal (2 PF)
Okafor Free Throw 1 of 2 (8 PTS)	00:02.9 [NOH 57-60]
Okafor Free Throw 2 of 2 Missed	00:02.9
	00:02.9	Ariza Rebound (Off:2 Def:4)
End of 2nd Quarter
New Orleans Hornets (37-45)		Houston Rockets (42-40)
Start of 3rd QuarterBack to Top
	11:47	Brooks Running Jump Shot: Missed
Okafor Rebound (Off:1 Def:3)	11:45
Okafor Turnover : Bad Pass (2 TO) Steal:Martin (2 ST)	11:41
	11:36	Martin 3pt Shot: Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:5)	11:36
	11:27	Scola Foul : Personal (2 PF)
Thornton 3pt Shot: Made (8 PTS) Assist: Peterson (1 AST)	11:16 [NOH 60-60]
	11:00	Scola Jump Shot: Missed
Peterson Rebound (Off:0 Def:3)	10:59
West Reverse Layup Shot: Made (18 PTS) Assist: Collison (7 AST)	10:52 [NOH 62-60]
	10:32 [HOU 62-62]	Martin Jump Shot: Made (16 PTS) Assist: Ariza (6 AST)
West Jump Shot: Made (20 PTS) Assist: Collison (8 AST)	10:21 [NOH 64-62]
	10:00	Ariza Pullup Jump shot: Missed
Team Rebound	09:58
Thornton 3pt Shot: Missed	09:37
	09:37	Team Rebound
Okafor Foul : Loose Ball (3 PF)	09:37
	09:21 [HOU 64-64]	Ariza Running Jump Shot: Made (14 PTS)
Peterson Foul : Shooting (2 PF)	09:21
	09:21	Ariza Free Throw 1 of 1 Missed
Okafor Rebound (Off:1 Def:4)	09:21
West Step Back Jump shot: Made (22 PTS)	09:08 [NOH 66-64]
	08:47 [HOU 66-66]	Scola Jump Shot: Made (9 PTS) Assist: Ariza (7 AST)
Peterson Foul : Shooting (3 PF)	08:47
	08:47 [HOU 67-66]	Scola Free Throw 1 of 1 (10 PTS)
Peterson Jump Shot: Made (7 PTS)	08:25 [NOH 68-67]
	08:06 [HOU 69-68]	Martin Jump Shot: Made (18 PTS) Assist: Ariza (8 AST)
Collison Jump Shot: Made (12 PTS) Assist: Thornton (3 AST)	07:47 [NOH 70-69]
	07:33 [HOU 72-70]	Brooks 3pt Shot: Made (8 PTS) Assist: Scola (2 AST)
Peterson 3pt Shot: Made (10 PTS) Assist: Okafor (2 AST)	07:01 [NOH 73-72]
	06:52	Brooks Turnover : Bad Pass (1 TO)
Collison 3pt Shot: Missed Block: Ariza (1 BLK)	06:36
Okafor Rebound (Off:2 Def:4)	06:34
Collison Layup Shot: Made (14 PTS) Assist: Thornton (4 AST)	06:30 [NOH 75-72]
	06:30	Hayes Foul : Shooting (3 PF)
Collison Free Throw 1 of 1 (15 PTS)	06:30 [NOH 76-72]
	06:12 [HOU 74-76]	Ariza Jump Shot: Made (16 PTS) Assist: Hayes (1 AST)
West Fade Away Jumper Shot: Made (24 PTS)	05:47 [NOH 78-74]
	05:32	Martin Driving Layup Shot: Missed
Peterson Rebound (Off:0 Def:4)	05:30
	05:27	Scola Foul : Shooting (3 PF)
	05:27	Team Timeout : Regular
Thornton Free Throw 1 of 2 Missed	05:27
Team Rebound	05:27
Thornton Free Throw 2 of 2 (9 PTS)	05:27 [NOH 79-74]
	05:12 [HOU 76-79]	Hayes Layup Shot: Made (12 PTS) Assist: Martin (1 AST)
West Turnover : Bad Pass (4 TO) Steal:Hayes (1 ST)	04:52
	04:48	Brooks Driving Layup Shot: Missed
	04:47	Scola Rebound (Off:1 Def:2)
	04:47 [HOU 78-79]	Scola Tip Shot: Made (12 PTS)
West Fade Away Jumper Shot: Made (26 PTS) Assist: Collison (9 AST)	04:30 [NOH 81-78]
	04:09	Scola Jump Shot: Missed
Okafor Rebound (Off:2 Def:5)	04:07
Peterson 3pt Shot: Made (13 PTS) Assist: Collison (10 AST)	04:01 [NOH 84-78]
	03:36 [HOU 80-84]	Brooks Running Jump Shot: Made (10 PTS) Assist: Ariza (9 AST)
Collison Running Jump Shot: Made (17 PTS)	03:21 [NOH 86-80]
