1974-75 Rockets game 2

Posted out of order, but...

Rockets   119
Bullets   131

You don't usually see a team shoot 54.5% and lose, but the Bullets shot  an even better 58.6% and had 10 more free throw attempts. Rudy Tomjanovich  had another brilliant game hitting 19 of 24 shots for a game high 38 points.  Ed Ratleff hit 7 of 8h shots to chip in 18 points. The Bullets had four starters score at least 20 points. Mike Riordan and Kevin Porter led the hometown team with 25 a piece. Calvin Murphy had  another rough game hitting just 6 of 22 shots. Leaders Scoring HOU – Rudy Tomjanovich 38, Ed Ratleff 18, Calvin Murphy 14 WAS – Mike Riordan 25, Kevin Porter 25, Phil Chenier 20, Elvin Hayes 20 Rebounds HOU – Rudy Tomjanovich 7, Kevin Kunnert 7, Zaid Abdul-Aziz 6 WAS – Wes Unseld 10, Elvin Hayes 9, Phil Chenier 9 Assists HOU – Calvin Murphy 6, Dave Wohl 6 WAS – Kevin Porter 5

1974-75 Rockets game 3

Houston           103

Kansas City-Omaha 123

OUCH! Another game where the Rockets shoot well (52.7%) but their opponents shoot even better (60%). Actually, it was even worse than that because the KCO starters sat the entire fourth quarter after building up a 33 point lead on the strength of a sizzling 69% shooting performance through the first three quarters. Tiny Archibald led the way for the Kings with 28 points on 13 of 19 shooting. Sam Lacey (10-11 fgs) and Nate Williams (11-15 fgs) each added 24 points.

Rudy Tomjanovich was awesome again for the Rockets with a game high 29 points (13 of 19 shooting). 6 assists, and 5 rebounds. Calvin Murphy finally had a good game with 18 points (8-15) and 6 assists.

LEADERS

Scoring

HOU - Rudy Tomjanovich 29, Calvin Murphy 18, Dave Wohl 14

KCO – Tiny Archibald 28, Sam Lacey 24, Nate Williams 24

Rebounds

HOU – Zaid Abdul-Aziz 9, Ratleff 8

KCO – Sam Lacey 12, Len Kosmalski 7

Assists

HOU – Calvin Murphy 6, Rudy Tomjanovich 6

KCO – Sam Lacey 6, Tiny Archibald 4

Next up – at Milwaukee to take on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar!

1974-75 Rockets

Rockets 109 Jazz     89 After a sluggish start, the Rockets found their range and out-shot the Jazz 50% to 39.6%. Add a 62 to 41 rebounding advantage, and this one turned into a rout. Rudy Tomjanovich was especially deadly hitting 11 of his 13 shots en route to a game high 27 points. Meanwhile Pete Maravich only had two points at half-time and finished with an underwhelming 15 points to lead the Jazz. The Rockets had six players score in double figures and Calvin Murphy was not one of those players. LEADERS Scoring HOU – Rudy Tomjanovich 27, Kevin Kunnert 17, Gus Bailey 14 NOJ – Pete Maravich 15, Nate Williams 14, Rick Roberson 13 Rebounds HOU – Zaid Abdul-Aziz 14, Kevin Kunnert 12, Ed Ratleff 11 NOJ – E.C. Coleman 9, Neal Walk 6, Rick Roberson 6 Assists HOU – Dave Wohl 6 NOJ – Pete Maravich 5

1993-94 Rockets - Game 4

November 13, 1993
Rockets vs Suns

Rockets lose 113-97.

Olajuwon scored 23 on 11 of 17 shooting. Otis Thorpe chipped in 15 and Robert Horry scored 14.

The main problem for the Rockets was that Phoenix just shot lights out - especially AC Green. Green led Phoenix with 20 points on 8 of 10 shooting!

The Phoenix attack featured great balance. In addition to Green's 20, Dan Majerle scored 19 and Kevin Johnson added 18 while Charles Barkley and Cedric Ceballos scored 16 each. Sir Charles also grabbed 18 rebounds.

