It’s 44-44 at halftime. The Rockets have gotten 13 from Alston. They’ve shut down everyone not named Deron Williams. Williams has 21, the rest of the team has 23. A big point is the fact that Okur is 1-for-8 with 5 points at the half. Boozer has 5. If they want to have a chance they have to keep locking him up. They look a lot better with Rafer in there, and perhaps his ability to score will allow T-Mac to actually do something in the 4th quarter. First the Rockets have to keep it close enough to get there.
Excellent sign for the Rockets. Utah goes right to Okur in the post. He misses the bankshot. Boozer has a tip jam and he misses…and then T-Mac goes down and scores. Pretty sure you can’t be happier than that.
Huge fact is that Rafer sat out half of the 4th quarter and the game is tied. Common sense says they are in great shape. Utah is bricking free throws left and right. The light-hearted ‘MVP’ chants for Deron Williams make me hate Jazz fans even more. I’m sorry, just personal pain over the years made me say that.
For those who keep track of these things…T-Mac, zero points, 1 assist in the 4th quarter. \
(By the way…I know Okur or Korver is hitting a big three in these final six minutes. I just know it. Just like you know that Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz end up together in their new movie without watching it.)
Luis Scola sure forces up a lot of tough shots. I feel if he was 7 foot he would be unstoppable. But at 6’7 he just misses or gets blocked and Utah ends up pushing it and scoring on the other end. As I typed that he missed another layup. By the way, I cringe when T-Mac gets the ball now because I just feel like he’s going to miss. It’s just kind of like when you see an awkward moment happening to someone you care about. You just want to look away ASAP. Is that bad? Of course.
Boozer just clanked two more free throws. Can Houston actually take the lead? No. Rafer Alston misses a wide-open three…he has got to make shots.
Utah responds with a Kirilenko bucket down low. Well T-Mac it IS your fault for letting that guy score on you in the post. Doug Collins is not helping my cringe factor with T-Mac by saying “They really need Tracy McGrady to find a field goal here” everytime Houston brings the ball up. It makes me nervous and I’m not even a Rocket fan.
Big turnover by the Jazz. Another chance for Houston to finally take the lead. Can…they….do…..it? T-Mac gets fouled. He missed the first free throw horribly. Good lord…is this a movie? Is T-Mac point shaving every playoff? Unreal.
Tie game. 3:26 and counting. And the Jazz fans are standing…gosh I wish Artest had beaten them up instead. Okur misses a mid-range jumper.
T-Mac back to the line with the game tied….2:50 left in the game. T-Mac nails both free throws. Rockets up 2. T-Mac blocks AK and the Rockets have it back. They need a bucket. Stepback fadeaway for T-Mac…smooth. Houston up 4 with under two minutes left.
Deron Williams missed a pullup, T-Mac snatches the board with authority. Kirilenko fouled the screener as T-Mac made another jumper. I thought it was going to go against Houston..it didn’t. And T-Mac’s bucket counted. And Landry made the free throw. 93-86…and Boozer turned it over. 1:34 left the Rockets can stick the DAGGER in the Jazz.
T-Mac missed a pullup but at least he’s swagger is back. PS, remember that big three I was talking about? Korver hit it to cut the lead to 4. Offensive foul on T-Mac trying to go set a screen for Alston. Unreal.
Remember those big threes I was talking about? Okur hit one. 93-92 Houston with 37.4 seconds left. Just…like…that. I swear I’ve seen this game in Utah at least a million times. It just opens up wounds. If the Rockets lose this game…You may want to call each and every person you know from Houston.
I can’t believe how quickly all of this happened. Houston was just up 7. With every single letter involved in momentum in their favor. I’m afraid to say this but there is almost no way Houston wins this game.
T-Mac misses a fadeaway. Utah is coming back at them with no timeout. Deron Williams to the bucket, block by Carl Landry and he SAVES it. Biggest….play…..ever. Scola to the line with .2 seconds left and it officially doesn’t matter. The Rockets go into Utah and get a win to keep hope alive.
Why the Jazz fans are cheering is ridiculous…its impossible to score with .2 seconds left. Although T-Mac looked like he was about to kill Scola when he accidentally made the second free throw. Someone tell him to relax…please.
Exercise the demons…Rockets win. Now this is interesting. Backs against the wall WITH confidence? Game 4…watch out Utah. Rafer was a huge difference for the Rockets. Huge.