Tonight at 10:30 p.m. ET the Houston Rockets (15-7), led by Dwight Howard and his improved, low-sugar diet, will try and slow down one of the NBA's best teams, the Portland Trailblazers (18-4) in their own building on TNT. Live stream the second game of a TNT double-header by clicking this link; Rockets fans can hear the game on KBME Sports Talk 790, while Portland fans can listen in on 1190 KEX Portland.
The Rockets are back on track after surprising losses to the Jazz and Suns, knocking off the Warriors and Magic to go on a streak leading into tonight. The defense is slowly improving with Howard anchoring, while the offense is starting to hit its stride.
"We're learning how to play around Dwight," assistant coach Kelvin Sampson said. "I thought early on we were probably force-feeding him a little too much. Now we're being a little bit more selective and Dwight is doing a good job of passing. ... So we're playing through him (better) and then James [Harden]- James has just been a lot more efficient."
The Blazers have an offense that can definitely keep up with Houston's, and their defense has been two points better per game. "They're very specific in what they do," Portland coach Terry Stotts said.
"They shoot 3s and they get to the paint. Guys like Harden get to the rim, get to the paint. ... That's their style of play and then you throw in transition which is usually paint points, that's part of what they do."
Howard will have his hands full dealing with Blazers big man LaMarcus Aldridge, who is averaging 23.2 points and 10 rebounds. "With our offense, I want us to be opportunistic with whatever the game gives us," Stotts said. "If it gives us 3s, we knock them down. If it gives us the paint, that's good too with LaMarcus on the block. One thing we've done well with offensively is we take what the game gives us."
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