Suns    22 30 28 33 - 113 

Rockets 23 24 22 28 -  97 

The Rockets are now 2-3. Surely it will get better. Can't get much worse.

1993-94 Rockets - Game 5

November 15, 1993
Rockets at Philadelphia

            1   2   3   4    F
Rockets    29  21  15  22 - 87
76ers      19  20  23  31 - 93

This was a crazy game. Just 18 timing units into the game (about 4 minutes of actual time), a bench fight erupted that resulted in the Rockets losing Hakeem Olajuwon, Otis Thorpe, and Scotty Brooks to ejection. The 76ers lost Shawn Bradley, Tim Perry, and Greg Graham.

The Rockets weathered the loss initially and took a 50-39 lead into the half. But when the game resumed they could not find the bucket to save their lives and lose 93-87. Vernon "Mad Max" Maxwell lived up to his name and lead the Rockets with 29 points, but it came on 8 of 24 shooting. Mario Elie added 19, but Kenny Smith (9) and Robert Horry (8) failed to crack double digits on a night when the Rockets needed every player to step up their game.

The 76ers were led by Dana Barros with 20 and Clarence Weatherspoon with 19.

Rockets are now 2-2 pending my completion of the Phoenix game.

All Time Rockets Replay Game 1

October 14, 1971

              1  2  3  4    F
Philadelphia 33 35 28 28   124

Houston      29 34 33 29   125

Led by a 35 point and 18 rebound performance by Elvin Hayes, the Rockets squeak out a one point win in their first game in Houston. Billy Cunningham led the 76ers with 35 points and 10 rebounds. 

Rockets stats   Pts   Reb    Ast

    Hayes        35    18     3       

    Lantz        21     7     2

    Murphy       15     4     2

    Tomjanovich  15    11     2

    Meely        11     6     2

    Others       28    18     7

Next game - October 13, 1978 at Boston

Birthday Replay - Otis Thorpe and Patrick Ewing

Both born on August 5, 1962.

Ewing's Knicks slaughter the Rockets. At one point they led by 36.

New York  29   36   33   28   -   126  (Patrick Ewing 24)

Houston   18   23   23   34   -    98  (Hakeem Olajuwon 21)

-----------------------------------------------------

New York                 FG     FT     3P     Reb

                   MIN   M-A    M-A    M-A    O-T    A   PF  BLK  TO  STL PTS

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------



Patrick Ewing      30   12-20   0- 0   0- 0   6-14   2    0   3    3   3   24 Anthony Mason      30    4- 8   7- 8   0- 0   4- 9   4    2   0    1   0   15 
Greg Anthony       24    7- 8   2- 2   0- 0   0- 0   6    1   0    1   3   16 
Charles Oakley     26    4- 7   0- 0   0- 0   6-12   4    0   0    0   0    8 
Charles Smith      28    7-16   7- 9   0- 0   1- 3   0    2   1    3   1   21 
Doc Rivers         17    1- 4   2- 2   0- 0   0- 1   5    6   0    0   3    4 
Herb Williams      14    2- 4   0- 0   0- 0   3- 8   2    2   0    1   0    4 
John Starks        29    4-14   2- 2   1- 3   1- 1   5    0   0    1   1   11 
Rolando Blackman   25    8-16   1- 2   2- 2   0- 3   1    2   0    1   0   19 
Hubert Davis       18    1- 4   2- 2   0- 0   0- 3   4    1   0    0   0    4



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Totals             240  50-101 23-27   3- 5  21-54  33   16   4   11  11  126

                        49.5%  85.2%  60.0%

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-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Houston                  FG     FT     3P     REB                    

