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The Raptors had just dropped a game in Detroit when the surging Rockets squad came knocking at their doors. The hosts were handed their second straight loss when Harden and his Rockets sparked late to clinch an impressive 107-95 victory over them.
With their sixth straight win, Houston jumped to 39-25(0.609) on the season, right below the Nuggets and Warriors for the third spot. They are now only 5 games behind the Conference leaders in Golden State, having won seven of their previous nine games. Come to think of it, this is gigantic leap keeping in mind they were once ranked 14th on the West leaderboard.
On the other hand, the Raptors have now lost three of their last five after winning seven in a row just this past month. They trail the East-leading Bucks by 2.5 games now after the loss, and hold a 46-19(0.708) win-loss record. Having lost just 7 games at home this season, they have tasted defeat in just three of their previous ten matchups.
On that note, let's draw out some major talking points from this encounter.
#1 Harden wins the two-way battle against Kawhi and takes his team home
The Beard finished this one with 35 points to his name. This was the 39th straight game of him scoring 28 or more points in a game, which is the second-longest streak in the NBA after Wilt Chamberlain's 71 games. He shot an uncharacteristic 12-of-30 from the field and made all his 8 free-throws. Averaging 2.2 steals per game this season so far, Harden added three more of those during this game. He made 3 of his 9 three-point attempts on the night.
"I was playing well, but I wasn't shooting it well," Harden said of his performance through three quarters. "I had a lot of opportunities at the rim that I didn't convert on, so I wanted to make sure I converted on those, because that was the game right there."
Kawhi Leonard ended with 26 points and had just one steal during the course of his defensive assignment. The Claw had a fairly one-dimensional game, being able to dish out just a single assist and just one three-pointer throughout the game.
#2 The Rockets come back in the final period as the Kyle Lowry shooting slump returns for Toronto
After the Raptors overcame a 22-point deficit to take the lead in the third quarter, the Rockets put together their best efforts on the offensive end down the stretch and outscored their opponents 38-24 in the fourth period. James Harden scored 19 of his 35 in the deciding period, along with Gerald Green chipping in 11 of his 18 at the same time.
Chris Paul made sure people were not taking their superhuman scoring for granted and that it took effort.
"If it was that easy, everybody would do it," Paul said.
The Raptors shot 9-32 from beyond the arc for a miserable 28% conversion rate. Coming off a 35-point performance in a win against the Pistons, point guard Kyle Lowry went 4-16 on the night, making none of his five 3-point attempts. He finished with just 8 points in what was his third single-digit scoring total in the previous seven games.
"We've got to play harder as a group and continue to get better," Lowry said.
#3 Coach D'Antoni's work on the Rockets defense is paying dividends
Averaging 8.5 per game this season as a team, Houston racked up 11 steals against Toronto in this road win. They managed to draw 26 points out of the Raptors' 13 turnovers in the game. In contrast, no Raptor except Leonard had a single steal.
The Rockets outscored their opposition 23-7 in terms of fast-break points.
"We locked back in," Harden said. "Our second unit did an unbelievable job of getting stops and creating opportunities on offense, and that was the game."
Backup power forward Gary Clark provided a pivotal spark on the defensive end, pulling a couple of steals and blocks in his 11 minutes off the bench. Chris Paul and James Harden combined for 5 steals in a game where their team committed 23 fouls.
Hosting a defensive rating which is 25th in the league, this win was surely a defensive paradise for the skyrocketing Houston squad.
Guess the Lakers players!
