LOVIE REFLECTS ON WEEK 2
9 critical takeaways from Lovie Smith's Week 2 Houston Texans presser
Sep 19, 2022, 2:48 pm
Lovie Smith recaps Week 2 | Houston Texans Press Conference
Houston Texans head coach Lovie Smith met with the media on Monday afternoon and shared his thoughts on the Texans 16-9 loss to the Broncos on Sunday.
1. The Broncos scored a TD and the Texans didn't, sometimes it's that simple. Lovie made this point on Monday, discussing some missed opportunities for the Texans offense. Multiple times the Texans coached emphasized that the team has to score more points.
2. The Texans got RB Dameon Pierce more involved and that will continue, according to Smith. Pierce led the Texans RBs in touches with 16. He finished with 69 rushing yards on 15 carries and caught one pass for 8 yards. This is a big improvement over week 1 which featured Rex Burkhead with the most touches. Burkhead didn't even have one carry against the Broncos. He did catch 2 passes on three targets.
3. Kevin Pierre-Louis and Brevin Jordan are dealing with injuries. The team is evaluating the injuries and will give an update at a later point in time.
4. The Texans only recorded one turnover for the defense. Coach Smith talked about one turnover just not being enough and the team needing more. Smith also complemented the turnover by Christian Kirksey.
5. At one point, Lovie Smith deflected a question about Davis Mills' strengths saying, "we've talked about Davis enough."
6. The Texans played without starting center Justin Britt on Sunday. Lovie Smith said backup center Scott Quessenberry did a great job and didn't feel like the team missed a beat.
7. Rookie corner Derek Stingley Jr. had a challenging day against Broncos WR Courtland Sutton, who finished with 7 catches, 122 yards. Coach Smith said he felt Stingley competed hard and tackled well.
8. Lovie acknowledged that the team hasn't been able to stop the run as well as they would like to, and penalties have been a problem. We have to think both factors will be critical in Houston's next game against the Chicago Bears.
9. Lovie Smith pulled the curtain back toward the end of the presser when he talked about the Texans lack of execution on 3rd and 15 at the start of the fourth quarter. Courtland Sutton streaked down the left sideline and caught a pass for a first down easily. Derek Stingley and Jonathan Owens were both in the area and looked confused. Smith told the media that was one of his major disappointments from the game.
Up next: The Texans have a shot to push their record to 1-1-1 if they can defeat the Bears in Chicago on Sunday. The Texans are 3-point underdogs. Be sure to check out the video above to watch the full press conference.
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Luka Doncic had 41 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, and the Dallas Mavericks prevented the Houston Rockets from advancing to the quarterfinals of the NBA In-Season Tournament with a 121-115 victory on Tuesday night.
Kyrie Irving added 22 of his 27 points in the second half for the Mavericks, who had already been eliminated. Their victory allowed the New Orleans Pelicans to win Group B in the Western Conference with a 3-1 record.
Doncic fell just short of his 59th career triple-double. That would have tied him for ninth place all-time with Larry Bird. He shot 15 of 29, 3 of 10 on 3-pointers.
“Sometimes we take him for granted, and we shouldn’t,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said. “He’s about winning, but it just so happens he’s a walking triple-double.
”The Mavericks, who trailed by nine points in the third quarter, grabbed the lead for good at 99-98 with 6:25 to play on a drive by Irving. Leading 103-100 with 5:25 left, they went on an 8-2 run that included three free throws by Derrick Jones Jr. when he was fouled by Dillon Brooks on a 25-footer with the shot clock about to expire.
Jabari Smith Jr.’s 3-pointer with 8 seconds left pulled the Rockets within 119-115 before Dallas closed it out.
Doncic played after sustaining a low-grade sprain of his left thumb on his non-shooting hand early in Saturday’s game. He wore a wrap on the thumb.
Doncic made a hook shot from the free throw line after recovering a loose ball near the baseline.
“I’m 2 for 2 in my career on the hooks,” Doncic said, saying the other came while playing for the Slovenian national team against Sweden.
Irving shot 2 for 11 in the first half, 1 for 5 on 3-pointers, with no free-throw attempts. He was 6 for 11 in the second half, hitting 1 of 2 behind the arc, and sank all nine free throws.
“I told the team, ‘Played well enough to win, not smart enough to win,’” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. “We were extra-aggressive, especially at the end of the third quarter. Had multiple players make a few dumb fouls, put Kyrie at the line and got him going when he didn’t have a lot going. You can be aggressive, obviously, but slapping somebody on a 3-point shot on the arm is an unintelligent play. It has nothing to do with aggression.”
Alperen Sengun had a season-best 31 points for the Rockets, who had six scorers in double figures. Fred VanVleet had 10 points and 12 assists.
The Rockets have lost all six of their road games this season. They went into play leading the NBA by allowing an average of 104.4 points per game.
The Mavericks didn’t use the specially built court for either of their home tournament games, citing dissatisfaction with the quality.
UP NEXT
Rockets: Will finish a back-to-back at Denver on Wednesday.
Mavericks: Host Memphis on Friday.