Who: Golden State Warriors at Houston Rockets Where: Toyota Center When: January 6, 2004 Time: 7:30 CST Coming Into the Game The Warriors are coming to Houston hoping to break a 5 game losing streak. The Warriors have dropped 6 straight road games recently. They are 14-18 and currently ranked 6th in the Pacific Division. The Rockets are coming in on a goone note though. They are on a two game winning streak with wins against Philadelphia and Utah. They are 18-14 and ranked 5th in the Midwest Division. The last time these two teams met on November 19th, the Rockets won at home 85-83. Coaches vs. Eric Musselman/Jeff Van Gundy Probable Starters vs. Mike Dunleavy/Jim Jackson vs. Cliff Robinson/Kelvin Cato vs. Erick Dampier/Yao Ming vs. Nick Van Exel/Steve Francis vs. Jason Richardson/Cuttino Mobley Rockets Offensive Outlook Yao Ming and Steve Francis led the Rockets the last time these two teams met. They both scored 23 points and were 9 of 18 from the floor. We need to same kind of stats from both of these players tonight but espcially from Yao Ming. Yao has been having 15 and 8 nights recently. Tonight I would love for him to break that and get a 20-10 night. The Rockets haven't played great basketball lately. They have been good enough to win however they are not at the level where they want to be. A big part of that is Yao Ming's play. Erick Dampier did a good job last game of containing Yao up until the 4th quarter. We need Yao to wake up and play solid basketball through all 4 quarters tonight. Mobley and Francis both need to be productive tonight. Cuttino scored a measley 7 points the last time these two teams faced. In that game Nick Van Exel didn't even play. 7 points tonight from the Cuttino will not be enough. Francis needs to play like he did last time these two teams met. He needs to be aggressive and attack the rim. Rockets Outlook Defensively The key word tonight is contain. The Rockets must contain the Warriors players tonight. Nick Van Exel can go off at any time and if that happens, bad things happen. He will get his points, however we just don't want him to get in a rythem at any point in this game. Francis needs to get up on him and force him to make a move with it. The other person to focus on is Clifford Robinson. He had 23 points the last time these two teams faced each other. He has an inside-outside game that could give the Rockets fits if he gets on a role. The Rockets must force the Warriors to take contested shots. The Warriors shoot an amazing 45% from the floor night in and night out. It will be important to contest every shot the Warriors take. The Rockets hold teams under 40% shooting. Both teams cannot get their way in this game. Rockets Key's To Victory 1. Yao Ming - When he get's involved we win games. He needs to shoot 15+ shots tonight. Utah has a weak front so the Rockets should capitalize on it. 2. Stop Nick Van Exel - This guy can explode at any moment especially in the 4th quarter of a game. Steve's primary goal tonight needs to be to try and contain Nick as much as possible. Everyone has seen what he can do when he gets in a "zone". Lets hope he doesn't get in a "zone" tonight. 3. Limit the turnovers - The Rockets did a good job against the Jazz of commiting only 15 turnovers. Lets try and improve on that number tonight. 4. Make open jump shots - This is crucial for every team but especially us. When we make jump shots we can play with anyone, however when we don't shoot the rock well we can get beat by anyone. Lets hope they can shoot the ball well tonight. My magic shooting percentage number for this game is 42%. 5. Rebound the basketball - Erick Dampier is a man-child down low. He will get down and dirty tonight with Yao Ming. The Rockets must make sure they box out tonight or GS will just keep getting offensive rebound after offensive rebound. My Prediction The Warriors have lost 6 straight road games. The Rockets have won two straight home games. They are playing in Toyota Center. I expect Yao Ming and Clifford Robinson to have huge nights tonight. The key stat tonight will be the FG% of both teams. Warriors - 84 Rockets - 91
I say the Rockets take thos one. The Warriors haven't been playing like they should lately and I say the Rockets take advantage of this. Rockets by 6.
What a defensive effort by the Rockets again!! We held another team in the 60s range, that's two straight!! Mo Taylor has just been playing like an all-star the past month coming off the bench. When will he get to start?
Something is definitely wrong in Oakland when a basketball team just scores 65 points to finish the ballgame. Something has to be done over there.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Laker_Fever_834:</div><div class="quote_post">Something is definitely wrong in Oakland when a basketball team just scores 65 points to finish the ballgame. Something has to be done over there.</div> I agree, someone does have to go. How bout Dampier or Van Exel!
I am impressed each game by the Rockets defense. They are awesome, attacking the glass at will and protecting the lane at all costs. JVG is a genius. Here is a link to the game recap: http://www.nba.com/games/20040105/GSWHOU/recap.html
