12/20/12
I think it’s safe to say that the 76ers are relieved to get
out of Texas after that last horrific game. The 76ers have lost their previous
four games and had to play one of the top offenses in the NBA last night in the
Rockets. This Rockets team likes to run their offense in transition, which is
why they are a high-powering offense. They also have one of the worst defenses
in the NBA. James Harden is what makes the Rockets a lethal team. He was traded
this year from the Oklahoma City Thunder to the Rockets so that he can be the
Rockets’ go-to player to compliment Jeremy Lin. Lin was one of the many acquisitions
the Rockets made to their roster. Only four players on the Rockets were on the
team last year. Another big-time player the Rockets signed was Omir Asik.
Patrick Patterson was out of the Rockets lineup with a bone bruise on his right
foot while Jrue Holiday was out with a left foot sprain for the fourth straight
game. The 76ers did make a lineup change. Maalik Wayns made his first career
start and Nick Young came off the bench.
The first half looked like it would be a decent game. The
Rockets started off hot in the first quarter, but the 76ers kept fighting. The
one thing that stood out for me in this half was the amount of free throws the
76ers took. They shot 15 free throws, which is what they usually average in a
game. The 76ers were rebounding very well in the half too; outrebounding the
Rockets 25-17. The only problem the 76ers had was that they couldn’t make more
shots than the Rockets made. At halftime the Rockets led 56-51. Harden was
electric in the half as he led the Rockets in scoring with 19 points. Dorell
Wright and Nick Young both led the 76ers in scoring with nine.
The second half was when the doom began and finished. The
76ers felt like they wanted to give up and go home. They looked tired and
uninterested in the game. The bad news for the 76ers was that Evan Turner had
to leave the game with a mild ankle sprain. He tried to play through it, but
only made it worse when Asik stepped on his foot. The Rockets won this game by
a final score of 125-103. The 76ers haven’t allowed 125 points in a game since
2010. Harden finished with 33 points in the game and seven assists. Lin scored
18 points and dished out six assists. Asik had a double-double. He collected 17
points and 15 rebounds. Toney Douglas also had
17 points; all scored in the second half. Marcus Morris finished with 14 points
and Greg Smith ended with 13 points on a perfect shooting night going 5-5 from
the floor. Nick Young led the 76ers with 21 points; 12 of those 21 points were
scored in the second half. Wright contributed with 20 points; 11 of those 20
points were second half points. Thaddeus Young scored 13 of his 17 points in
this half. Spencer Hawes finished with 14 points. Lavoy Allen ended with 10
points while Jason Richardson contributed 11 points in the game.
Overall, the 76ers bench was much improved tonight. I liked
how aggressive they were early in the game, especially since I was preaching in
prior games for the 76ers to get to the free throw line. Hopefully they rest up
before they get to play another good team in the Atlanta Hawks on Friday. I’m
sure Turner will miss a few games with his ankle sprain, but we can only hope
that Holiday is ready to play on Friday from
his injury. This team will not stand a chance against the Hawks if they don’t
have their best players playing.
Was it the right move
to put Nick Young back on the bench? Sound off and stay tuned until next time…
No comments:
Post a Comment