Over the years Rashard Lewis has been labelled soft and had his commitment questions. Tonight he left no doubts to how big his heart really is. After being expected to miss after the death of his brother, Lewis scored 27 points, including two clutch freethrows in the last minute, to lead Seattle to an important win over western rivals Houston, snapping a two game losing streak in the process. Lewis was especially hot in the first half, scoring 11 in the first quarter and tallying 18 at the half. He shot 9-18 from the field, nailed three treys and added 9 boards in a display that should help his All-Star credentials this season. Apart from Lewis, Seattle relied on an all around performance. Antonio Daniels, starting in place of Flip Murray because of his defensive abilities, scored a season high 13 points, adding 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Murray added 12 and 4 dimes off the bench, and Luke Ridnour had 11 and 3 assists, including 3-3 from donwtown and some crucial buckets down the stretch. Brent Barry posted 10, 2 and 4 running the show, whilst Calvin Booth blocked 5 shots. For the Rockets, it was Yao Ming and Steve Francis. Francis had 28 and 6, whilst Yao posted 19 and 9, including some key baskets to get Houston within striking distance at the death. Swingman Jim Jackson had 12 and 9, while Maurice Taylor scored 13 off the bench. The win was a crucial one for Seattle, who will likely be battling Houston for one of the last playoff spots on the West. Houston led for much of the game, but a 25-17 last quarter from the Sonics ensured that they took the points. Both teams shot exactly 39.7% from the field, but Seattle were able to knock down more shots from behind the arc, and had an assist total of 20-8. Overall this was a very even game in just about every department, and the win will do a lot for the confidence of a Seattle team awaiting the return of Ray Allen. http://www.nba.com/games/20031129/HOUSEA/boxscore.html Next game: vs Knicks, Wed Dec 3, 7pm
Luke "I am your father" Ridnour gave them some much needed points, huge. Great way to close out the basketball game. Houston...ick.
Rid was huge tonight. Hit the go-ahead three ball in the last, had a direct hand in 6 of the 7 Sonic baskets in the final period and held Francis to only 4 points in the last, all free throws.
Reshard is getting my vote every time I vote for the ASG... him and KG are the only two constants I vote for. BIG win against a BIG team for the Sonics.
yea it was a good game...Antonio deserved the spot...he's my savior haha...(my bro was like, "Yea wutever...Flip Murrays way better..") I guess that's true but he's gotta step up the plate more...It's good to have Shard Lewis back...is there any news of when Ray Allen will be back???
Yeah Lewis after the game was interviewed, he was talking about how the best therapy for him was to be out on the court, surrounded by his teammates and just concentrating on basketball.
