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Game 3 seemed like a continuation of Game 2 when Joe Ingles hit a 3 to start of proceedings, but that's where the similarities ended. The Houston Rockets responded in style to rout the Utah Jazz in a crushing 113-92 win. The Game wasn't even as close as the scoreline suggests, which is saying something.
James Harden and Eric Gordon led the way with 25 apiece as the Rockets wrestles home court advantage back from Utah to go up 2-1 in the series.
Here are the talking points:
#5 Rockets explode in the 1st half and never look back
As mentioned, the game started off with an Ingles 3, but then it was all Rockets. Houston went on a 19-2 run after Ingles hit that 3 and just rolled on. The Rockets assisted on 8 of their first 13 shots and Utah's vaunted defense had no answer for them. Some pretty woeful Jazz turnovers helped too.
They turned it over 16 times in this one, compared to 8 for Houston, allowing them to get out on the break and speed away. They led 70-40 at the half and even stretched the lead to 38 points at one point.
The most pleasing part of this win for Mike D'Antoni might be the fact that it was a very balanced effort this time around. Houston got 32 from Harden, 20+ from CP3 and Clint Capela in the Game 2 loss but not much elsewhere. This time, the trio didn't have terrific games but it didn't matter in the end.
#4 Rockets struggle from 3 again
The Rockets live-and-die by the 3, so it might be slightly concerning that it wasn't falling as well as they'd hope for the 2nd game in a row. Houston shot 10/37 in Game 2 and 11/36 in this one, just 30%. They managed to pull this one out of the bag, as they connected on a ridiculous 31/50 2 point shots, but the long-range shooting has to improve if they are to get past the Jazz. Harden especially has struggled in the last 2 games, going 4/18 after that terrific Game 1 outing, when he hit 7/12 from deep.
D'Antoni might also be concerned by the fact that the Jazz shot better from 3 yet again, connecting on 38% of their shots from beyond the arc. Should this trend continue, expect this series to go the distance.
#3 Houston's defense finally shows up
While the Rockets struggled a bit defending the 3 point shot, their interior defense was suffocating. Capela was excellent at defending the rim, as the Jazz kept coming up short whenever they drove to the basket. They also changed up their pick-and-roll defensive game plan to counter Utah's quick slipping move to the rim.
Mitchell who had 11 assists in Game 2, suddenly found no passing lanes off the pick and roll and had to reset time and time again. They also didn't collapse when he drove into the lane like they did in the last game and the Jazz didn't get many wide open looks from 3 as a result.
I'd been critical of Houston's defense the past few games, allowing teams to shoot 50% or more in 4 out of their last 5 games, but today they were excellent. The Jazz shot 41% from the field in what was Houston's best defensive performance this postseason.
#2 Donovan Mitchell's shooting woes continue
A day after fellow ROY contender Ben Simmons had his worst playoff game thus far, Donovan Mitchell followed suit. They were both due one in all honesty. Rookies aren't supposed to excel in every playoff game and that was the case tonight. Mitchell finished with 10 points on 4/16 shooting. He only had 2 points at the half as he struggled to deal with Houston's new defensive gameplan.
Capela gave him no easy looks at the rim and many of his passing lanes were completely shut down. Mitchell has been able to compensate for some off shooting nights in these playoffs by doing the other things well like he did in Game 2 but that wasn't the case tonight. He followed up his career-high 11 assists in Game 2 with just 3 in this one.
Expect Mitchell to bounce back in Game 4, but the Jazz need Ricky Rubio back as soon as possible. Mitchell isn't a natural facilitator and taking on both the scoring and playmaking role might end up being too much for the rook.
#1 Houston wrestles back control of this series
Will Chris Paul fail to get to the Conference Finals again? Will Harden flame out in the playoffs again? Does a Mike D'Antoni team fail to deliver in the playoffs again?
There were some alarm bells ringing when the Rockets blew a lead late in Game 2 and lost home court advantage, but there aren't any now. They've regained home court advantage and now all of sudden, the pressure is on the Jazz. They probably won't continue shooting better than the Rockets from deep and it'll be a big problem when that doesn't happen.
They'll also have to now counter what Houston is throwing at them now on defense and if Rubio isn't back for Game 4, I'm not sure how much of it they can change really. They don't have a proper playmaker without him and breaking down this Rockets defense will be a problem.
Game 4 is obviously now a must win for the Jazz as there is no way Houston blows a 3-1 lead.
Guess the Lakers players!
