Clippers @ Rockets Preview
It is probably time we stop calling the Houston Rockets a “surging” team and simply call them a good team.
They have proven so by winning 11 straight home games and only running into a hiccup when Dwight Howard was injured that they are an elite team that has all the tools necessary to seriously compete with the best of the NBA.
They will be looking to expand their home game win streak to 12 consecutive games tonight as they take on one of those elite teams in Pacific Division leaders the Los Angeles Clippers.
Perhaps most notable is that this game will decide who is third place in the Western Conference.
Howard, Jame Harden and Jermey Lin are clearly the team’s answer to the trio of stars that make up all the other elite teams in the NBA. Â Some predicted the Rockets would stumble a bit when Howard missed three games due to an ankle injury but upon his return the team came right back together. Â In fact things never really fell apart in Howard’s absence. Howard, to his credit, scored 17 points and pulled down 13 rebounds in his second game back, and the Rockets last game, against the Philadelphia 76ers.
Harden helped out by scoring 26 points, pulling down 10 rebounds and dishing out 10 assists for his second career triple-double since he dawned a Rockets jersey.
The Rockets are on a five-game win streak that stretches back to Howard first missed game. Â In fact with Howard gone, the Rockets were still able to average 118.2 points a game and shoot 52 percent and go 41.1 percent from behind the arc.
But the Clippers are not the 76ers. Â The Rockets have a past of struggling against this team, that always seems to have the answers in advance to the Rockets riddles.
Chris Paul and Blake Griffin are still the dangerous combo they have always been. Â In the Clips’ last outing against the Dallas Mavericks, Paul put up a whopping 31 points while Griffin chipped 18 points and 13 rebounds. Â DeAndre Jordan also got in on the action with 16 points and 15 rebounds.
It was a much needed recovery for the Clipper who were suffering from a two-game skid.
These two teams last meant way back on Nov.9 where the Clippers completely controlled the game and beat the Rockets 107-94.
The Rockets are the slight favorites to win this one with a -1.5 point spread. The game starts at 8 p.m. ET and you can watch it on NBA TV.
