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Yao vs. Warriors - 3/19/04

Yao gets words of wisdom from Rockets assistant coach Patrick Ewing Friday night during an embarrassing loss (again), this time to Golden State 90-84. Yao scored only 10 points on 4-of-15 shooting.
SATURDAY, 3/20/04 - The only thing more unbelievable than the Rockets losing to another poor team--this time against the Golden State Warriors--is that I went through the trouble to fly to Oakland to watch them play (thanks to some frequent flyer miles I had). That's the reason why I am filing a late report for this game. The reason I flew to this game is because I thought it would be great to see Yao visiting a community and arena that embraces him probably more than any other arena in the league (outside of Houston).

Needless to say, the Yao element was about the only thing exciting about this experience--the roar of the crowd when he was introduced, and the crowd of 70 or 80 people that gathered and cheered from afar in the parking lot as they watched him walk to the team bus after the game. Everything that occurred in between for the Rockets was a non-event as they blew another game to a team they should have beat, this time losing to Golden State 90-84.

The Rockets seemed to sleepwalk through the entire game, never seizing control and procrastinating on putting the game away. With 6:40 remaining in the third quarter, Cuttino Mobley hit a jumper that pulled them to a 61-63 deficit. But after that shot, everything went south and the Rockets soon fell behind by 12 points and couldn't make up for it the rest of the way.

Incredibly, Steve Francis had only four points with 5:18 remaining in the third quarter. The rest of the game was garbage time where he was able to pad his stats to make his numbers look more respectable (19 points overall), except for the turnovers (7). The Rockets never seriously threatened to come back except when Warrior guard Mickael Pietrus missed two free throws to give the Rockets some hope, but they failed to grab an easy rebound on the second missed free throw, and that was basically the end of it.

Yao had one of his worst nights offensively, scoring only 10 points on 4-of-15 shooting. He really didn't get much playing time in the second half. Jeff Van Gundy appeared to want a smaller lineup playing. Whatever.

I could go on ranting about this game, but it's very late. I'm quite tired from a day of travel, and I don't have access to a tape of the game since I'm traveling. To be frank, there really isn't much to write about this game, other than the fact we could be seeing the start of a sequel to last year's late-season Rocket collapse. Losing to Phoenix and Golden State in consecutive games hurts, and it's not going to get any easier with a game in Sacramento on Sunday night.
Detailed Yao Analysis
vs. Golden State Warriors  3/19/04

1st quarter
11:30 On the first possession of the game, Yao misses an 11-foot jumper from the left side of the court.
9:16 Jason Richardson grabs a rebound in front of the Warriors' rim, and tries to drive around Yao and put a shot off the glass, but Yao swats it away!
10:28 Yao misses a right baseline jumper. He is now 0-for-2 from the field.
9:57 Cuttino Mobley drives the lane from the right side, draws a couple of defenders to him, then dishes the ball off to Yao in front of the rim. Yao goes up for a shot, releases, and banks it off the glass for the score, and he's fouled...and Yao pumps his fist on the And-1! Yao goes to the line and makes the penalty free throw, and a big part of the Warrior crowd roars! Yao is now 1-for-3 from the field with 3 points. The Rockets lead 3-1.
6:22 Yao misses a jumper from the right baseline. He is now 1-for-4 from the field with 3 points.
4:29 Yao misses a jumper from the left baseline. He is now 1-for-5 from the field with 3 points.
3:56   Yao checks out of the game for Maurice Taylor. The Rockets lead 13-11.
2nd quarter - At the end of the first quarter, the Rockets trail 19-20 in a low-scoring affair.
7:02   Yao checks into the game for Jim Jackson. The Rockets trail 25-30.
6:53 Yao misses a right-handed hook shot in the lane. He is now 1-for-6 from the field with 3 points.
6:00
Yao gets the ball on the right edge of the lane, spins baseline on Troy Murphy and puts up a leaning jumper that misses short, BUT YAO GRABS THE REBOUND OVER MURPHY, JUMPS UP, FALLS AWAY AND PUTS IT IN FOR THE SCORE ALONG THE RIGHT BASELINE! Yao is now 2-for-8 from the field with 5 points. The Rockets now only trail 29-30.
4:42 Yao misses a long jumper from the left side of the court. He is now 2-for-9 from the field with 5 points.
4:09 Yao gets the ball along the left edge of the lane with Erick Dampier guarding him one-on-one. Yao then turns into the lane, jumps, falls away and launches a 10-foot jumper that's good! He is now 3-for-10 from the field with 7 points.
3:25 Yao gets the ball about 4 feet from the outside edge of the lane on the left side of the court. Guarded by Dampier, Yao faces up to the basket, dribbles once to his right, then spins the other way toward the baseline and shoots a 6-foot jumper over Dampier that's good! That's two field goals in a row for Yao! He is now 4-for-11 with 9 points. The game is now tied 34-34.
2:29 Free
Throws		 Yao gets the ball near the exact same spot as before (left side of the court a few feet outside the lane). He then spins baseline on Dampier, dribbles once toward the hoop and goes up for a layup and misses, but he's fouled by Dampier! Yao should have made that shot, though. Yao goes the line and misses the first free throw but makes the second. He now has 10 points on 4-of-11 shooting from the field, and is 2-for-3 shooting from the line. The Rockets trail 35-36.
1:56 Yao misses a fallaway jumper in the lane, and is now 4-for-12 from the field.
Halftime - At the end of the second quarter, the Rockets trail 37-41.
3rd Quarter - Yao starts the quarter.
3:10 Yao misses a jumper from about 18 feet near the top of the key. He is now 4-for-13 from the field with 10 points. The Rockets trail 49-53.
1:54   After Yao stands his ground and draws a hard charging foul from Erick Dampier, Yao checks out of the game for Clarence Weatherspoon. The Rockets trail 51-53 in a very ugly game.
4th Quarter - At the end of three quarters, the Rockets lead 54-53. Cuttino Mobley has 17 points and is keeping the Rockets in the game. Yao does not start the quarter.
8:29   Yao checks into the game for Clarence Weatherspoon. The Rockets trail 58-61.
8:24 With the shot clock down to 3 seconds, Yao is forced to shoot a long jump shot from almost 20 feet away. Yao is now 4-for-14 from the field with 10 points. The Rockets trail 58-61.
5:27 Yao misses a jumper along the right baseline after being shoved by Erick Dampier and no foul is called.
3:48   Yao checks out of the game for Scott Padgett. The Rockets' offense has gone dormant and they now trail 61-73. The game is virtually over. The Rockets go on a meaningless scoring run, but it only makes their effort look better as the Rockets lose by a score of 84-90.