Suns-Rockets Preview

By JUSTIN EINHORN
Posted Feb 02 2012 3:48PM

Kevin Martin has provided plenty of offense since returning, but the Houston Rockets have seemingly suffered on defense.

The Rockets are looking to shore up things on that end of the court before opening a lengthy road trip, though they could have trouble doing so Friday night against Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns.

Both Nash and the Suns are coming off their highest-scoring games of the season, with the two-time MVP's 30 points keying a 120-103 victory in New Orleans on Wednesday.

Phoenix (8-13) has won the last seven meetings with Houston (12-10) when Nash has played, averaging 115.7 points. An injured Nash missed the most recent matchup as the Rockets ended their seven-game skid in the series with a 95-93 home win March 14.

Martin's 13.9 career scoring average versus Phoenix is his lowest against any opponent, and the Suns were one of three Western Conference teams against which he failed to average at least 20.0 last season.

He's scored 29 points in back-to-back games, making 10 3-pointers, since missing a pair with a foot injury.

"If he's hot, you try to get him the ball," Rockets coach Kevin McHale said of Martin, averaging 29.2 points in his last six.

However, Houston has lost both games since his return while its opponents - Minnesota and San Antonio - averaged 109.5 points and shot 52.0 percent. The Rockets won on consecutive nights when he was out, holding both Washington and New York under 85 points and 39.0 percent shooting.

A third straight loss Friday could be a tough blow to the Rockets before they begin a six-game trip Saturday in Minnesota. They're 3-7 away from home - all three victories were against sub-.500 teams - compared to 9-3 in Houston.

Phoenix is 3-2 in road games after winning only one of its first six.

Wednesday's road victory saw Nash hand out 10 assists to reach 6,522 with the Suns, passing Kevin Johnson for the franchise record.

"To be honest, it pales in comparison to getting the win," said Nash, whose 9,441 career assists are 46 behind Oscar Robertson for fifth all-time.

Nash, averaging 20.3 points and 13.5 assists in his last eight matchups with the Rockets, went 13 of 16 from the field Wednesday. Phoenix is 4-1 this season when he scores more than 20 points.

"Obviously when Steve is going like that we're pretty good," coach Alvin Gentry said.

While Nash averages an NBA-best 9.9 assists and is tops among guards in field-goal shooting at 55.0 percent, teammate Marcin Gortat leads the league in that category (56.3) and has become a force inside.

The fifth-year center has reached double figures in rebounds in 13 straight games and has scored in double figures in all but one of them. He could be in for a tough battle with Samuel Dalembert, averaging 11.3 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in his last 12 games.

Fellow Rockets big man Luis Scola is looking to end a brief slump. Houston's second-leading scorer has not reached double figures in back-to-back games for the first time this season, totaling 12 points on 4-of-15 shooting with eight turnovers.

Martin, Lowry lead Rockets past Suns 99-81

By CHRIS DUNCAN
Posted Feb 03 2012 11:51PM

HOUSTON (AP) The Houston Rockets got the confidence-building win they needed before heading on the road for their next six games.

Kevin Martin scored 16 points, Kyle Lowry had eight rebounds and nine assists, and the Rockets beat the Phoenix Suns 99-81 on Friday night.

Chase Budinger added 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Rockets, who got another strong effort from their reserves to beat the Suns for only the second time in the last nine meetings. Courtney Lee and Patrick Patterson also scored 12 points apiece off the bench for Houston.

The play of the reserves gave valuable rest to the Rockets' starters leading up to their road trip, which begins Saturday night in Minnesota.

The Rockets' reserves scored 50 points and pulled down 23 rebounds. They also preserved Houston's big lead in the second half to let the starters rest before Saturday night's game in Minnesota.

"The bench is really getting that chemistry together," Budinger said. "We're getting used to playing with one another, we start finding where guys like the ball, and also we're bringing energy out there. We're trying to run more."

Houston's bench is averaging 49 points over the past five games.

