Chron: Rockets run out of gas too soon

Jan. 29, 2004, 1:30AM


Rockets run out of gas too soon
Kings win weapons race with fourth-quarter surge
By JONATHAN FEIGEN
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle



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BOXSCORE
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The Rockets happily fooled themselves, but it was a nice little delusion.
They were running stride for stride with the Sacramento Kings, outscoring the league's top-scoring team rather than sucking the life from another opposing offense. And all the familiar football faces around the court smiled.

Then the Rockets woke up. This is not how they win. Teams like these are beaten in the fourth quarter, not the first three.

So when the Kings turned back into the Kings, and the Rockets had to be tougher and smarter and more precise in the fourth quarter, the Rockets collapsed to a 99-94 loss Wednesday night before 18,209, the largest crowd in the first season at Toyota Center.

By then, haunted by 24 turnovers and all the help the Rockets gave the Kings' offense, it didn't even seem fun while it lasted.

"With turnovers and me not hitting shots, it makes it really hard on our team," said Rockets guard Steve Francis, who made just three of 17 shots. "The main thing is we did it to ourselves as far as not taking care of the ball and not executing late to win. We just came out and started jacking up some crazy shots."

The Rockets did nurse a lead as large as eight points late in the third quarter and at five heading into the final 12 minutes.

But by the time the Rockets scored in the fourth quarter, the Kings had taken a lead thanks to a 9-0 run to end the third period and begin the fourth.

Jim Jackson breathed some life back into the wheezing Rockets offense. He had been perfect all night and scored the Rockets' first five points of the fourth quarter to put them back in front. But the Rockets did not seem the same.

Even when Kelvin Cato slammed home a Francis pass, it did not work out quite right. The Rockets led 83-80, but Cato had celebrated the occasion of his dunk with a chin-up on the rim and a slap of the backboard for a technical foul.

"That was just one of many plays that we weren't at our best in the fourth quarter," Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "Turnovers are a problem every night for us, and it turns into transition points. It's not just that you're not scoring, but you're giving them great shots in transition."

The Kings' offense switched back to the gear that had been missing.

With the shot clock running down, Peja Stojakovic was unable to free himself from Jackson. But he whipped a pass to Mike Bibby, who nailed a trey at the shot-clock buzzer for an 84-83 Sacramento lead.

Francis missed a tough lefthanded drive, and Bibby -- after passes from Brad Miller and Stojakovic found him open -- pushed the lead to three points, then the Kings' largest of the game.

After a pair of Miller free throws and three more missed shots by the Rockets, Miller followed a missed shot to complete a 10-0 Kings run. Maurice Taylor interrupted that with a free throw. But when Miller nailed a jumper, the Kings led 92-84 with 3 1/2 minutes remaining, and the Rockets acted as if they were racing through the game's desperate final minute.

They were not alone. The crowd began heading out, even when the Rockets somehow stumbled back within three points twice in the final minute. The Kings began making mistakes they had not all night.

But while rushing desperate heaves, the Rockets made just one of their next six shots and made just seven of 22 in the fourth quarter. And when they weren't missing, they turned it over with 15 of their 24 turnovers coming in the second half.

"We were trying to get into the middle," said Yao Ming, who had 12 points to go with five turnovers. "But it was crowded. There was too many people. I think we lost a lot of opportunities. We gave them gifts."

The Kings offered some help. They committed three consecutive turnovers and Bibby missed a pair of free throws so that when Scott Padgett dropped in a trey and Taylor put in a rebound of a missed Cuttino Mobley trey, the Rockets were within three points with 11.9 seconds left.

The Kings made sure to get the ball to Stojakovic, and he dropped in both attempts with 10.9 seconds remaining. But Jackson drained his fifth 3-pointer in as many attempts to bring the Rockets back to within a field goal and to finish with a season-high 28 points.

But with that, the Rockets made one more of the kind of fourth-quarter mistakes that lose such games. With five seconds left after Jim Jackson's 3-pointer, they left Bobby Jackson alone to take a long pass down court.

Francis caught up in time to take him down hard with a flagrant foul. But Bobby Jackson's free throw gave the Kings a three-point lead, and when Stojakovic was sent to the line with 2.1 seconds remaining, his two free throws sealed it.

"Twenty-four turnovers, that's the story of the game. They're not even a good defensive team," Mobley said. "We're just careless with the ball. Coach has been telling us that all year. We've just got to find a way to stop turning the ball over."


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Rockets summary
Famous faces

With the city stuffed with NFL celebrities, Wednesday's game drew at least as much football as basketball talent.

