PrintRockets Fall Short In Fourth, Lose To Jazz
Cold shooting down the stretch dooms Houston to 104-95 defeat
Jason Friedman
Rockets.com Staff Writer
Houston - No attempt was made to mask the frustration. There was no effort to bask in moral victories. The Rockets have seen this story too many times of late. And they’re more than ready to script a different ending.
Falling victim to a sputtering offense once again, Houston faltered down the stretch before ultimately falling to the red-hot Utah Jazz 104-95. The Rockets (27-25) gave Utah all it could handle for 44 solid minutes. Then the club came undone while missing 11 of its last 12 shots and suffering three backbreaking turnovers, all of which allowed Utah to escape with a win which left the Rockets lamenting another defeat borne of offensive miscues suffered at the most inopportune of times.
“We didn’t finish it, they did,” said a downtrodden Aaron Brooks after the game. “It’s starting to be typical. Getting too used to it, unfortunately.”
Added Rockets Head Coach Rick Adelman: “It just came down to the end of the game where their experience showed. They executed. We got some steals. We got some turnovers. We just didn’t do enough offensively.
“We don’t have the experience or whatever. When they take something away, you have to adjust to it and find the next option. (Deron) Williams is tremendous at that. When you take something away, they’re going to find the open guy. Unfortunately, the last four minutes, we couldn’t get a good shot, at least not one good enough to keep us in the game.”
The Rockets realize there is no magic pill to be taken which instantly grants the sort of experience possessed by clubs like Utah; teams which can lean on a core of players whose familiarity with one another allows for the sort of sixth sense which so often can be the difference between winning and losing in crunch time. It’s the inherent disadvantage which comes with youth and a lack of cohesion; issues that can only be fixed through time, repetition and effort. It’s not always an enjoyable process. There will be nights like tonight and stretches such as the one in which the Rockets currently find themselves mired. It is, however, the only way.
“We have a general idea of what we want to do,” said Shane Battier. “The difference is execution. I’ve learned from some great coaches that when you run a play you can’t have any looseness. A guy has to get open on the spot where you want him to catch the ball. The cuts have to be sharp and precise. Especially in the last five minutes of the game, you have to run the play the way it’s supposed to be run and run it sharply. If you miss shots, you miss shots but that’s the time when you really have to focus in and do the hard things that allow you to win games down the stretch.
“That’s why Utah is really good: they knew exactly what they were running and they knew exactly the shots they wanted to go get – by whom and wherever they wanted on the floor – and we’re just not at that level yet.”
To be sure, Tuesday night’s game offered some signs of progress for Houston. The Rockets were brilliant in the second quarter, knocking down shots from all over the floor while locking down the Jazz defensively. David Andersen delivered a much-needed confidence booster of a game, scoring 18 points in just 24 minutes of play. And for all the postgame talk about faulty execution, if either Aaron Brooks or Trevor Ariza connected on potential game-tying threes during the contest’s final minute, the end result could just as easily have swung in Houston’s favor.
At this point, however, the Rockets will only find solace in wins, not silver linings. They realize the importance of every game and what each means to their playoff push. They are loose but desperate to make something positive happen.
And they are also continuing to cope with the expectations which ensued following the club’s surprisingly strong start to the season, back when the team was basking in defying the projections of pundits who expected Houston to occupy the nether regions of the Western Conference. After the game, Battier spoke of watching his team’s previous match-up with Utah earlier in the day. The Rockets won that game, shocking the Jazz in Salt Lake, while displaying a devil-may-care, defy us at your own peril swagger. The difference between now and then caught Battier by surprise.
“You could see a different feel amongst our team then,” he said. “We were scrapping for every possession and every loose ball and there was a sense of urgency collectively that sort of screamed, ‘We have to play this way, we have to play loose and free, we have to be aggressive and that’s the only way we’re going to survive.
“A funny thing happens when you start to overcome expectations. You start to play to hold on to it. That’s the natural inclination. You start to play conservatively and try to hold on to what you’ve gained and in the process aggressiveness is lost and that free spirit that made us really good in the first half isn’t as prevalent. What we have to do is recapture that spirit and recapture that aggressiveness because that’s when we’re at our best and when we’re able to compete against the big guys.”
Do that – and combine it with the valuable experience gained even in painful defeats such as these – and the Rockets will find themselves far more likely to enjoy a few more palatable endings in the days and weeks to come.
QUOTES
RICK ADELMAN
(On the game) That’s a very good team we played. It just came down to the end of the game where there experienced showed and they executed. We got some steals and we got some turnovers but we didn’t do enough offensively.
