Slow start hard to overcome
Signs of collapse are apparent early in second straight setback
CLEVELAND — The first three minutes were all it took to see where things were heading.
The details would change along the way. The shortcomings that would keep the Rockets struggling just to stay within single digits and a puncher’s chance were not always the same. But when the Rockets so quickly showed what was lacking — intensity, focus, determination — that would be impossible to overcome.
The Rockets’ first four possessions of the game ended the same. Turnover. Turnover. Turnover. Turnover. The Rockets spent the rest of the night trying to find and maintain the missing intensity. But while allowing waves of straightline drives, second-chance shots and points off turnovers the Rockets could only delay the inevitable Saturday until the Cavaliers pulled away 117-108 for the Rockets’ second loss in as many nights since their five-game winning streak.
Even after their slow start, the Rockets did seem to recover, taking a fivepoint lead. But once the Cavs were invited to roll, the Rockets could not stop them when they had to, blaming the way they started even more than the finish when Cleveland pulled away.
“That was the main problem,” Rockets center Clint Capela said. “We need to start with more energy, more intensity. It will definitely help us throughout the course of the game and not put us in the situation you have to be perfect on defense in the second half, we can’t make any mistakes. Teams get more confidence. They start shooting well. Once a team is going like that, it’s always hard to stop them.”
This is nothing new. It was not even different from the game the night before, when the Pistons put up 61 first-half points. The Cavs beat that, scoring 63. But Saturday, the Rockets — who are ranked third defensively in the second half this season, but fell to 27th in the first half of games — could not turn things around.
“We were very soft the first half,” coach Mike D’Antoni said. “It’s been a little bit of a problem we’ve had in the first half. Teams, we get them comfortable. Then, they feel good about themselves. We picked it up in the second half, but a lot of times that’s too late. They make some hard shots, like (Friday) night and then (Saturday). Mentally and physically, we were really soft to start the game.”
The Rockets rallied in the fourth quarter to within a chance. With the Rockets down 12, P.J. Tucker scored inside before Eric Gordon, who had 28 points in by far his best shooting game of the season, drained a 3. Moments later, James Harden, who had 40, sank a technical free throw and Capela put in two more, bringing the Rockets to within four with 4:52 left.
They still needed to show they could get stops and defensive rebounds to complete a run. Instead, on three consecutive possessions, the Cavs spread the floor and had their guards, Collin Sexton and Jordan Clarkson go one-onone, with the Rockets powerless to stop them. When the Rockets doubled Sexton, Rodney Hood burned them with a 3, pushing the lead back to a safe 11.
Sexton and Clarkson combined for 49 points on 22-of-37 shooting, with Clarkson scoring 12 in the fourth quarter to put the game away much as Reggie Jackson had for the Pistons in the fourth quarter and overtime the night before.
But even that made D’Antoni think not of how the Rockets finish, but how things started.
“We have to be able to guard that better,” D’Antoni said. “The second half, we did. They had 54 points. They hit some tough shots. But we can weather that storm. We couldn’t weather the 63 they got in the first half because we came out soft. Then, they feel good about themselves. It’s hard to turn them off once they get turned on. They feel like they can win.”
The Rockets had other issues. With the Cavaliers dropping defenders deep in the lane, Capela took four shots. That left shooters open. But with Chris Paul sitting out the second half of the back-to-back, other than Gordon and Harden shooters left open were 5-of-16 on 3-pointers.
Harden lost two free throws on his own lane violations, something he called “shocking” and that had never happened in his career.
The Cavs feasted on the offensive boards, scoring 23 second-chance points. They put up another 22 off turnovers. But mostly, when the Rockets were sleepy, they pounced, putting the Rockets on their heels the rest of the way.