Carolina Panthers DeShaun Foster, Julius Peppers and Kindal Moorhead took in the game, with Warren Moon, Edgerrin James, Jim Kelly, Donovan McNabb, Emmitt Smith, LaVar Arrington, Michael Strahan, Dana Stubblefield, Bobby Taylor, Aaron Glenn, Cris Carter and Jerome Bettis.

Rap artists Nelly and Jermaine Dupree were also in the front row.

Loss of focus

Rockets fans and players might have been impressed with the celebrities sitting courtside at Wednesday's game but coach Jeff Van Gundy was not. It didn't even matter that Donovan McNabb tried to fit in by wearing a Clyde Drexler throwback jersey from Drexler's Phi Slama Jama days at UH.

McNabb was one of many celebrities who took a break from the Super Bowl festivities to check out the Rockets.

More celebrities are expected at Saturday's game. But no matter who shows up, Van Gundy made it clear he would rather have his players focus on their opponents and he would prefer to fill the arena with actual Rockets fans.

"Who cares who comes?" Van Gundy said. "That makes me laugh. I'd rather see Joe Schmo at this game who could afford to come and is a Rockets fan."

It doesn't even matter to Van Gundy that his players seem to step up their performance when they play on national TV or in front of stars at places such as Madison Square Garden or Staples Center. He'd prefer they get fired up because Kings star Peja Stojakovic is coming, rather than Sex In the City star Kim Cattrall.

"If we lose tonight, it's on Kim Cattrall," Van Gundy said.

Food promotion

Early this season, the Rockets began the promotion in which they give out free hamburgers any time they score 100 points and win. Rockets coach Jeff Van Gundy suggested that they offer to give McDonalds any time the Rockets hold a team to fewer than 80 points and win.

In a curious -- though economical -- bit of timing, the Rockets took up his suggestion just as the Kings, the league's top scoring team, to came to town.

"I think you better eat before you come," Van Gundy said.

So far, the Rockets have given out Big Macs twice. Had they had "under 80" promotion all season, they would have fattened fans seven times.

Van Gundy did get to see how much influence he has. At the time, he said, "The only thing I would like to change is that free burger to holding teams under 80 (instead of scoring over 100)."

"Oh, I have a whole lot of power, yeah," Van Gundy said. "I'm a big powerful guy. What was that, three months ago? The power of my word is obvious."

Patriots pick

Jeff Van Gundy has apparently gone Super Bowl crazy.

A week after he couldn't name the Super Bowl teams, he not only knew who was playing in the game, he could name one of the players -- Jake Delhomme.

That was enough to make him an expert.

Steelers running back Jerome Bettis, working for the NFL Network, sought Van Gundy's counsel about the game's result.

Van Gundy offered that "The Texans will be there soon."

"I grew up a Raider fan," he added, risking Bettis' wrath. "I'm from Northern California. Now I just go with (Bill) Parcells, wherever he goes. So Cowboys now."

Finally he picked a winner, the Patriots.

"Defense right?" he said. That seemed enough to satisfy Bettis, always a good thing, so Van Gundy offered some coaching, and asked for some.

"Keep running over people, he said as Bettis made his way to the Rockets' locker room. "Go in there and tell my guys that."

Press row view

It happened once. In the Rockets' recent run -- 10 wins in 14 games -- they won one close game. It was a good win, at Indiana, against the team with the league's best record. But in a four-minute span down the stretch in that one, the Rockets committed five turnovers. They did enough other things right to get the win that night, making solid defensive plays and hitting free throws. But they were hardly a model of precision. Their turnover problem has proved so intractable, it began to seem as if they would have to live with it -- like Wilt Chamberlain's free-throw shooting. But they are not Chamberlain in every other way, and Wednesday against the Kings they found out they could beat the Kings or their turnovers -- but not both.

Inside the numbers

Jim Jackson's 28 points were his high since he scored 34 for Atlanta in November 2000 -- four teams ago. ... Jackson made 11 of 12 shots. ... The Rockets matched season highs with 51 rebounds and 24 turnovers. ... Maurice Taylor had his second consecutive double double after not getting any in the season's first 43 games.

Did you know?

Bobby Jackson and Maurice Taylor, the league's top scorers who have not started a game this season, had 21 and 18 points, respectively.


--JONATHAN FEIGEN

 

I think we have our answer to the Rockets' impotence against the Kings tonight.

 

Woohoo Rockets fans!!! Let's build a Houstonian dynasty in the title for Fattest City in America! Keep those Big Macs coming, baby!!!