Porter goes down in 3rd loss in row
As soon as 76ers center Joel Embiid caught the ball under the basket in the waning seconds of the second quarter, Kevin Porter Jr. and KJ Martin were keenly aware of the danger.
The two Rockets swarmed to contain the threat. Martin blocked Embiid’s initial shot attempt, but the big man reached up again through a tangle of arms, like a beanstalk sprouting through dirt, and got a second-chance layup to fall. Porter could only shake his head in frustration as he prepared to inbound the ball.
Porter left the game in the third quarter with a left ankle sprain, another damper on what started out as a promising effort by the
Rockets.
The short-handed Rockets, rolling seven deep before Porter’s injury, fought admirably against the Eastern Conference-leading 76ers on Wednesday night at Toyota Center.
In the end, however, they just didn’t have enough manpower to get the job done, falling 135-115 for their third straight loss to end a five-game homestand.
With 10 players on the injury report, the Rockets debuted their 38th starting lineup of the season: Porter, Martin, Avery Bradley, DaQuan Jeffries and Kelly Olynyk.
They persisted through their usual putrid 3-point shooting and began moving the ball more efficiently. Porter and Martin attacked the rim with clever finishes, Olynyk carved out space in the middle of the floor, and Armoni Brooks knocked down perimeter shots. The Rockets shot 46.2 percent from the field in the first half with 15 assists.
Despite the inspired offensive performance, the Rockets couldn’t stifle the Sixers’ multifaceted attack and went into halftime trailing 75-63 as the visitors shot 57.1 percent.
The Rockets’ 12-point deficit didn’t seem insurmountable, but the second half only brought more dominance for Embiid and the Sixers. Porter’s injury was another stressor on an already stretched Rockets bench.
Two minutes into the fourth quarter, Philadelphia had its largest lead of the game, 117-94. Houston competed to the final buzzer, but it never was going to be enough to close the gap.
The 76ers became the third team in the past four games to shoot better than 52 percent against the Rockets, who next play the Bucks on Friday.
Here are some takeaways from the game:
Strong ball movement
In the first half, the Rockets had 15 assists on 24 field goals, including five assists from Porter. The 21year-old point guard was able to control the tempo and was selective about the drives he made, waiting to take advantage of mismatches against bigger defenders.
Martin, playing with three fouls for most of the half, demonstrated a willingness to attack through traffic and was the first Rockets player in double figures. Olynyk made a couple of 3-pointers and followed missed layups for tipins.
The Rockets often made four or five passes in a single possession before a shot, content to wear the deep Sixers squad down as much as they could. They kept up the effort in the second half despite fighting an uphill battle and finished the game with 28 assists on 42 field goals. Martin and Olynyk accounted for half the team’s assists.
Embiid leaves his mark
Embiid, the 76ers All-Star center, is a tough matchup for any team, let alone one like the Rockets with just one center (Olynyk) available.
The Rockets couldn’t afford to double team Embiid most of the time because of perimeter shooting threats Danny Green and Seth Curry, and the big man made them pay. Embiid ruled the paint nearly effortlessly on offense. At halftime, he had 17 points and nine rebounds. Five minutes into the third quarter, he had scored 11 more points.
Embiid finished with 34 points and 12 rebounds, his 29th doubledouble of the season. The 76ers finished with a 58-48 advantage in paint points.
Big nights by Martin, Olynyk
If the Rockets want to make lemonade out of lemons, Martin’s and Olynyk’s performances will help. Martin, a rookie making just his second start, played 44 minutes and had the best game of his young career with 23 points, 10 rebounds and six assists — all career highs.
Olynyk continued to be the Rockets’ most reliable player on both ends of the floor. He flirted with a triple double, finishing with 27 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in 40 minutes. His four blocks tied a career high.
The two-man bench of Anthony Lamb and Brooks combined to score 42 points, the most bench points for the Rockets since four reserves scored 42 points on April 5 against Phoenix.
Lamb, an undrafted rookie who signed a two-way contract with the Rockets on March 8, poured in a career-high 22 points in 36 minutes, with 12 points in the closing quarter. Brooks added 20 points, including a 6-of-14 mark from 3-point range, in 31 minutes.