Rockets Coast to Easy Win

Apr 5, 2013; Portland, OR, USA; Houston Rockets shooting guard James Harden (13) shoots over Portland Trail Blazers shooting guard Will Barton (5) at the Rose Garden. Mandatory Credit: Craig Mitchelldyer-USA TODAY Sports

The Houston Rockets 116-98 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers knocked the magic number down to 2. 2 more wins, or one win and a loss from either the Los Angeles Lakers or Utah Jazz will help the Rockets clinch a playoff berth.

James Harden led the way with 33 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, while Jeremy Lin added 22 points and 8 assists.  The Rockets were without Chandler Parsons, who missed his second consecutive game due to a calf injury, while Carlos Delfino sat out due to the flu.  Francisco Garcia, starting in place of Parsons, scored 11 points, including going 3 for 7 from behind the arc.  Greg Smith, starting at power forward once again, added 19 points and 5 rebounds.

The Blazers were led by LaMarcus Aldridge, who had 32 points and 13 rebounds, while Wesley Matthews added 18 points.  The Blazers (33-43), are now mathematically out of playoff contention.

The Rockets also got solid contribution from the bench, led by Donatas Motiejunas, who had 10 points and 7 rebounds in 26 minutes, while Terrence Jones played 14 minutes, but did not score.

The Rockets got out to a hot start, led by Harden, who scored 17 points in the first quarter, and led 59-40 midway through the second quarter.  Portland responded with a 14-1 run and closed out the first half only trailing 63-56.  Houston put the game away midway through the third quarter, going on a 26-6 run that all but sealed any chance for the Blazers.

The Rockets will face the Denver Nuggets in Denver Saturday night.

Box Score:

Houston Rockets

STARTERS

MIN

FGM-A

3PM-A

FTM-A

OREB

DREB

REB

AST

STL

BLK

TO

PF

+/-

PTS

24

5-6

0-0

9-12

0

5

5

1

0

1

0

6

-1

19

29

3-7

0-1

3-4

5

6

11

1

0

1

0

4

+16

9

34

8-13

2-4

4-5

1

3

4

8

2

0

4

2

+19

22

26

4-9

3-7

0-0

0

2

2

0

3

0

1

2

+7

11

35

11-21

4-9

7-8

0

7

7

6

1

1

4

0

+11

33

BENCH

MIN

FGM-A

3PM-A

FTM-A

OREB

DREB

REB

AST

STL

BLK

TO

PF

+/-

PTS

14

0-2

0-0

0-0

0

1

1

0

0

0

2

1

+10

0

4

1-1

0-0

0-2

0

0

0

0

1

0

0

0

-2

2

26

3-10

1-4

3-4

3

4

7

2

0

0

0

2

+13

10

3

0-1

0-0

0-0

0

0

0

0

0

0

1

0

-2

0

22

3-3

1-1

0-0

1

1

2

6

1

1

0

0

+15

7

4

0-1

0-1

0-0

0

1

1

0

0

0

0

0

-2

0

20

1-2

1-1

0-0

0

4

4

0

0

0

0

1

+6

3

DNP COACH’S DECISION

TOTALS

FGM-A

3PM-A

FTM-A

OREB

DREB

REB

AST

STL

BLK

TO

PF

PTS

Fast break points:   28
Points in the paint:   54
Total Team Turnovers (Points off turnovers):   14 (14)

+/- denotes team’s net points while the player is on the court.

Portland Trail Blazers

STARTERS

MIN

FGM-A

3PM-A

FTM-A

OREB

DREB

REB

AST

STL

BLK

TO

PF

+/-

PTS

40

12-19

0-0

8-10

3

10

13

3

1

0

0

5

-10

32

27

4-8

0-2

1-1

1

1

2

1

1

1

2

3

-13

9

23

5-9

0-0

1-1

3

5

8

0

1

0

0

1

-13

11

40

4-12

1-2

2-3

2

1

3

7

2

0

3

1

-15

11

38

6-19

1-11

5-6

1

2

3

4

2

0

2

3

-14

18

BENCH

MIN

FGM-A

3PM-A

FTM-A

OREB

DREB

REB

AST

STL

BLK

TO

PF

+/-

PTS

5

0-2

0-0

0-0

1

1

2

1

0

0

0

0

+1

0

25

2-6

0-0

2-2

2

4

6

2

0

0

1

5

-7

6

15

0-4

0-2

0-0

0

1

1

1

1

0

3

1

-15

0

4

1-2

0-0

0-0

0

0

0

0

0

0

1

0

+2

2

21

4-9

0-2

1-1

1

5

6

4

0

1

1

2

+1

9

2

0-1

0-1

0-0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

-7

0

DNP COACH’S DECISION

DNP COACH’S DECISION

TOTALS

FGM-A

3PM-A

FTM-A

OREB

DREB

REB

AST

STL

BLK

TO

PF

PTS

Fast break points:   14
Points in the paint:   52
Total Team Turnovers (Points off turnovers):   13 (15)

+/- denotes team’s net points while the player is on the court.