SPORT / MISCELLANY
Rockets end losing streak at 12 by defeating Grizzlies
Christian Wood recorded his 29th double-double of the season and teammates Kevin Porter Jr and Jalen Green combined for 53 points as the Houston Rockets snapped their 12-game losing skid with a 123-112 victory over the visiting Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.
Wood finished with 28 points and 13 rebounds and teamed with Porter (29 points, five assists) and Green (24 points, eight rebounds, four assists) to carry the Rockets offensively.
Wood scored 20 points in the first half before Porter and Green took over in the third quarter, when the Rockets outscored the Grizzlies 40-30.
When the Grizzlies fashioned one last push, Green and Porter slammed the door shut. Green beat the shot-clock buzzer with a corner three-pointer for a 116-108 lead, and Wood recorded a steal against Grizzlies guard Ja Morant and Porter added a driving layup with 2:42 remaining.
Ja Morant finished with 22 points and six assists for the Grizzlies, but he made only seven of 20 attempts from the field. Steven Adams posted 23 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, while Desmond Bane scored a team-high 28 for the Grizzlies, who are 3-4 over their last seven games.
Porter had 19 points on eight-of-10 shooting in the third quarter, while Green added nine points and four assists.
But after the Rockets grabbed their first lead of the game on a pair of free throws by Green with 2:27 left in the period, Bane single-handedly erased a four-point deficit with two free throws and back-to-back three-pointers.
Memphis pulled even at 92-92 entering the fourth when Brandon Clarke beat the buzzer with a dunk.
A dominating start on the interior bolstered the Grizzlies. Memphis tallied 26 points in the paint in the opening period and shot a robust 15 of 19 from inside the arc to offset zero-for-eight on three-point shooting. Adams closed the first quarter five-for-six from the field with 11 points and five rebounds to pace Memphis.
Wood, with 13 points in the first, was instrumental in helping the Rockets remain in contact.
Memphis extended to a 14-point lead in the second quarter before Wood scored on a finger roll and then drilled a three-point that shaved that deficit to 54-45.
But the Grizzlies kept punishing the Rockets inside and off turnovers, registering 20 points off 14 Houston miscues prior to the intermission.
Green completed a three-point play late in the half, and the Rockets trailed 62-52 at the break.
Wood finished with 28 points and 13 rebounds and teamed with Porter (29 points, five assists) and Green (24 points, eight rebounds, four assists) to carry the Rockets offensively.
Wood scored 20 points in the first half before Porter and Green took over in the third quarter, when the Rockets outscored the Grizzlies 40-30.
When the Grizzlies fashioned one last push, Green and Porter slammed the door shut. Green beat the shot-clock buzzer with a corner three-pointer for a 116-108 lead, and Wood recorded a steal against Grizzlies guard Ja Morant and Porter added a driving layup with 2:42 remaining.
Ja Morant finished with 22 points and six assists for the Grizzlies, but he made only seven of 20 attempts from the field. Steven Adams posted 23 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, while Desmond Bane scored a team-high 28 for the Grizzlies, who are 3-4 over their last seven games.
Porter had 19 points on eight-of-10 shooting in the third quarter, while Green added nine points and four assists.
But after the Rockets grabbed their first lead of the game on a pair of free throws by Green with 2:27 left in the period, Bane single-handedly erased a four-point deficit with two free throws and back-to-back three-pointers.
Memphis pulled even at 92-92 entering the fourth when Brandon Clarke beat the buzzer with a dunk.
A dominating start on the interior bolstered the Grizzlies. Memphis tallied 26 points in the paint in the opening period and shot a robust 15 of 19 from inside the arc to offset zero-for-eight on three-point shooting. Adams closed the first quarter five-for-six from the field with 11 points and five rebounds to pace Memphis.
Wood, with 13 points in the first, was instrumental in helping the Rockets remain in contact.
Memphis extended to a 14-point lead in the second quarter before Wood scored on a finger roll and then drilled a three-point that shaved that deficit to 54-45.
But the Grizzlies kept punishing the Rockets inside and off turnovers, registering 20 points off 14 Houston miscues prior to the intermission.
Green completed a three-point play late in the half, and the Rockets trailed 62-52 at the break.
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