Houston Rockets: Defense dominates in our 3 takeaways from Game 2 win

The Houston Rockets faced a more determined Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday, and despite a shooting night to forget, the bench picked up momentum in the clutch to seal a deciding victory and go up 2-0.

This game was all about momentum. Both teams exchanged runs of scoring throughout, with the Oklahoma City Thunder going on an 11-0 run in the second quarter and the Houston Rockets opening up the fourth quarter with a 17-0 blast.

Contributing to the Rockets’ slumps in this game was the inconsistent 3-point shooting of James Harden and Eric Gordon, combining for 2-of-21 in that department. But when the starting backcourt was lacking, Houston looked to the bench and role players for a surge. The supporting cast didn’t disappoint as the fourth quarter rolled around, which proved to be too much for Chris Paul and the Thunder in the end.

Thanks to players like P.J Tucker, Jeff Green, and Austin Rivers stepping up, the Rockets were able to pull off an impressive win over a determined Thunder squad. More outstanding was the team’s ability to run the floor while Harden was on the bench.

Here are the three takeaways from a solid Game 2 for the Rockets.

Next: Thriving while Harden struggles