                   MIN   M-A    M-A    M-A    O-T    A   PF  BLK  TO  STL PTS

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------



Hakeem Olajuwon    27   10-16   1- 2   0- 0   0- 6   1    6   2    2   1   21 
Kenny Smith        26    5-10   0- 0   1- 3   0- 2   8    1   0    3   1   11 
Otis Thorpe        30    5- 9   0- 0   0- 0   1- 6   2    0   0    1   1   10 
Robert Horry       26    2- 3   0- 0   0- 0   0- 3   5    3   0    3   0    4 
Tree Rollins       15    1- 1   0- 0   0- 0   1- 3   1    1   2    1   0    2 
Carl Herrera       21    7-12   0- 1   0- 0   1- 4   1    2   0    2   0   14 
Scott Brooks       19    2- 4   0- 0   1- 2   0- 0   1    4   0    1   0    5 
Matt Bullard       17    1- 2   2- 2   1- 1   0- 4   0    1   1    1   1    5 
Winston Garland    14    3- 7   0- 0   0- 1   1- 1   4    2   0    1   0    6 
Sleepy Floyd       17    2- 6   0- 0   0- 0   0- 1   3    4   0    2   0    4 
Vernon Maxwell     27    6-12   2- 2   2- 4   0- 2   5    3   0    2   1   16



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Totals             240  44- 82  5- 7   5-11   4-32  31   27   5   19   5   98

                        53.7%  71.4%  45.5%

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Coached by: 


Lead Changes:   4      Ties:   4  (14-14)


Go-Ahead Shot:  Patrick Ewing  (16-14)


Largest Leads:  New York -- 36  (98-62)
                Houston --  3  (10-7)

====================================================

1977 NBA Eastern Conf Finals - Rockets vs 76ers gm 6

          1    2    3    4     F
76ers    25   28   27   26   106
Rockets  29   29   25   34   117


Scoring
Murphy       28        Erving    25
Tomjanovich  24        McGinnis  22
Malone       19        Free      20
Newlin       18        Collins   18
Kunnert      12        Mix       12
Lucas        10        Bibby      9
JJohnson      6           
         

1977 NBA Eastern Conf Finals - Rockets vs 76ers gm 5

          1   2   3   4     F
Rockets  28  29  25  27   109
76ers    27  29  27  30   113


Scoring
Tomjanovich  25        Erving    20
Murphy       22        McGinnis  19
Malone       14        Collins   21
Newlin       14        Mix       17
Lucas        10        Free      17
Kunnert       9        Bibby      9
JJohnson     13        Cjones     3
DJones        2        Dawkins    5
                       Bryant     2
      

1977 NBA Eastern Conf Finals - Rockets vs 76ers gm 4

             1     2     3     4     F  
76ers       23    27    27    25    102 
Rockets     29    29    26    32    116
                               

Scoring
Murphy       23        Erving    26
Tomjanovich  22        McGinnis  20
Malone       18        Collins   18
Newlin       15        Free      16
Lucas        15        Mix       12
Djones        6        Bibby     10 
Kunnert       5 
JJohnson      5          
Ratleff       4          
Owens         3                     

1977 NBA Eastern Conf Finals - Rockets vs 76ers gm 3

           1     2     3     4    Final 
76ers     23    31    26    21     102 
Rockets   24    29    28    28     113
                               
Scoring
Murphy       24        McGinnis   22
Tomjanovich  22        Erving     20
Malone       16        Collins    18
Newlin       15        Free       15
Lucas        13        Mix         9
Kunnert      11        Bibby       9
DJones        9        CJones      5 
JJohnson      2        Dawkins     4        
Ratleff       1           

1977 NBA Eastern Conf Finals - Rockets vs 76ers

Game 2

Ok - I lost the quarter by quarter breakdown. Unfortunately the Rockets lose again - this time in overtime.

Houston      116

Philadelphia 120(OT)


                                           Scoring
TOMJANOVICH   26        ERVING       24
MURPHY        21        MC GINNIS    23
MALONE        17        COLLINS      19
NEWLIN        12        FREE         17
LUCAS          9        MIX          19
KUNNERT       14        BIBBY        13
JOHNSON        4        CJONES        5 
DJONES         9           
RATLEFF        4             
TOTAL        116                    120

2008-09 Rockets vs 1985-86 Rockets

A best of 7 series

Game  1 
1986 Rockets  89
2009 Rockets 102

Player of the Game
Yao Ming - 28 points, 19 rebounds
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Game 2 (from www.whatifsports.com)
1986 Rockets 109
2009 Rockets 102

