Houston, TX – The Thunder hit the road for one night only as they travel south to Houston to take on the Rockets as winners of four straight. Although they come in on a four game winning streak, they also come into the game on a five game losing streak in Houston.
The Toyota Center is a place they have really struggled for the last few years and would need to come into the game with heightened energy if they wanted to avoid turning this into a six game losing streak.
To start the game, they had that energy but it quickly disappeared on the defensive end. The Rockets were getting whatever they wanted with easy drive and kicks that led to a good amount of open threes. The physicality needed to win this game wasnt there for the Thunder. Additionally, although the Thunder were getting decent looks from the floor in the first half, they weren’t really playing Thunder basketball by getting into the paint.
All of that caused them to get down by as much as 16 but they didn’t let that last long. About midway through the second quarter, they finally adjusted to the Rockets physicality and increased their efforts on the defensive end to get back into the game and even take the lead. It became evident that the refs were going to let a lot of contact go in this game and whichever team adjusted accordingly would be in control to win.
That was the Thunder for most, if not all of the second half. They were much more active on the defensive end and they were the much more physical team and the team that adjusted to the way the refs were calling the game the most. Once they grabbed control the Rockets couldn’t do anything to get back the game close enough again.
The Thunder used a few extended runs in the second half and go up as much as 17 and get out of Houston with a 123-110 victory pushing the winning streak to five in a row. It also ends their five game losing streak to the Rockets in Houston.
Here are the reasons for the win
Physicality
The Rockets are a really physical team and like to use that combined with their athleticism to try and beat up on teams. It was working to start the game against the Thunder but the Thunder adjusted accordingly and there was nothing the Rockets could do after that.
Houston was getting whatever they wanted on the offensive end of the floor and if the Thunder continued they would have been ran off the floor.
The biggest adjustment for the Thunder was adjusting to the way the refs were calling the game. They made it clear early on that they weren’t going to call a lot of ticky-tack fouls and this was going to be a physical game. OKC could have just complained all night but instead, they took the physicality to the Houston and they were rewarded for it.
Protecting the ball
This was particularly important early on. Especially as the Rockets built their 16 point lead. It felt like the Thunder were never out of it during that span and that’s mostly due to them protecting the ball.
The Rockets were really hot from three and the Thunder couldn’t really buy a bucket. Credit to the Rockets for making things tougher but the Thunder were getting decent looks the whole time. If they were giving the ball away during that span the Rockets lead likely gets up to 20+ and who knows what happens after that.
Because they were able to protect the ball, it kept them within arms length and once they grabbed control of the game, they didn’t give the Rockets many extra opportunities to get closer.
Shooting
The Thunder have been one of the best three point shooting teams all season. Some nights, it looks like it’s going to be dreadful and then things turn around and it seems like they can’t miss.
Tonight was one of those nights.
Early on they couldn’t really buy a bucket but after 48 minutes of play they ended up shooting 47.4% from the floor hitting 17 threes and shooting 48.6% from long range.
More importantly than them hitting those 17 threes, they got them the right way. They didn’t just take the first three or open jumper they got and continued to work the ball around to get the best look. This was particularly evident in the fourth quarter when Chet Holmgren had it going and he never played out of character. He never once took a “heat check” shot. He continued to play within the system and the ball kept finding him anyways.
The Thunder were led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who had another league leading 42nd 30 point game with 36 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals. Chet Holmgren had a dominant fourth quarter to put the Rockets away and finished with 29 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 blocks. Jalen Williams added 22 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds while Lu Dort contributed 16 points and 5 rebounds.
The Thunder will look to make it six in a row when they host the Rockets Tuesday night in a late 9pm local time tip.
