Sub-optimal
The Rockets report, brought to you by APG&E: Rockets lose to Trail Blazers in Houston 117-107
Jan 16, 2020, 1:07 am
Sub-optimal
Coming off a tough game in Memphis in which five Rockets played over 32 minutes each, Houston was a team with little to no energy and it showed. The back-to-back doesn't excuse Houston's lack of energy and that's what will come to bite Houston at the end of the season when they're trying to make a push for a top seed.
The effort defensively was non-existent (114.1 defensive rating) as their lack of rotations led to open shot after open shot and gave the Trail Blazers enough breathing room to stay in the game. James Harden's lack of effort in particular, stood out. Russell Westbrook, Eric Gordon, Ben McLemore, and Clint Capela all took more field goal attempts than Harden tonight. In his defense, the Trail Blazers did a fair bit of trapping tonight and he played 39 minutes the night before. However, the Rockets were counting on Harden to lead them in the fourth quarter when Westbrook opened up the window and he played passively.
After the game, Mike D'Antoni took several minutes longer than usual before speaking to the media and it turned out it was because the Rockets held a post-game meeting with the team discussing a lot of their issues.
James Harden said the Rockets had a chat post-game to get some things "off their chest". https://t.co/jceBOsn9po— Salman Ali (@Salman Ali) 1579153007.0
"Just playing hard," said Westbrook when asked what's been lacking with the Rockets. "Xs and Os don't really matter. Just playing consistently on a night-in and night-out basis."
Mike D'Antoni: "A lot of guys have issues that they're fighting through.... Clint's trying to get through his foot,… https://t.co/khVvrkJGMj— Salman Ali (@Salman Ali) 1579152484.0
This is a make or break moment for the Rockets. As D'Antoni said post-game, the team is in a rough spot (lost 3 out of their last 4 games) and there are a lot of issues that need to be resolved before Houston can truly hit their ceiling.
Star of the game: Russell Westbrook was the only reason the Rockets were even in the game in the fourth quarter. Westbrook had one of his best games of the season, logging 31 points, 12 assists, 11 rebounds, and 1 steal on 11 of 22 shooting from the field and 2 of 5 shooting from three-point range.
Honorable mention: Clint Capela might still be dealing with right heel soreness, but that hasn't stopped him from putting up awesome numbers these past few games. Capela logged 14 points, 18 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, and 1 steal on 7 of 14 shooting from the field. Against Hassan Whiteside, Mike D'Antoni had no choice but to play Capela a lot (36 minutes) and despite the loss, Capela took advantage of the opportunity.
Key moment:The bottom fell out for the Rockets in the second quarter where the Trail Blazers outscored them 32 to 21. Houston shot 3 of 14 from three-point range and missed on several good looks. On the other side, Portland shot 3 of 6 from three-point range and a returning Carmelo Anthony scored 8 points on 3 of 4 shooting from the field. C.J. McCollum had 8 points of his own on 3 of 6 shooting from the field. The Rockets were feisty in the fourth quarter, but were never able to fully recover from this quarter.
Up next: The Rockets play the Los Angeles Lakers at 7:30 p.m. in Houston on Saturday.
Yordan Alvarez’s long home run backed a solid start by Hunter Brown as the Houston Astros beat the Kansas City Royals 7-3 on Sunday in the series finale to avoid being swept.
YORDADDY WITH A 3 RUN HOMER!#BuiltForThis pic.twitter.com/yKg2avqMmC
— Houston Astros (@astros) April 27, 2025
Alvarez snapped Houston’s 26-inning scoreless streak, crushing Kris Bubic’s sinker 436 feet to center for a three-run homer and a 3-0 Astros lead in the third inning.
Brown (4-1), who allowed one run on seven hits and a walk with nine strikeouts over six innings, surrendered a lone hit in each of the first four innings but struck out seven while not allowing a runner past second.
Brown’s 28-inning shutout streak – fifth longest in franchise history – ended in the fifth inning on a two-out single by Jonathan India and an RBI double by Bobby Witt Jr.
Leading off the fifth, Chas McCormick doubled and scored on Jeremy Peña’s single. McCormick had three hits and scored three runs for the Astros.
Peña’s two-out, two-run double in the sixth extended Houston’s lead to 6-1. Peña collected three RBIs in his first game batting leadoff.
La Tormenta is here. #BuiltForThis pic.twitter.com/EVE7XmXGQA
— Houston Astros (@astros) April 27, 2025
Yainer Diaz added a solo home run in the seventh.
Yainer goes yard! #BuiltForThis pic.twitter.com/KdrFMPcKpq
— Houston Astros (@astros) April 27, 2025
Bubic (2-2) allowed four runs on five hits and three walks, striking out four in five innings.
India had a pair of singles and drove in a run while Witt extended his hitting streak to a career-best 19 games.
Isaac Paredes drew a four-pitch walk ahead of Alvarez’s three-run blast.
Alvarez, who led left-handed major leaguers with a .362 average against left-handed pitchers in 2024, hit his first homer of this season against a left-hander.
The Astros open a three-game homestand Monday against Detroit with Tigers RHP Jack Flaherty (1-2, 2.63 ERA) opposing RHP Ronel Blanco (2-2, 5.01).
Tuesday, the Royals begin a three-game series against the Rays in Tampa with Royals RHP Michael Lorenzen (2-3, 3.90) against RHP Taj Bradley (2-1, 5.08).