Rockets Win; Francis Gone

The Houston Rockets returned home last night, fresh off of an eight game road winning streak, to host the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers in a nationally televised match up. With Western Conference foes such as the Suns and Lakers making headline roster moves to improve their stock in an extremely competitive Western Conference, the Rockets were quickly becoming an afterthought as they fought for the final playoff seed.

However, a 92-77 victory over the Cavs and the means by which Houston was able to earn the win may have just put the entire NBA on notice that the Rockets are not a team to be overlooked. To be fair, Houston was matched up against a shorthanded Cleveland squad, with Sasha Pavlovic, Anderson Varejao, and Drew Gooden sitting on the sidelines in street clothes. The Cavs' injury woes continued in the 4th quarter, as former Texas Longhorn Daniel Gibson strained his right hamstring and was unable to return to the game.

Rockets head coach Rick Adelman deftly identified the Cavaliers lack of manpower and made a heady coaching decision to lead Houston to victory. Adelman chose to let James beat the Rockets and to focus the team’s defensive effort on shutting down every one of his teammates. The tactic proved to be successful, as James scored 32 points and grabbed seven rebounds while shooting over .500 from the field. Meanwhile, his teammates went an abysmal 19-for-55 as a unit. Coupled with the fact that the Rockets managed to outrebound the Cavs to the tune of 55-35, and the victory was Houston’s to have.

Despite the win, the Rockets also came into the game with player personnel setbacks. Superstar guard Tracy McGrady, who was hospitalized earlier in the day with an upper respiratory infection and strep throat, arrived at the Toyota Center an hour before tip off and seemingly left his game in his hospital bed. McGrady scored a mere eight points while going 3-for-11 from the field. Nevertheless, the Rockets were led by contributions from All-Star big man Yao Ming (22 points and 12 rebounds), point guard Rafer Alston (17 points and 12 assists) and versatile forward Shane Battier’s 15 points.

On a somber note, Rockets guard Steve Francis is set to have knee surgery that will end his season. Francis has played in only 10 games this season, and last saw action on Dec. 19. The former All-Star is scheduled to undergo an operation on a torn quadriceps tendon in his right knee on February 25.

Photo: flickr user jeffbalke