"It is challenging, just because you're going against NBA players every night," Patterson said. "But when you're clicking like that, we're running the offense, we're utilizing our advantages and it's great. We can do that with any team. It's just all about playing hard and just doing it."

Lowry said it was also the kind of performance the entire team needed after losing badly to Minnesota on Monday and then blowing a 19-point lead in San Antonio on Wednesday.

"We played well, we got the ball out fast, we got up and down, made some shots and got it going early," Lowry said.

Marcin Gortat had 15 points and 12 rebounds and Shannon Brown scored 12 for the Suns, who've lost five of their last seven. Houston had a 49-39 rebounding edge and held Steve Nash to six points and nine assists.

Nash's only made baskets were two 3-pointers, and he also coughed up four turnovers.

"We were having problems scoring," Nash said. "We hung pretty close for the first eight minutes or so, then instead of going back to getting the game closer, we let it get away from us."

Nash had four assists in the first six minutes, and the Suns took an early 14-13 lead. Nash and Grant Hill went out for a rest with 3:50 left in the first quarter, and Houston finished with a 15-6 spurt to take a 30-20 lead.

The Rockets' reserves shot and rebounded well early in the second quarter to preserve the double-digit margin. Nash and Hill returned, but Houston stayed in control, stretching the lead to 45-28 on Budinger's 3-pointer from the corner.

Houston's bench scored 21 points in the second quarter, and the Rockets led 59-39 at the break. Houston outrebounded Phoenix 29-18 in the first half, with Luis Scola, Lowry and Patterson grabbing six boards apiece.

The Suns' offense continued to sputter in the third quarter, even with Nash on the floor. Phoenix started the second half 4 for 10 from the field, and the deficit hovered around 20.

Phoenix couldn't slow Houston much, either. The Rockets shot 43 percent (9 for 21) in the quarter and led 80-61, despite five turnovers.

Most of the starters from both teams sat out the final quarter, getting valuable rest since both play again Saturday. The Suns fly home to meet Charlotte, then face a demanding two-day trip with games in Atlanta on Monday and Milwaukee on Tuesday.

"We need to play harder and play `grown-man' basketball and not get pushed around," Phoenix coach Alvin Gentry said. "You have to compete and match energy with energy. I wasn't pleased with anything we did."

The Rockets held Phoenix to 19 points in the fourth to win for the 21st consecutive time when holding their opponent below 90 points.

Notes: The Rockets' first-half points total was a season high. ... Houston sent first-round draft pick Marcus Morris to Rio Grande Valley, the team's developmental league partner. The 6-foot-9 Morris was selected by Houston with the 14th overall pick, just after his twin brother Markieff was taken by Phoenix. Morris sprained his left ankle in a D-league game on Jan. 12, but general manager Daryl Morey says Morris is cleared to play. Morris has averaged 22 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in four starts for Rio Grande Valley this season. ... The Suns are 1-13 when trailing at halftime. ... Phoenix lost to the Rockets for only the seventh time in the past 22 meetings.

Notebook: Rockets 99, Suns 81

By Matt Miller, for NBA.com
Posted Friday February 3, 2012 11:34PM

THE FACTS: With a six-game road trip that begins Saturday lying ahead of the Houston Rockets, they made sure to quickly dispose of the struggling Phoenix Suns.

Kevin Martin scored 16 points on 6-for-9 shooting in less than 18 minutes of action, and Luis Scola added 14 points and eight rebounds (five offensive), as Houston used a huge first-half run to create enough separation to cruise to a 99-81 victory over the Suns on Friday at Toyota Center. The win snapped a two-game slide for Houston (13-10), which improved to 10-3 at home but will not return to Toyota Center until Feb. 15.

Marcin Gortat led Phoenix (8-14) with 15 points and 12 boards, while Jared Dudley scored 15 points, grabbed five rebounds and collected three steals. The Suns have dropped five of their last seven games overall and fell to 0-7 on the road against Western Conference opponents not named the New Orleans Hornets.