Player of the Game
Hakeem Olajuwon - 32 points, 15 rebounds
-----------------------------------------

Game 3 (from www.whatifsports.com)
2009 Rockets 130
1986 Rockets 139 (OT)

Player of the Game
Lewis Lloyd - 35 points, 13 rebounds
-----------------------------------------

Game 4 
2009 Rockets  95
1986 Rockets 109

Player of the Game
Hakeem Olajuwon - 21 points, 11 rebounds
--------------------------------------------------

Game 5 
1986 Rockets  80
2009 Rockets 104

Player of the Game
Ron Artest - 18 points, 5 rebounds

Gene Peterson tribute series, Part 3

March 19, 1991 - Rockets (40-24) vs Minnesota Timberwolves (21-42)
The Rockets were on fire from the start of this game shooting 55% in the first half. They kept right on rolling in the second half for a 119-99 win. Buck Johnson (yes, Buck Johnson!) led the Rockets with 25. Olajuwon scored 23 while Kenny Smith and Otis Thorpe added 20 each. Tony Campbell led the T-Wolves with 25, but he made only 9 of 31 shots.

April 15, 1992 - Rockets (42-37) at Utah Jazz (52-27)
Neither team set the world on the fire in this contest, but the Rockets did just enough to pull off a 95-90 upset on the road. Olajuwon led the way with 29 points and 15 rebounds. Kenny Smith also had a good game for the Rockets scoring 12 points and dishing out 9 assists. Karl Malone led the Jazz with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Jeff Malone added another 21 for the Jazz and John Stockton had 13 assists for the Flops, er Jazz.


December 26, 1992 - Nuggets (7-16) at Rockets (13-9)
The Rockets shoot only 40.3% at home as the Nuggets run away with a 94-79 win. Olajuwon led the Rockets as usual, but made only 9 of 24 shots. The Nuggets were led by Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf's 20 and Reggie Williams' 18. Dikembe Mutombo grabbed 15 rebounds for the Nuggets.

February 6, 1994 - T-Wolves (14-29) at Rockets (32-11)
The Rockets weren't challenged much by the T-Wolves who were playing without Isaiah Rider. They held the T-Wolves to 37.2% shooting while out-rebounding them 55-37. The Rockets also shot 18 more free throws. Olajuwon scored 19 while grabbing 19 boards. Doug West scored 20 for the T-Wolves, but he got little support from his teammates. Rockets win 93-69.

Gene Peterson tribute series, Part 2

April 6, 1983 - Rockets (13-63) at Dallas (36-40)
Mark Aguirre scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while Jay Vincent added 21 points and 8 rebounds in a 120-94 Maverick mauling of the lowly Rockets. Bring on Ralph Sampson already!

December 13, 1983 - Rockets (8-14) vs Phoenix (8-14)
The Rockets trailed most of the way, but dominate the 4th quarter outscoring the Suns 39-23 for the 126-114 victory. Lew Lloyd led all scorers with 27 while James Edwards led the Suns with 25.

March 26, 1985 - Rockets (40-29) vs KC Kings (29-43)
The first game of the Hakeem Olajuwon era was a thrilling one. With 25 lead changes, 13 ties, and no team ever leading by more than 6, this one came down to the wire. Lew Lloyd threaded a needle and found John Lucas for an open shot that gave the Rockets a 113-111 lead with 7 seconds left. Larry Drew's potential tying shot with one second left was blocked by Rodney McCray. Ralph Sampson led the Rockets with 28 while Eddie Johnson led all scorers with 31.

February 6, 1986 - Rockets (33-15) vs Lakers (36-11)
This was an exciting game. James Worthy scored off a nice pass from Byron Scott to give the Lakers a 114-113 lead with 26 seconds left. Hakeem Olajuwon answered with a bucket to give the Rockets a 115-114 lead. Magic Johnson then found Michael Cooper open and Cooper drained the shot with just 2.5 seconds left. The Lakers win 116-115. Worthy led the Lakers with 26. Despite first half foul troubles, Olajuwon led the Rockets with 26.