We don’t have the experience where if they take something away you have to be able to adjust to it and find the next option. Williams (Deron) was tremendous at passing. If we take something away, they're going to find the open guy. Unfortunately the last three or four minutes, we couldn't get a good shot. We stopped getting shots that could keep us in the game.”
(On the play of David Andersen) “I thought he played well. Not only did he shoot it well, but he rebounded and he was good hitting the boards.
(On the Rockets second half struggles) “We talked about this over the course of the season, we have to have everybody contributing especially against a team like that. We were right there, we had every chance, but we just didn't finish it and we have to find a way to finish it.
LUIS SCOLA
(On what happened at the end of the game) “Our team played better but we just didn't close the game. We didn't close the game. We made a few crucial mistakes at the end, down the stretch and they got the game. We have to be able to finish the games and play hard, play focused and finish the games.”
(On what they're going to take from this loss to Milwaukee) “We are just going to try and finish games and play focused at the end. It's always little details that puts the games on the line for us and we just need to close the games, especially here at home.”
DAVID ANDERSEN
(On aggressiveness offensively) “I just come in and try to do what I can to get into the rhythm of the game and get going. I came in the second quarter and got some good looks from my teammates. They always find me with the good looks and it helps a lot.”
(On tough match-up physically against the Jazz) “We were trying to keep them out of the key a bit and it’s hard. They're an aggressive team, they're physical and they get into it and that makes it tough. We did a pretty good job most of the game. It’s just near the end we failed to execute a bit and they got good crucial buckets. They made it really hard.”
“When you hit your first shot it helps get your confidence going and get into the rhythm of the game. That really is a key. Coaches tell you if you get the open look you’ve got to shoot it every time, so you’ve got to have the confidence to back yourself. That’s the good thing: tonight I just backed myself and knocked it down. But it’s tough when you get a loss like this to look at the positive sometime.
AARON BROOKS
(On his play) “Too many turnovers period personally. Not enough assists.”
(On the play of Deron Williams) “He played a good game. He got his teammates involved. He didn't shoot it too well but he did a great job as far as getting his teammates involved. He had a good game.”
(On the Jazz) “That was a good team. They played a good game. It was a bad game. We didn't finish it and they did. It’s starting to be typical. We played hard today and probably next game will be different.”
SHANE BATTIER
(On what veteran advice he can give younger players on the stretch of losses recently) “Well, I think I'm the one that understands the situation. We played them tough tonight. We didn't make enough plays down the stretch in the fourth quarter and some games in the NBA that’s what it comes down to. They've been playing very, very well, they made the plays that a veteran team that plays together a lot just makes.”
(On being able to attack the zone defense of the Milwaukee Bucks) “Well, hopefully we've been working against the zone a little bit in practice. So, I think we'll be able to handle it better this time.”
In a game like tonight you have to make every small play. Every loose ball that’s bouncing around, you’ve got to grab it. The mental mistakes you have to eliminate, especially down the stretch against these kinds of teams. We may not have the experience but sometimes you can compete your way against experience. And even then, that might not be enough. That’s why Utah is really good: they knew exactly what they were running and they knew exactly the shots they wanted to go get – by whom and wherever they wanted on the floor – and we’re just not at that level yet.
We have a general idea of what we want to do. The difference is execution. I’ve learned from some great coaches that when you run a play you can’t have any looseness. A guy has to get open on the spot where you want him to catch the ball. The cuts have to be sharp and precise. Especially in the last five minutes of the game, you have to run the play the way it’s supposed to be run and run it sharply. If you miss shots, you miss shots but that’s the time when you really have to focus in and do the hard things that allow you to win games down the stretch.
It is difficult. I would like our team to take the attitude of, ‘Hey, no one expects us to win so let’s go out and play loose, let’s compete, let’s play together and play the game the right way.’ That takes the pressure off. The first game we played against Utah was on the TV today and you could see a different feel amongst our team then. We were scrapping for every possession and every loose ball and there was a sense of urgency collectively that sort of screamed, ‘We have to play this way, we have to play loose and free, we have to be aggressive and that’s the only way we’re going to survive without Yao and Tracy.’
A funny thing happens when you start to overcome expectations. You start to play to hold on to it. That’s the natural inclination. You start to play conservative and try to hold on to what you’ve gained and in the process aggressiveness is lost and that free spirit that made us really good in the first half isn’t as prevalent. What we have to do is recapture that spirit and recapture that aggressiveness because that’s when we’re at our best and when we’re able to compete against the big guys.
It takes just as much maturity to handle success as it does failure. It’s easy to handle failure as a competitor because you just work even harder. But when you have success you have to remember what got you success and it’s often a hard thing to do and you have to be mature enough to go out and do those same things.
