Rockets Fall Short In Preseason Finale

Mavs hold on for 98-94 victory

Jason Friedman
Rockets.com Staff Writer

Houston - The Houston Rockets entered the preseason with a laundry list of questions which required an answer. Facing the prospect of playing without a pair of superstars, many wanted to know precisely how this young team would respond – on both ends of the floor – to the challenges of adjusting to a new style of play while incorporating a host of new faces.

And while the real test doesn’t start until Tuesday night when Houston opens the regular season in Portland, the picture is beginning to take shape. There are those glimpses when these Rockets look very, very good, as they did Friday night during a second quarter which saw them outscore the Mavericks 32-21. And, yes, there also remain a few imperfections which must be sussed out before this club maximizes its full potential. They, too, were on display during Houston’s 98-94 defeat at the hands of Dallas; a loss which was largely the result of an untimely energy lapse and a lack of execution down the stretch.

“I thought the start of the third quarter we came out very soft and didn’t seem like we had any energy and they immediately sensed it and jumped all over us,” lamented Head Coach Rick Adelman. “We can’t afford that. We have to sustain the effort right on through and then maybe you don’t have that stretch. We had a nice finish to the second quarter, we just didn’t take advantage of it.”

Houston’s lull allowed the Mavs to quickly erase an 8-point halftime deficit. Dirk Nowitzki inflicted the majority of the damage, scoring a game-high 32 points before getting ejected for arguing a foul call late in the fourth quarter. Yet even though the Rockets’ offense sputtered in the second half as the missed shots and turnovers piled up, Houston still stayed within striking distance right up until the game’s final seconds. There was a certain amount of solace to be found in that fact – and lessons to be learned as well.

“One area that’s a concern is what we’re going to do when we really need a basket,” Adelman said. “If this was last year, I probably would have posted Yao up but that’s what we’re trying to find out and that’s what we have to work at. We just have to keep tinkering and find out what’s the best thing for us. Tonight, you don’t want to lose but I think it opens our eyes a little bit as to what we have to do.”

The Rockets now head back into the lab to work on those issues this weekend in preparation for their trip to Portland. They do so with the realization that they’ve come a long way since the start of training camp, having learned much about themselves over the course of the last three weeks. Adelman opened camp by asking his charges to elevate their games in the absence of Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady, and he surely must be pleased by the way his players have answered the call. Friday night was certainly no exception, as Carl Landry came through with 22 points and 6 boards, while Kyle Lowry – one of Houston’s shining stars throughout the preseason – finished with a flourish, stuffing the stat sheet with 16 points, 9 assists and 7 rebounds.

“I think I’m more confident and things are slowing down for me,” said the fourth-year guard from Villanova. “I’ve got another year and the playoffs under my belt and I’m just building from that. I feel explosive. I slimmed down and did a few things to help my body this summer and I’m just trying to go out there and play well.”

The results speak for themselves. Lowry’s added quickness and burst have allowed him to be even more of a foul-drawing machine than he was previously and the 19 total assists he’s registered in the past two games suggest he’s also doing an excellent job of getting his teammates involved in the offense. That’s precisely the sort of increased production Adelman came into camp expecting his players to provide. And it comes as no surprise that Lowry would be up for the task given the fact he personifies so many of the characteristics which define this rather unique collection of talent.

“I had a hunch that we would be a team that fights and plays hard,” said Shane Battier. “I’m pretty secure in that assessment now. We’re not going to give up. We’re going to continue to scrap and claw. I thought we’d be an athletic team and we are. We’ve shown that when we put the energy in we can really fly around and put pressure on the other team. We’re not very tall, so we’re going to have to play scrappy to overcome that. But I really believe that if we play hard, smart and together and share the basketball, we’ll be very competitive.”

QUOTES

RICK ADELMAN

The second quarter we played very well. We talked about coming out in the third quarter and sustaining the energy and effort, and we didn’t; they jumped all over us. We got back in it and, in spite of playing poorly offensively and not shooting it well, we had a chance. We gave up 2 or 3 offensive rebounds and, if you’re going to win games down the stretch, you’ve got to execute and defend, and we defended them we just didn’t get the ball back and gave them too many opportunities.

(on what he’s learned from the preseason): I think tonight is kind of what we’re going to face and this team has to find a way to fight through it. They can play really well for stretches and then they just fall off; you get in a lull and the other team’s going to turn it on. It’s just something we have to find a way and find people who are going to keep contributing and we had some guys who had some tough nights and off the bench we shot it poorly. We just have to find answers. I think that’s what we’re going to face right now but if we keep working at it, we’ll be alright.

There’s a difference between playing people in practice and playing people like Nowitzki and Marion and Jason Kidd. That’s what you’re faced with. You’re going to have to continue to execute. I thought the start of the third quarter we came out very soft and didn’t seem like we had any energy and they immediately sensed it and jumped all over us. We can’t afford that. We have to sustain the effort right on through and then maybe you don’t have that stretch. We had a nice finish to the second quarter, we just didn’t take advantage of it.

One area that’s a concern is what we’re going to do when we really need a basket. Tonight, Aaron had a really tough night so Kyle was in there. Kyle’s just got to learn in that time of the game he’s got to try to get to the basket. He went around on the pick-and-roll one time and held up and threw it to somebody without trying to create in the open court. Those are things we’re just going to learn. If this was last year, I probably would have posted Yao up but that’s what we’re trying to find out and that’s what we have to work at. We just have to keep tinkering and find out what’s the best thing for us. Tonight, you don’t want to lose but I think it opens our eyes a little bit as to what we have to do.

