PrintRockets' Duo Puts Portland Away
Brooks, Landry team up to deliver 104-100 victory over Blazers
Jason Friedman
Rockets.com Staff Writer
Houston - Mired in their most significant slump of the year, the Rockets decided the best thing they could do was go back to the basic building blocks of their success: play aggressive, get key stops, then lean on their dynamic duo of Aaron Brooks and Carl Landry to bring home a win.
Sure enough, that tried and true formula delivered the desired result as Houston held off a spirited effort from the Portland Trailblazers to earn a much-needed 104-100 victory. And true to form, Brooks and Landry played their roles to perfection, combining to score 54 points – and 22 of Houston’s 26 points in the fourth quarter – allowing the Rockets to put their three-game losing streak in the rearview mirror.
“Our biggest wins are when Carl and Aaron have big games,” said Shane Battier after the game. “That’s just he way it is. We seem to feed off their energy. When they’re hopping around and scoring, the ball seems to fly a little more and everyone gets involved. They’re our guys. That may be a lot of responsibility to place on them but that’s what we’re expecting.”
They certainly proved themselves capable of carrying that burden Friday night. Brooks (33 points) was Houston’s driving force throughout, torching the Trailblazers with his speed and quickness which allowed him to seemingly penetrate Portland’s defense at will.
Landry, meanwhile, took quite a bit longer to get going, as the third-year forward had a mere 6 points on 1-of-5 shooting through three quarters of play. But he found his feet in the final frame and once he got going, Portland proved positively powerless to stop him. Landry lived up to his billing as Houston’s go-to fourth quarter guy, scoring 15 points in the period, overpowering the Blazers with his deadly combination of strength and quickness.
“Carl was big in the fourth quarter,” said Brooks. “He’s been big all year in the fourth quarter. If I’m doing pretty good, I’m drawing attention and that leaves him one-on-one to go against a big guy and I like our chances in that situation.”
Added Landry: “Going into this game, I just wanted to get a win. If that was diving on the floor every time for a loose ball, grabbing every rebound, getting a lot of steals or assists – whatever it was, scoring 50 points, I just wanted to get the win.”
Not to be overlooked, however, was the Rockets’ effort on the defensive end. After appearing overmatched by the potent Portland attack in the first quarter, Houston buckled down and began forcing the Blazers into taking increasingly difficult shots. No longer was it easy pickings for Portland inside; a reality borne out in the fact that, after scoring a whopping 16 points in the paint in the first quarter, the Blazers tallied just 16 more the rest of the way.
"I thought it was just energy," said Rockets head Coach Rick Adelman, when asked the difference in the Rockets' defensive effort following the fourth quarter. "I think with the losses we’ve had, our guys have had their heads hanging a little bit. When things don’t quite go our way we’ve been wondering where are we going to get help, and who’s going to help us, instead of trying to do it ourselves. We talked about it after the first quarter that we were flat. We didn’t have anything going on and we had to get ourselves back in the game"
To be sure, the Rockets' increased energy level on the defensive end made a significant impact but so much more than mere effort led to the club’s overall improvement defensively; Portland’s penetration was curtailed. Entry passes were challenged. And all the while Houston’s rotations were tighter, allowing the Rockets to close out and contest the Blazers’ outside shots, leading to more stops and more opportunities for Houston’s jackrabbits to get out and scamper in transition.
“I thought we really worked hard,” said Adelman. (LaMarcus) Aldridge really hurt us early. He made some tough shots over Chuck (Hayes). But we did a nice job of coming at him and doubling him and we scattered them, forcing them to kick it out to their shooters.
“Even with all the injuries they have, they’re a very talented offensive team. They can really shoot the ball and can score inside. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy. But we persevered and that’s what we needed to do and ended up getting the win.”
And 1’s: Somewhat tempering the enthusiasm following Houston’s win was the fact point guard Kyle Lowry, in the midst of a tremendous performance which saw him score 11 points in the second quarter alone, was forced to leave the game before halftime after spraining his left knee. Lowry will be reevaluated Saturday and will undergo an MRI on his knee to further assess the injury.
QUOTES
RICK ADELMAN
Just really glad to get the win. I thought the guys played hard the whole game. Portland made a lot of shots down the stretch there. Fernandez was terrific, knocking threes down. We just seemed to try to make it difficult. But I’ll take the win after the last three games. It was a win we needed and we go and hopefully we can build on that.