UTAH JAZZ
COACH JERRY SLOAN
(On the game) “It looked like we were going to let it get away. Houston stayed in the game and we couldn’t get away from them. Brooks didn’t shoot the ball that well but we had a tough time stopping his penetration. It’s crazy to get 21 turnovers and win a game but they turned over the ball a lot too. On the road, you have to keep your turnovers down.”
(On Kyle Korver’s play) “Kyle played very well. He’s been working extremely hard to get back into a groove and get his conditioning. He’s been doing the work to get back into condition and I am happy for him. I though I’d give him a chance and he stepped up.”
CARLOS BOOZER
(On the game) “It was a big win. Houston is a scrappy and talented team and it was a good win on the road. We got things going in the first quarter and then we settled for jump shots in the second quarter. Mehmet (Okur) got us going with his shooting in the third quarter.”
(On the team’s play) Coach is all about winning and Kyle (Korver) came in with some big shots in the fourth quarter. We believe in our system and we fought hard. We made plays down the stretch.”
PAUL MILLSAP
(On the game) “We had to make up for our last game and we came out with a lot of intensity. We pounded the ball down low and we made them tired. We need to continue to do the things that got us our success.”
DERON WILLIAMS
(On the game) “This was a great team victory. We came out sluggish, but we came through and executed down the stretch. It was a great road victory. This game was very important. I was happy with the win and I liked the way Kyle (Korver) played. Houston is always a tough team at home and we owed them one after they beat us in Utah.”
NOTES
The Rockets fell 104-95 to the Jazz tonight, snapping Houston’s two-game home winning streak over Utah.
Houston was 11-of-26 (.423) from beyond the arc tonight. The Rockets have now made 10 or more 3-pointers in six of the last seven meetings with the Jazz (10-26 3FG on 4/14/08, 12-28 3FG on 12/27/08, 11-24 3FG on 1/21/09, 10-26 3FG on 3/24/09, 10-19 3FG on 11/2/09 and 11-26 3FG tonight).
The Rockets finished 20-of-22 (.909) from the free throw line tonight. Houston has now reached at least .900 at the stripe six times this season. The Rockets reached .900 or better at the line only five times in 2007-08 and 13 times in 2008-09.
Utah dished out 30 assists tonight, which was just the second time this season for an opponent to reach the 30-assist mark against the Rockets this season. Dallas set Houston’s opponent season highs for total assists with 33 at Houston (11/25/09). Utah also set Houston’s 2008-09 opponent season high with 35 assists (31 in regulation) at Houston (12/27/08), including 17 assists on 17 field goals in the first half.
The Rockets have now forced at least 20 turnovers in seven games this season, as the two teams combined for 45 turnovers in tonight’s game (Houston 24, Utah 21). Houston forced 20-plus giveaways just five total times in 2008-09.
David Andersen posted 18 points (7-11 FG, 3-3 3FG), seven rebounds, three assists and two steals tonight. Andersen came up just one point shy of his career-high 19 points (9-14 FG) set at the L.A. Lakers (11/15/09).
Aaron Brooks finished with 18 points (5-17 FG, 4-9 3FG) and three assists tonight. Brooks has now made at least one 3-pointer in a career-best 25 consecutive games (12/22/09-2/16/10), which currently stands as the longest active streak in the NBA. Brooks actually tied his career high in 3-pointers made in the last home game against the Sixers: 6-12 3FG vs. Dallas (12/31/09), 6-12 3FG at Phoenix (1/6/10), 6-9 3FG vs. Minnesota (1/13/10) and 6-11 3FG vs. Philadelphia (2/6/10).
Trevor Ariza recorded 15 points (4-10 FG), six assists, five boards and two steals. Ariza now owns 28 multi-steal performances on the season.
Deron Williams registered 17 points (6-14 FG) and 15 assists tonight, including 10 assists in the first half alone. Williams recorded his fourth double-digit assist half of the season. He had 11 assists in the second half at New York (11/9/09), 10 in the first half vs. Portland (11/28/09) and 11 in the second half vs. Orlando (12/10/09). Including tonight’s outing, Williams owns nine regular season double-digit assist performances against the Rockets dating back to 2006-07.
Mehmet Okur, who topped the Jazz with 21 points (9-13 FG) in the last meeting at Utah (11/2/09), equaled that feat with a team-high 21 points (9-16 FG), eight rebounds and four blocked shots tonight.
Paul Millsap notched 20 points (8-11 FG) and 12 rebounds tonight, marking his fourth double-double of the season.
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