Houston Rockets (9-4) at Utah Jazz (7-6) 8:00 pm CST Houston Rockets Record: 9 - 4 ( .692) Standings: Second, Midwest At Home: 5 - 1 On Road: 4 - 3 PPG: 89.1 Opp PPG: 82.2 FG%: .432 Opp FG%: .372 RPG: 43.4 Opp RPG: 40.8 Utah Jazz Record: 7 - 6 ( .538) Standings: Sixth, Midwest At Home: 6 - 1 On Road: 1 - 5 PPG: 93.5 Opp PPG: 94.4 FG%: .446 Opp FG%: .452 RPG: 41.7 Opp RPG: 36.2 Probable Starters vs. Jim Jackson/Matt Harpring vs. Kelvin Cato/Andrei Kirlenko vs. Yao Ming/Greg Ostertag vs. Steve Francis/Paul Lopez vs. Cuttino Mobley/DeShawn Stevenson Injury Lists <u>Houston</u> Mike Wilks - Out(Injured List with right shoulder contusion) <u>Utah</u> Carlos Arroyo - Out(Sprained Ankle) Keon Clark - Out(Surgery) Deshawn Stevenson - Probable(Neck) Game Outlook - Jazz The Utah Jazz come into this game seriously overmatched. With the injuries to Carlos Arroyo and Keon Clark the Jazz will have to play their best to have a chance to beat the Rockets tonight. The Jazz won three of four matchups with the Rockets last season. Utah has won 12 of the last 13 home meetings with Houston. The key for the Jazz will be to contain the Rockets big men on defense and to attack Kelvin Cato on offense. Andrei Kirilenko causes match- up problems for the Rockets because of his versatility. Andrei will have to hit outside jump shots in order to force Kelvin Cato to come out and guard him, allowing Andrei to use his speed to get to the basket. Andrei should have a monsterous game. Game Outlook - Rockets The Rockets if they execute their gameplan correctly, should walk out of this game with a victory. They need to forget about their past encounters with the Jazz tonight and not play with a chip on their shoulders. Yao Ming should have a very easy night offensively as Greg Ostertag shouldn't be able to stop him. Look for Kelvin Cato to have a huge night on the boards as he has a definite size advantage over Andre Kirilenko. Steve Francis should have a monsterous game. In the past few years, he has averaged 25+ points against the Jazz. At to that, rookie Raul Lopez will be guarding him tonight due to Arroyo's injury. Another advantage the Rockets have is bench play. Mo Taylor is coming off a season best performance against the Clippers and Eric Piatkowski looks as if he is returning to form. Game Prediction The Rockets advance their road winning streak to two as they face the Sacramento Kings on Friday.
I think Utah have got a decent chance of winning this, they've had long break since they're last game against the Kings. They are playing at home where they've only lost one and so far are good at surprising Western teams at the Delta Center. Raul Lopez is going to have to have a very good game for Utah to win, even if he plays good Francis will likely dominate him but if he can play well enough it wont be that bad for Utah's chances. I wish I could see the recption John Amaechi and Scott Padgett get when they step on the court especailly Meech, that's if he gets on the court.
How in the world do Jazz keep winning games? Thats it.. just hand Jerry Sloan coach of the year I don't care what else they do from now on.This guy is coaching a team full of role players to 2 games above 500.
I love how the Jazz prove people wrong. They did it with Karl and John and now they are doing it without them.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting BallerAK47:</div><div class="quote_post">I love how the Jazz prove people wrong. They did it with Karl and John and now they are doing it without them.</div> They always do that, and any writer or team that underestimates them looks stupid as soon as the game/season is finished. When Karl and John were in their final years together, most thought they wouldn't make the playoffs, but they did.
Final Score - Utah Jazz 83, Houston Rockets 76Im with allnet, I really dont know how this team continues to win games. They have play in the dominant western confrence and they dont have any big men(Keon is out, and Andrei is more like an athletic freak small forward rather than a big man). The Jazz have long been a good home team, and they showed that tonight against the Rockets. Key Players Rockets Cuttino Mobley - 14 points, 4 turnovers, 3 assists, 1 rebound Steve Francis - 13 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 8 turnovers Kelvin Cato - 14 rebounds Yao Ming - 20 points, 10 rebounds, 20% shooting from the floor <u>Jazz</u> Raul Lopez - 10 points, 5 assists Andrei Kirilenko - 23 points, 6 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals, 5 blocks Matt Harpring - 9 points, 10 rebounds Greg Ostertag - 9 rebounds, 5 blocks Key Stats The key stat of the game has to be the field goal percentage of these teams. The Rockets shot a dismal 33.3% from the field while the Jazz shot 43.4% from the field. The Rockets won't win another game shooting under 35% from the field. The Jazz also beat the Rockets in the full court game scoring 13 fast break points to the Rockets 0. The Jazz also scored 40 points in the paint, compared to the Rockets 20. Considering the size advantage the Rockets had you would expect them to win the points in the paint war. Player of the Game - Andrei Kirilenko Complete Box Score - http://www.nba.com/games/20031126/HOUUTA/boxscore.html
i cant believe they win games its kinsa amazing without really a star player...i dont thitnk they make the playoffs though
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting VAs Finest:</div><div class="quote_post">i cant believe they win games its kinsa amazing without really a star player...i dont thitnk they make the playoffs though</div> I doubt they will make it but you never know. If they hold teams to shooting 33% like they did against the Rockets, they will make the playoffs. However if they allow teams to shoot 47% like they are averaging right now, they wont make the playoffs.
With that win, Utah has 8 wins and some ESPN writer siad they would get 8 altogether at the end of the season. It took them 14 games, not 82.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting tmac15:</div><div class="quote_post">With that win, Utah has 8 wins and some ESPN writer siad they would get 8 altogether at the end of the season. It took them 14 games, not 82.</div> I have always had a philosophy, never trust the ESPN writers. Most of them are biased and their projections are hardly ever accurate.