(on the defense): I thought we really worked hard. Aldridge really hurt us early. He made some tough shots over Chuck. But we did a nice job of coming at him and doubling him and we scattered them, forcing their other big to kick it out to their shooters. But even with all the injuries they have, they’re a very talented offensive team. They can really shoot the ball and can score inside. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy.
But, again, we persevered and that’s what we needed to do and ended up getting the win.
I thought it was just energy. I think with the losses we’ve had, our guys have had their heads hanging a little bit. When things don’t quite go our way we’ve been wondering where are we going to get help, and who’s going to help us, instead of trying to do it ourselves. We talked about it after the first quarter that we were flat. We didn’t have anything going on and we had to get ourselves back in the game. That’s what I talked about: play the way we always play. If we make mistakes and miss shots, who cares? We’ll deal with that. But we can’t play passive and play like we’re scared to make the play or scared to win. We’ve got to just go out and play. That’s what we talked about and I really think that’s what happened: we just kind of kicked it into gear and then we maintained it the rest of the way.
(Aaron Brooks): He was terrific. I needed him to step up big. And when he steps up big, we usually win.
(Kyle Lowry): All I know is they’re going to do a test tomorrow and see what happens from there.
AARON BROOKS
We just kept fighting throughout the whole game. When we got down, we pushed back and got stops. I think that’s probably the difference.
(on attacking): We can’t be afraid of getting blocked. We have to go in there and be more aggressive. I think sometimes we lose our intensity and let teams get back in it. We just need to continue to be aggressive and play to beat teams instead of playing not to lose.
Carl was big in the fourth quarter. He’s been big all year in the fourth quarter. If I’m doing pretty good, I’m drawing attention and that leaves him one-on-one to go against a big guy and I like our chances in that situation.
SHANE BATTIER
(On the win) “Hey, beggars can't be choosers. People complained about how we won it again but there are no style points in the NBA. Two weeks from now it's a win and we just needed one to get over the schneid and hopefully we can build on it, take away the last couple minutes, we played solid for the entire game. It's been a while since we really had a game, free throws not withstanding, where we played solid the entire game.”
(On Portland) “Give them credit, they are playing great. They've been doing a lot of the same things that we have done the last couple of years. They have circled the wagon and they have had devastating injuries as much as we had but they continue to play hard and play together. They are a good role model. We have to remember that we're that underdog team that no one believes in and everyone has counted us out and we have to bring the effort like we did tonight, every single night.”We have to remember we’re that underdog team that no one believes in and everyone is counting out. We have to bring the effort like we did tonight every single night.
Our biggest wins are when Carl and Aaron have big games. That’s just he way it is. We seem to feed off their energy. When they’re hopping around and scoring, the ball seems to fly a little more and everyone gets involved. They’re our guys. That may be a lot of responsibility to place on them but that’s what we’re expecting.
CARL LANDRY
Coach was looking for somebody to step up. I heard him mention something about guys stepping up in the fourth quarter and that’s what I wanted to do. I just want to go out there, be aggressive and play with a lot of energy. My teammates found me in the right spots and I made shots… but didn’t make free throws.
Going into this game, I just wanted to get a win. If that was diving on the floor every time for a loose ball, grabbing every rebound, getting a lot of steals or assists – whatever it was, scoring 50 points, I just wanted to get the win.
TREVOR ARIZA
(On the importance of hitting free throws for the win) “Man, it's big for us. Lately, we've definitely been struggling from the line. I've been struggling from the line. I think it is a concentration thing. I think it is probably a concentration thing that we've got to get better at.”
(On getting the win) “It was huge for us. No matter how many people got down, we've got people down too so a win is a win. We appreciate it. We'll take it anyway we can get it.”
CHUCK HAYES
(On the importance of the win) “Very important. Not only was it a three game skid but it was a three game skid at home. We needed the win to get us that feeling of what it takes to win again and hopefully, we can turn some things around.”
(On the Blazers) “They fought back. They were not going to give up. They resemble their coach and the way he coaches. They fought back and they made it a game.”
COACH NATE MCMILLAN
(on the game) “There were a lot of timely possessions in the game and it makes a difference when you don’t get rebounds. We made runs and played good defense and they just out-worked us for loose balls. We had some breakdowns and turnovers down the stretch and we didn’t execute.”
(on Brooks’ play) “The point guards the last few games have just blown by us. The weak side is not helping and we are not guarding anyone. We have to bend our knees and guard somebody.”