I think one thing fans will find out is that these guys are going to play their tails off. But there’s one thing to playing hard and there’s one thing to playing with your both your heart and your mind. We had a lot of good things tonight but we know there’s going to be areas we’re going to have to keep working at. With Luis out, it’s kind of like, how are you going to rotate your big guys? The next three days we have to concentrate at the key parts of the game.

SHANE BATTIER

(on the close score) “You are reminded of how you win close games and in this game, we didn't come up with key offensive rebounds and didn't execute down the stretch. Sometimes you forget about that in the pre-season because you're trying to get new guys acclimated to new plays and whatnot and that was good, but you're still supposed to go out and win games. That comes with execution and playing very solid in the 4th quarter."

(on the loss) “For us to be a good team this year we have to be aggressive and that means continually attacking. We had a lot of sloppy turnovers, especially coming out of the halftime. There was a time when we were just running up and down with them (Dallas) and we have to have some organization, we can't just be helter-skelter. We have to be aggressive, but we can't be disorganized, and there is a difference we have to correct."

Unless you’re a veteran team and everyone’s coming back, who really is ready for the regular season? We have a lot of young guys, a lot of new guys so, no, we’re not the team we’re going to be a few weeks or a few months from now but that doesn’t mean we can’t go out and win some ball games.

I had a hunch that we would be a team that fights and plays hard. I’m pretty secure in that assessment. We’re not going to give up. We’re going to continue to scrap and claw. I thought we’d be an athletic team and we are. We’ve shown that when we put the energy in we can really fly around and put pressure on the other team. We’re not very tall, so we’re going to have to play scrappy to overcome that. But I really believe that if we play hard, smart and together and share the basketball, we’ll be very competitive. We feel good about our guys. It’s not always going to be perfect or pretty but we can find a way to get it done.

(on the Rockets’ tough early schedule): The last three years I’ve been here it’s been very similar. We’ve had a brutal November and December, we’ve tried winning as many games as we can and just not get in a funk. Then usually around the new year, our fortunes change schedule-wise. We have a lot more home games, but just like the last two years, we need to be in a position to take advantage of the schedule change and use it in our favor. We have to keep

KYLE LOWRY

(on the game) “We gave ourselves a chance to win. There were some unfortunate plays that did not go our way. There were some things that we can learn from, we've just got to get better.”

(on what the Rockets need to do to get ready for the regular season) “When the regular season starts, games come down to the last 3, 4 or 5 minutes. It comes down to getting stops and getting execution. We have to go back and look at the film to make sure that we executed."

We just have to get ready to go into a hostile situation. We have to prepare and know that this is for real and these games count now. We have to go out there and focus on playing our game and getting into an up-tempo style and playing defense like we know how to.

(on his strong preseason): I think I’m more confident and things are slowing down for me. I’ve got another year and the playoffs under my belt and I’m just building from that. I feel explosive. I slimmed down and did a few things to help my body this summer and I’m just trying to go out there and play well.

AARON BROOKS

(on the Rockets' competitiveness) “I think we did a good job defensively in the 2nd half. We didn't score any points in the 4th quarter, but we did a good job on defense and we put ourselves in position to win the game. We fell on the short end of the stick, but we fought hard and, next time, we will get there.”

POPS MENSAH-BONSU

(on the game) “This was the last pre-season game. This was the last chance to tweak out some things before the big show starts. We've still got some work to do; we've still got some practices before Tuesday. Like Coach (Adelman) said, we did some good things, but we also had some things to learn at the same time, so we're going to go back to the drawing board and build on game."

CARL LANDRY

(on the game) “We just made a couple of little mistakes. We played a good ballgame; they're a great team, but we just made some minor mistakes. We still have time to practice before the regular season, we'll just go back to the drawing board to correct those mistakes."

(on the teams' chemistry) "The chemistry on the team is really high right now. We've just got to keep it that high during the regular season. We've just got to get used to playing with (Trevor) Ariza. Tracy (McGrady) will be back, we have a lot of new guys on the team, so we're still trying to cope with one another, but we're doing alright so far."

TREVOR ARIZA

(on the game) "I feel as though it came down to them getting a few offensive rebounds that we should have gotten. Jason Kidd hit a tough shot with the shot clock running down. That kind of took a little bit out of us. But for the most part, I think we played alright."

(on the last 4 minutes of the game) "You never learn until you're in those type of situations. I think tonight we learned a little bit about ourselves and what we have to do next time we're in one of those situations."

DALLAS MAVERICKS HEAD COACH RICK CARLISLE

(on the game) “In the second half our intensity was terrific. In the first half our intensity was spotty. Houston took it to use in the second quarter and we got with it in the third quarter but we weren't where we want to be.”

(on his team's play) “We are trying to establish a style and a disposition. We will take this effort and in three days the ball goes up for real. Until Josh (Howard) gets back we are going to have to be creative.”

(on the referees and the Gooden fight) “It was a do-over. I give the referees a lot of credit and they have maintained a good disposition and they are trying their best.” (Coach was told that a new agreement had been reached with the referees.) Coach replied, “I guess these referees are on their way out. They did a solid job.”

DREW GOODEN

(on his initial ejection) “That was the first time that has ever happened to me. I heard the music and was told I was gone and headed to the locker room. The refs must have figured they had missed something. I'm happy our refs reached an agreement. I wondered when I came back on the court if the fans would cheered me but the booed me instead.”

JASON KIDD

(on the team's play) "It was good to see the intensity we played with. We had kind of missed shots and turned the ball over but it didn't affect our defense and that was a big key.”

(on the addition of Shawn Marion) “It was good to see Shawn back on the court. He will make it easy and a lot of fun for us this season. I'm really glad to have him with us.”

JASON TERRY

(on the game) “We really wanted to come out and win this game. We wanted to end the pre-season on a positive note and get our confidence as high as possible for the start of the season. Houston played hard but we wanted to stay on top of them.”

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