	03:21	Brooks Foul : Shooting (2 PF)
	03:21	Scola Substitution replaced by Jeffries
Collison Free Throw 1 of 1 (18 PTS)	03:21 [NOH 87-80]
	03:09 [HOU 83-87]	Ariza 3pt Shot: Made (19 PTS) Assist: Martin (2 AST)
Thornton Jump Shot: Missed	02:47
	02:46	Ariza Rebound (Off:2 Def:5)
Team Timeout : Regular	02:45
	02:45	Brooks Substitution replaced by Lowry
	02:34	Martin Jump Shot: Missed
	02:33	Jeffries Rebound (Off:1 Def:0)
	02:33 [HOU 85-87]	Jeffries Tip Shot: Made (6 PTS)
Collison Jump Shot: Made (20 PTS) Assist: West (4 AST)	02:06 [NOH 89-85]
	01:47	Martin Turnover : Traveling (2 TO)
	01:47	Martin Substitution replaced by Budinger
Thornton Pullup Jump shot: Missed	01:35
Okafor Rebound (Off:3 Def:5)	01:33
Okafor Turnover : Lost Ball (3 TO) Steal:Lowry (2 ST)	01:31
	01:30 [HOU 87-89]	Ariza Driving Layup Shot: Made (21 PTS) Assist: Lowry (4 AST)
West Foul : Shooting (2 PF)	01:30
	01:30 [HOU 88-89]	Ariza Free Throw 1 of 1 (22 PTS)
	01:15	Lowry Foul : Personal (3 PF)
West Free Throw 1 of 2 (27 PTS)	01:15 [NOH 90-88]
West Free Throw 2 of 2 (28 PTS)	01:15 [NOH 91-88]
	01:01	Jeffries Jump Shot: Missed
Okafor Rebound (Off:3 Def:6)	00:59.9
Thornton Pullup Jump shot: Made (11 PTS)	00:54.7 [NOH 93-88]
	00:47.5 [HOU 90-93]	Budinger Reverse Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS) Assist: Lowry (5 AST)
Thornton Turnover : Bad Pass (1 TO)	00:32.0
	00:25.9	Budinger 3pt Shot: Missed
Thornton Rebound (Off:0 Def:1)	00:24.9
Collison Driving Layup Shot: Made (22 PTS)	00:04.8 [NOH 95-90]
	00:00.0	Lowry 3pt Shot: Missed
	00:00.0	Team Rebound
End of 3rd Quarter
New Orleans Hornets (37-45)		Houston Rockets (42-40)
Start of 4th QuarterBack to Top
West Jump Shot: Made (30 PTS)	11:40 [NOH 97-90]
	11:15	Jeffries Layup Shot: Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:6)	11:13
	11:08	Hayes Substitution replaced by Scola
Thornton Reverse Layup Shot: Made (13 PTS) Assist: West (5 AST)	10:59 [NOH 99-90]
	10:45	Lowry Driving Layup Shot: Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:7)	10:44
Songaila Driving Layup Shot: Missed	10:38
	10:36	Ariza Rebound (Off:2 Def:6)
	10:31 [HOU 92-99]	Budinger Alley Oop Dunk Shot: Made (4 PTS) Assist: Lowry (6 AST)
West Layup Shot: Made (32 PTS)	10:06 [NOH 101-92]
	09:50 [HOU 94-101]	Budinger Jump Shot: Made (6 PTS) Assist: Ariza (10 AST)
Posey 3pt Shot: Missed	09:32
	09:31	Ariza Rebound (Off:2 Def:7)
	09:27 [HOU 96-101]	Budinger Layup Shot: Made (8 PTS) Assist: Lowry (7 AST)
Team Timeout : Regular	09:22
	09:22	Ariza Substitution replaced by Martin
West Jump Shot: Made (34 PTS) Assist: Thornton (5 AST)	09:07 [NOH 103-96]
	09:07	Jeffries Foul : Shooting (1 PF)
West Free Throw 1 of 1 (35 PTS)	09:07 [NOH 104-96]
	08:49	Lowry Driving Layup Shot: Missed
	08:48	Lowry Rebound (Off:1 Def:1)
	08:37	Budinger 3pt Shot: Missed
	08:36	Jeffries Rebound (Off:2 Def:0)
	08:25	Budinger Layup Shot: Missed Block: West (1 BLK)
	08:21	Budinger Rebound (Off:2 Def:0)
	08:20	Budinger Layup Shot: Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:8)	08:19