January 29, 1987 Rockets (22-20) vs Milwaukee (27-18)
Despite early foul trouble for Ralph Sampson and late foul trouble for Hakeem Olajuwon, the Rockets win 117-116. The real surprise here was Allen Leavell scoring 19. He also dished out 5 assists.

Olajuwon led the Rockets with 25 points. Terry Cummings led the Bucks with 28, but Jack Sikma had the best overall performance for either team with 24 points and 19 rebounds.

March 15, 1988 Rockets (36-24) vs. LA Clippers (11-47)
The ides of March did not bode well for the lowly Clippers. The Rockets out shot them 50.5% to 34.5% and out rebounded them 69-28 for a 118-69 win The Rockets had more offensive rebounds than the Clippers had defensive rebounds. Joe Barry Carroll led the Rockets with 22 points and 13 rebounds. Hakeem Olajuwon hardly broke a sweat as he played only 16 minutes in the rout.

November 15, 1988 Rockets (4-2) vs New York Knicks (4-2)
The Rockets trailed by as many as 16 in the first half, but dominated the second half for 114-107 win. They out-rebounded the Knicks 59-40 and shot 38 free throws to the Knicks 20. After a slow start, Olajuwon led the Rockets with 27 points and 18 rebounds while Otis Thorpe added 20 points and 8 rebounds. Patrick Ewing got in early foul trouble and scored only 13 for the Knicks. Gerald Wilkins led the Knicks with 22 points and Johnny Newman added 20.

February 3, 1990 Rockets (21-23) at Phoenix Suns (26-16)
The Suns put on a first half passing clinic that led to a lot of easy baskets and a 71-45 half time lead. The Suns shot 65% from the floor in the half while the Rockets shot a lame 41%.

Tom Chambers led the Suns with 30 points and Jeff Hornacek added 18. As usual, the Rockets were led by Olajuwon with 27 points and 18 rebounds. Chambers also had 6 assists, but Kurt Rambis actually led the Suns in assists with 8. Kevin Johnson had 5 assists, but he didn't play that much in the second half. The Suns didn't really need him as they post a 120-97 win.


Rockets record for series: 8-7
Next game: March 19, 1991 vs Timberwolves (21-42). Rockets enter game with a 40-24 record.

Gene Peterson tribute series

Rockets' broadcaster Gene Peterson is retiring this season and I'm playing a random game from each of his broadcast seasons. Each team's record at the time of the game is indicated in parentheses.

March 21, 1976 - Rockets (36-35) at Seattle (35-35)
Poor shooting (40%) and 27 turnovers kill the Rockets. Rudy T. had 19 points and 17 rebounds in a 94-115 loss.

January 8, 1977 - Rockets (20-14) at Kansas City (17-20)
Despite shotting 52.3%, the Rockets commit 23 turnovers and send the Kings to the free throw line 48 times as the Kings win 125-104. Rudy T. led the Rockets with 24.

November 12, 1977 - Rockets (5-6) vs Portland (9-1)
Can I finally get a "How Sweet It Is"? Rudy T (31 pts), Calvin Murphy (26 pts) and Moses Malone (22 pts) made 33 of 53 shots (62%) as the Rockets pull off the upset at home by smoking Bill Walton's Trailblazers 131-115.

February 10, 1979 - Rockets (31-23) vs Seattle (34-19)
The Rockets shoot 40% from the floor and lose 107-94

January 18, 1980 - Rockets (22-23) vs Bullets (20-23)
The Rockets led by as many as 21, but had to hang on for a 110-108 win. Mo Malone scored 42 and grabbed 24 rebounds.Elvin Hayes scored 32 for the Bullets.

January 1, 1981- Rockets (16-23) vs Utah (16-22)
The Rockets shoot a sizzling 55.8% from the floor and blow out the Jazz 126-98. Calvin Murphy led the way with 25.

November 24, 1981 - Rockets vs New Jersey
Despite making 19 more free throws than the Nets, the Rockets lose 124-113 thanks to 56.8% shooting by the Nets. Buck Williams scored 34 points for the Nets on 15 for 20 shooting.