(on his team’s recent play) “We have three or four guys playing well but both our units aren’t playing well together. I play with what I’ve got. I understand that we need help (inside) but I have to work with our guys to make plays and make it happen.”
LAMARCUS ALDRIDGE
(on the game) “It’s a tough loss. We had control early and then they made a run. It’s also really tough when you come back from half time and see that you just lost two points. Houston made points down the stretch and we didn’t.”
(on his play) “I got off to a good start. I tried to figure out what I can do to help this team. I got off to a slow start in the third quarter and then in the fourth quarter they double-teamed and I passed the ball out.”
NICOLAS BATUM
(on his shoulder) “I feel good and my shoulder is fine. I just need to get back in shape after missing forty-five games.”
(on the key to the game) “The last five minutes of the game we let Brooks do what he wanted to and it made it very tough for us. We had too many breakdowns on the offensive end.”
STEVE BLAKE
(on the key to the game) “We had a costly turnover in the fourth quarter that really hurt us. We had a lot of shot clock breakdowns that cost us. We know Houston is a good team and at home they did what they had to do.”
(on Brooks’ play) “He is extremely quick and very good with the ball in his hands. You really can’t lay off him because he shoots the 3-pointer so well. He is a tough cover.”
RUDY FERNANDEZ
(on is play in the game) “It doesn’t matter what I did because we lost the game. We tried to play hard but didn’t make the plays down the stretch. Houston is a good team and they beat us.”
NOTES
The Rockets posted a 104-100 win tonight against the Trail Blazers. Including last year’s playoff series, Houston owns a nine-game home winning streak over Portland (six regular season, three playoffs).
Houston set season highs in free throws made with 29 and free throws attempted with 43 tonight. The 43 trips to the line by the Rockets also set the team’s record for free throws attempted at Toyota Center (prev. high: 42 on 3/24/08 vs. Sacramento).
The Rockets returned from 10 points down to capture a 104-100 victory tonight. Houston has faced a double-digit deficit at home eight times this season, going 3-5 over those outings. Overall, the Rockets have come back from a double-digit deficit to win 10 times this season.
Houston recorded 16 fast-break points tonight. The Rockets have now reached double digits in fast-break scoring in each of its last eight games (1/13/10-1/29/10). Houston reached double-digit scoring off the break in all of its first 11 games this season (10/27/09-11/17/09) to set the longest such streak of 2009-10.
The Rockets outscored the Trail Blazers by a 52-32 count in the paint tonight. Overall, Houston has reached 50 points in the paint on 12 occasions this season.
Aaron Brooks registered 33 points (11-21 FG, 3-9 3FG, 8-10 FT) and a team-high seven assists tonight, marking his fifth 30-point outing of the season. Brooks now has at least 20 points in four of the last five games.
Carl Landry, who ranks second in the NBA in fourth-quarter scoring (301 points) behind Cleveland’s LeBron James (322 points), netted 15 (5-8 FG, 5-10 FT) of his 21 points (6-13 FG, 9-14 FT) in the fourth quarter of tonight’s game.
Trevor Ariza finished with 12 points (5-11 FG, 1-2 3FG), four rebounds, three assists and two steals tonight. Ariza also had 19 points (8-21 FG), 10 rebounds, three assists and two steals in the last game vs. Denver (1/27/10).
Luis Scola scored all 12 of his points (5-10 FG) in the second half tonight. Scola has now reached double-digit scoring in a career-high 15 consecutive contests (12/29/09-1/29/10).
Kyle Lowry did not return to the game tonight after leaving with a sprained left knee suffered in the second quarter. He finished with 11 points (4-6 FG, 3-3 FT) and three rebounds.
Rudy Fernandez scored a season-high 25 points (9-14 FG, 5-6 3FG), including 13 points (3-3 3FG) in the fourth quarter. He surpassed his previous season best of 22 points (6-9 FG, 8-8 FT) set vs. Denver (10/29/09).
LaMarcus Aldridge had 20 points (7-17 FG, 6-8 FT), seven rebounds and four blocks tonight. Aldridge now has at least 20 points in each of his last six regular season visits to Toyota Center (20 on 11/3/07, 22 on 2/11/08, 21 on 2/24/09, 22 points on 4/5/09 and 27 on 10/31/09).
Steve Blake totaled 14 points (6-10 FG, 2-4 3FG) and a game-high nine assists tonight.
Jerryd Bayless netted 11 points (5-5 FT) tonight. Bayless has now reached double digits in scoring in 13 of his last 22 games played. Overall, he has scored in double figures 17 times.
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