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 That skirmish could have easily distracted the Rockets.
Instead the Rockets regained their focus and gradually pulled away
from the Nets en route to a 113-99 victory.
"I think we've been locked into these last few games," Houston guard
James Harden said. "So that little hesitation wasn't going to stop
us from our goal and that was to win the game. That was to go out
and execute defensively, offensively share the basketball and make
sure everybody gets open shots."
Of course the Rockets have the luxury of having the NBA's leading
scorer in Harden.
Harden gave a preview to fans of his All-Star capabilities by
getting an efficient 30 points in three quarters and turning in a
second productive showing against a struggling New York team in five
days. After getting 25 in a blowout win at New York on 8-of-17
shooting on Thursday, Harden needed 30 minutes to shoot 9 of 13 from
the floor, 4 of 7 from 3-point range and make all eight free throw
attempts.
 "It's always good to come to New York and play," Harden said. "The
fans here want a show and for us it's about winning. These two teams
are struggling but we're worried about ourselves."
Twenty-eight of Harden's points came after Garnett and Howard got
into a skirmish underneath the basket with 7:53 remaining in the
first quarter.
Garnett was positioned behind Howard near the baseline, and while
fouling Howard, he came up with the ball. Howard took a small slap
at Garnett's chest, and Garnett then threw the ball off the back of
Howard's jersey. Howard took exception and responded with a right
forearm, and then Garnett headbutted Howard on the right side of the
face before Howard slapped Garnett in the neck.
Garnett wound up being ejected, and following the game nobody wanted
to go in depth to discuss the incident.
Houston coach Kevin McHale said it was no big deal compared to the
incidents during his playing days in the 1980s with the Boston
Celtics Harden was unsure about what happened, and Howard said "I
don't know" twice during a 10-question interview session with
reporters that lasted slightly under two minutes.
"In the good old days that was a play on," said McHale, who also
added he didn't see any punches thrown. "Now they throw people out.
I didn't think it was that big of a deal."
Added Howard after saying he didn't know: "It doesn't matter. We won
the game. That's all what matters.
First-hand accounts from players not involved also were uncertain.
"I just turned around and I just saw the scuffle," Harden said. "I
really don't know what happened."
"It escalated so quick and I don't see why," Brooklyn center Mason
Plumlee said. "There was no hard foul. I'm sure it'll be replayed a
lot tonight. I didn't see anything that was dirty until the punch."
[to top of second column] |
What mattered most for the Rockets was they regained their focus on
both ends, and it seemed to consistently surface in the final 2 1/2
minutes of the first half and during an effective third quarter.
Harden's 3-pointer gave Houston a 60-52 lead at halftime and then he
added 10 more points in the third when the Rockets outscored the
Nets by a 26-18 margin and took an 86-70 lead into the fourth.
Harden's 16th game with at least 30 points came on a night when five
Rockets reached double figures.
Forward Donatas Motiejunas posted his fourth double-double with 18
points and 11 rebounds. Forwards Josh Smith and Trevor Ariza added
13 and 12, respectively, as the Rockets shot 47.7 percent and made
16-of-40 3-pointers.
While the Rockets had no problems pulling away, the Nets shot
themselves out of the game and lost their sixth straight, falling to
16-22. After Plumlee's reverse dunk made it a 52-50 game with 2:35
remaining in the first half, Brooklyn was outscored 71-49 the rest
of the way and missed 17 of 23 shots bridging the rest of the half
and third quarter.
Plumlee collected a career-high 24 points on 10-of-11 shooting, but
the rest of the Nets shot 39.7 percent.
Guard Jarrett Jack scored 13 points but shot 6-of-15. Guard Bojan
Bogdanovic also had 13 points, and forward Joe Johnson and center
Brook Lopez added 12 apiece.
"We're going through a bad phase and the hardest thing to do is get
out of it," Johnson said.
NOTES: C Dwight Howard played at Barclays Center for the first time.
He was injured April 2 when the Rockets previously visited Brooklyn
and Feb. 5, 2013, when he was a Los Angeles Laker. Howard was
originally the centerpiece of Brooklyn's plan to lure a star, but
before a trade could be made he decided to opt into the final year
of his contract with Orlando. The Nets instead used the four
first-round picks they had allotted for Howard in a deal for Paul
Pierce and Kevin Garnett. ... Asked about Brooklyn's offensive
identity, coach Lionel Hollins said, "We have established an
identity: We don't make shots. That is an identity." ... Houston
coach Kevin McHale oversaw Minnesota's draft when it selected F
Kevin Garnett as a 19-year-old. "When he was a young kid, he said,
'I'm going to play longer in the NBA than I am old right now,'"
McHale said. "I said, 'You're absolutely out of your mind,' but he
did it."
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