Yao sits out his second straight preseason game because of a toe issue. Tracy McGrady also sat out because of a minor injury, but the Rockets won their fourth straight preseason game, this time against the Seattle Sonics 93-85.

TUESDAY, 10/18/05 – I’m posting this game summary of the Rockets game much later than usual. I have a good reason: I was at the Astros-Cardinals game last night that Houston blew in the bottom of the ninth inning with two outs. They were one strike away from going to the World Series for the first time in this city’s history, yet they coudn’t finish out the game. I’m sure you all know what I’m talking about, so I won’t go into the gory details. But you can imagine the city of Houston, and myself, are mentally rocked by what happened, and it was hard to think about anything else last night, including the Rockets. I’m now getting back up on my feet.

Luckily, I had a loyal visitor to my site provide a great recap of Monday night’s game between the Rockets and Sonics in Laredo, Texas, which the Rockets won 93-85 without Yao and T-Mac so they could rest minor injuries.

Here is some of what he wrote…

The new Rockets proved they are now a force that should not be taken lightly because of its deep bench, tenacity and strong will to win. One cannot help but fantasize about the great things to come for the new season.

Both Yao (left big toe) and T-Mac (abdomen) sat the match out resting their injuries with Dikembe Mutombo and Derek Anderson taking their starting positions. Rafer Alston returned as the starting point guard, while David Wesley and Juwan Howard started at shooting guard and power forward, respectively.

The impact of Yao and T-Mac resting was felt throughout the first three quarters of this match. But in absence of the dynamic duo, a few Rockets stood out.

Mutombo is just ageless, and continues to be invaluable as Yao’s backup. Though offensively he is not as sharp and lethal as Yao, he was as reliable and pivotal as ever on defense. He played 26 minutes, scored 7 points (1-of-8 from the field, 5-for-5 from the line) and for the second consecutive game, grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.

Stromile Swift continued to show he will be a great addition for the Rockets both offensively and defensively. He was switched in and out to play center when Mutombo needed a rest, or in the power forward position when Juwan Howard needed a breather. He was the highest scorer for this game, scoring 17 points (4-of-9 FGs, 9-of-12 free throws), grabbed 5 rebounds, and blocked 2 shots for 29 minutes of play. His alley-oops and slam dunks were awesome that drew oohs and aahhs from the audience.

Juwan continued to show no effect of his heart problems from last Spring, and aside from Mutombo, was another indispensable rebounder, grabbing 9 boards and scoring 8 points in this game.

We now further understand why coach Jeff Van Gundy wanted to sign Ryan Bowen instead of Scott Padgett in the off-season. Other than his usual energy, hustle and great defense, he was exceptional on the offensive end as well, scoring 12 points (5-of-6 field goals). His two consecutive slam dunks in the second quarter, one from an assist from Jon Barry, and the other from Stromile Swift, and his 3-point play towards the end of the fourth quarter had to be some of the best highlights of the game.

Derek Anderson is a natural fit for the Rockets as a backup for Tracy McGrady, showing great ball handling, passing, and 3-point shooting skills. He was also among the five Rockets who had double-digit scores: (4-of-9 FGs 2-of-4 three-pointers) for 12 points, 3 assists.

Barry continued to demonstrate great energy, hustle and passing skills. Even though his shooting was off-target tonight, he got 7 assists and 2 steals, and was in the center of a lot of the fast breaks, tossing out long-range passes and assists to Stromile for his alley-oop and Bowen for his slam dunk.

Luther Head continues to create a headache for Van Gundy, playing his way into the veteran-laden rotation of the Rockets. For the third time in a row, he was clutch in the four quarter, hitting jumpers and three-pointers to pull the Rockets away for the win. He finished the game with 13 points (5-of-7 FGs, 3-of-4 treys) and 5 assists, posing a great threat to David Wesley for the starter position, who continued to struggle with poor preseason form and conditioning. Wesley scored in double-digits, but he was not his usual self, particularly from three-point land. Wesley finished the game with 12 points on 5-of-13 shooting, and 1-of-5 from behind the arc.

So on a day saddened by the loss of the Houston Astros to the St Louis Cardinals, at least basketball fans in the city of Houston had something to cheer about. The Rockets are now 4-0 in preseason play, which is saying something considering Yao hasn’t played the past two games, T-Mac didn’t play on Monday night, and the Sonics had Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis in their lineup. Once again, the Rockets demonstrated in this win they are a much better and balanced team, both on offense and defense, and they have a much deeper bench.

For a boxscore of the game, click here.

John
john@YaoMingFanClub.com

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 18th, 2005 at 4:49 pm and is filed under NBA preseason, vs. OK City/Seattle. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.