Record so far - 3 Wins and 4 Losses.

1971 - The Rockets first week in Houston

October 14 vs. Philadelphia

76ers    105
Rockets  108

After letting a 16 point half time lead vanish in the
third quarter, the Rockets outscore the 76ers 34-30
in the fourth.

Stat Leaders
Scoring
Philadelphia - B. Cunningham 29, K. Loughery 16
Houston - E. Hayes 39, S. Lantz 23

Rebounds
Philadelphia - B. Bridges 17
Houston - E. Hayes 17

Assists
Philadelphia - B. Bridges 7
Houston - C. Murphy 5


October 16 at Phoenix

Rockets   88
Suns     102

The Rockets shot a dreadful 36% from the floor.
Elvin Hayes missed his first 10 shots.

Stat Leaders
Scoring
Houston - E. Hayes 20, C. Murphy 19
Phoenix - P. Silas 22, D. Van Arsdale 22

Rebounds
Houston - R. Tomjanovich 17
Phoenix - P. Silas 15

Assists
Houston - E. Hayes 7
Phoenix - C. Haskins 6



October 17 vs Detroit

Pistons  96
Rockets  99

Elvin Hayes scores almost half the Rockets points!

Stat Leaders
Scoring
Detroit - B. Lanier 25, D. Bing 19
Houston - E. Hayes 49, S. Lantz 17

Rebounds
Detroit - B. Lanier 17
Houston - E. Hayes 19

Assists
Detroit - D. Bing 10
Houston - G. Smith 6

A week in the Rockets season - 1988

Nov 26-30 1988

November 26th at Golden State

Rockets  108
Warriors 107

Rockets led almost all the way, but Golden State just wouldn't go away.

Stat Leaders
Scoring
Houston - H. Olajuwon 38, M. Woodson 16
Gold. St - C. Mullin 31, T. Richmond 23

Rebounds
Houston - H Olajuwon 19
Gold. St - M. Bol 10

Assists
Houston - S. Floyd 14
Gold St - W. Garland 7

************************************************
November 29th versus Phoenix

Suns     105
Rockets  113

Rockets use a big edge in free throws and rebounds to
pull off the upset at home.

Stat Leaders
Scoring
Phoenix - A. Gilliam 21, J. Hornacek 16
Houston - H. Olajuwon 27, O. Thorpe 22


Rebounds
Phoenix - A. Gilliam 11
Houston - H Olajuwon 20


Assists
Phoenix - K. Johnson 13
Houston - S. Floyd 7
**************************************************************

November 30, 1988 at Dallas

Rockets    105
Mavericks  113

Trailing by 21 points in fourth quarter, the Rockets
cut the Dallas lead to one point only to see the
rally fall short.

Stat Leaders
Scoring
Houston - H. Olajuwon 21, O. Thorpe 21
Dallas - A. Dantley 23, S. Perkins 21


Rebounds
Houston - H Olajuwon 9
Dallas - J. Donaldson 15


Assists
Houston - S. Floyd 5
Dallas - D. Harper, S. Perkins, Blackman, B. Davis all with 5

1985-86 Rockets vs 1985-86 Super Sonics

Sonics  89
Rockets 90

The Rockets win on Ralph Sampson's jumper with 3 seconds left in the game. Also, the evil Tom Chambers fouls out midway through the fourth quarter!

Stat Leaders
Scoring
Houston - H Olajuwon 21, R Sampson 21
Seattle - X McDaniel 19, G Henderson 19

Rebounds
Houston - H Olajuwon 17
Seattle - X McDaniel 13

Assists
Houston - J Lucas 4, R McCray 4
Seattle - G Henderson 7

1985-86 Rockets vs 1985-86 Warriors

Rockets   119
Warriors   95

The Rockets have an easy time with the crappy Warriors.

Stat Leaders
Scoring
Houston - H Olajuwon 20, B Reid 20
Golden State - C Mullin 17

Rebounds
Houston - J Petersen 14
Golden State - L Smith 12

Assists
Houston - B Reid 7
Golden State - S Floyd 7