QUOTABLE: "I'm trying to do as much as possible, but we're just not ready, not ready at all. It's frustrating as hell. The game before we look good and everything is okay, and then all of a sudden ... 48 hours later, you see a totally different team."
-- Marcin Gortat on Phoenix's up-and-down play this season

THE STAT: Houston outworked the Suns on the boards, controlling the rebounding battle by a 49-39 margin overall and 14-9 offensively. The Rockets have outrebounded opponents on the offensive glass by an average of 12.3-8.0 and have scored approximately 6.7 more second-chance points per game (14.7-8.0) than their foes over their last three contests.

TURNING POINT: The Suns scored six points in a row to grab their second -- and last -- lead of the game at 14-13 midway through the first quarter. But Steve Nash's pinpoint passing would not be nearly enough to sustain Phoenix's offense, which found little success in the paint aside from the occasional pick-and-roll with Gortat and Nash. The Suns closed the first half by missing 20 of their final 31 shots, and the Rockets capitalized by crashing the boards and pushing the tempo to find their own rhythm. Before Phoenix could regain some offensive consistency, Houston outscored the Suns 46-25 over the final 17 minutes of the first half to enter the break holding a 59-39 advantage.

QUOTABLE II: "Our defense needs to fuel our offense. If we get big stops and limit their [the opponent's] second-chance opportunities we can get out and run, and that's when we're at our best."
-- Rockets forward Chandler Parsons

HOT: Gortat posted his 13th double-double in the last 14 games, finishing with 15 points on 7-for-11 shooting and 12 rebounds to go with three blocks and two steals. In his last four games, the 6-foot-11 center from Poland has averaged 17.0 points on 52.0 percent (26-for-50) shooting, 11.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks.

NOT: After connecting on 18 of 36 attempts (50.0 percent) from 3-point range over its previous two games, Phoenix shot an abysmal 4-for-19 (21.1 percent) from beyond the arc in Friday's defeat.

GOOD MOVE: The Rockets effectively sealed off Nash's driving lanes and forced him to choose between being a jump-shooter or facilitator. Nash distributed the ball effectively, finishing with nine assists, but Houston made the seven-time All-Star lie back and rely on his mostly young teammates to hit perimeter shots that they did not feel comfortable taking.

BAD MOVE: Houston failed to get back on defense after several made shots during the first half, allowing the Suns to pour in a few easy layups. Even a team that has a future Hall of Famer like Nash running the point should not be allowed to generate break-away layups for his teammates off an opponent's successful offensive possessions.

QUOTABLE III: "We have to play like we did tonight, and really focus in on the defensive end and not let a team go off one quarter for 30 points. That's where we're letting down right now. We're not playing 48 minutes."
-- Houston forward Chase Budinger on the Rockets' key to a successful road trip

NOTABLE: The Suns lost to Houston for the first time in eight meetings when Nash has played. ... Nash (9,450 career assists) is 35 assists behind Oscar Robertson for fifth all time. ... Phoenix fell to 1-13 this season when trailing at halftime. ... The Rockets shot a perfect 17-for-17 at the free-throw line. ... Houston improved to 9-0 when allowing less than 90 points. ... The Rockets outrebounded their opponent by a double-digit margin for the fourth time this season. ... Houston has scored at least 10 fast-break points in all but one game this season. ... Budinger recorded his third career double-double, finishing with 12 points and 10 rebounds. ... The Rockets can record their fourth consecutive sweep of a back-to-back set with a victory at Minnesota on Saturday.

UP NEXT: For the Suns, Saturday vs. Charlotte, Monday @ Atlanta, Tuesday @ Milwaukee. For the Rockets, Saturday @ Minnesota, Monday @ Denver, Wednesday @ Portland.

• Suns: --
• Rockets: Morris, Thabeet

• Suns: --
• Rockets: --

• Lead Changes: 4
• Times Tied: 0

• Arena: Toyota Center, Houston, TX
• Officials: #20 Leroy Richardson, #9 Derrick Stafford, #28 Tommy Nunez Jr.
• Attendance: 15941
• Duration: 2:00