Thornton Driving Layup Shot: Made (15 PTS)	08:19 [NOH 106-96]
	08:19	Jeffries Foul : Shooting (2 PF)
	08:19	Jeffries Substitution replaced by Hayes
Thornton Free Throw 1 of 1 (16 PTS)	08:19 [NOH 107-96]
	08:09	Budinger Turnover : Bad Pass (1 TO) Steal:Thornton (1 ST)
	08:09	Martin Foul : Personal (2 PF)
Posey 3pt Shot: Made (7 PTS) Assist: Thornton (6 AST)	07:56 [NOH 110-96]
	07:38 [HOU 99-110]	Martin 3pt Shot: Made (21 PTS) Assist: Budinger (2 AST)
	07:20	Scola Foul : Personal (4 PF)
Songaila Driving Layup Shot: Made (2 PTS)	07:10 [NOH 112-99]
	06:49	Martin Jump Shot: Missed
Posey Rebound (Off:0 Def:4)	06:47
Collison Turnover : Traveling (3 TO)	06:39
	06:39	Budinger Substitution replaced by Ariza
Thornton Foul : Shooting (4 PF)	06:31
	06:31 [HOU 100-112]	Martin Free Throw 1 of 2 (22 PTS)
	06:31	Martin Free Throw 2 of 2 Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:9)	06:31
West Turnover : Lost Ball (5 TO) Steal:Hayes (2 ST)	06:14
	06:11 [HOU 102-112]	Lowry Driving Layup Shot: Made (4 PTS)
Thornton Layup Shot: Made (18 PTS) Assist: West (6 AST)	05:53 [NOH 114-102]
	05:36 [HOU 104-114]	Hayes Driving Slam Dunk Shot: Made (14 PTS)
Collison Step Back Jump shot: Made (24 PTS)	05:13 [NOH 116-104]
	04:56	Lowry Jump Shot: Missed
West Rebound (Off:0 Def:10)	04:55
Collison Turnover : Lost Ball (4 TO) Steal:Lowry (3 ST)	04:44
	04:39	Timeout : Regular
	04:39	Lowry Substitution replaced by Brooks
	04:30 [HOU 106-116]	Ariza Layup Shot: Made (24 PTS) Assist: Scola (3 AST)
West Step Back Jump shot: Missed	04:09
	04:07	Scola Rebound (Off:1 Def:3)
	03:54	Ariza 3pt Shot: Missed
Songaila Rebound (Off:0 Def:2)	03:53
Collison Jump Shot: Made (26 PTS)	03:42 [NOH 118-106]
	03:39	Brooks Turnover : Traveling (2 TO)
Posey 3pt Shot: Made (10 PTS) Assist: Collison (11 AST)	03:28 [NOH 121-106]
	03:11 [HOU 108-121]	Scola Turnaround Jump Shot: Made (14 PTS)
Songaila Jump Shot: Missed	02:48
	02:47	Ariza Rebound (Off:2 Def:8)
Songaila Foul : Shooting (2 PF)	02:39
	02:39	Team Timeout : Regular
	02:39 [HOU 109-121]	Scola Free Throw 1 of 2 (15 PTS)
	02:39	Scola Free Throw 2 of 2 Missed
Posey Rebound (Off:0 Def:5)	02:38
Thornton Running Layup Shot: Missed	02:20
Team Rebound	02:19
Collison Layup Shot: Missed Block: Ariza (2 BLK)	02:08
	02:06	Scola Rebound (Off:1 Def:4)
	02:04 [HOU 111-121]	Ariza Driving Dunk Shot: Made (26 PTS) Assist: Scola (4 AST)
Posey 3pt Shot: Missed	01:42
	01:41	Hayes Rebound (Off:0 Def:3)
	01:35	Scola Layup Shot: Missed Block: Songaila (1 BLK)
	01:34	Team Rebound
	01:32	Ariza Turnover : Bad Pass (2 TO) Steal:Thornton (2 ST)
Thornton Driving Slam Dunk Shot: Made (20 PTS)	01:29 [NOH 123-111]
	01:14	Ariza Turnover : Bad Pass (3 TO) Steal:Posey (2 ST)
Songaila Jump Shot: Missed	00:57.9
	00:56.9	Martin Rebound (Off:0 Def:3)
	00:36.8 [HOU 113-123]	Brooks Running Bank shot: Made (12 PTS)
Collison 3pt Shot: Missed	00:17.9
	00:16.9	Martin Rebound (Off:0 Def:4)
	00:12.9 [HOU 115-123]	Martin Driving Layup Shot: Made (24 PTS)
End of 4th Quarter

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