NBA Regular Season: Houston Rockets 91 at Utah Jazz 102 -- Game Recap

NBA Regular Season 2012-2013, Game 12:

Houston Rockets 91 @ Utah Jazz 102

#HOUatUTA Game Stream -- The Dream Shake (SB Nation Blog) -- Rockets vs Jazz coverage

Game Recap

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When Jeremy Lin and James Harden are on the All-Star team we can remember this game fondly . . .

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First Half:

Tyrone Corbin went with the big-lineup again to start, and it lasted only one minute as Derrick Favors picked up two quick fouls and was replaced by Marvin Williams (which moved Paul Millsap back to the four). Houston started the game on a 7-0 run; but order was returned to the universe shortly with Mo Williams and Marvin Williams shooting a combined 6/8 in the quarter, while Big Al and Paul Millsap combined for 12 rebounds. Yes. in the first quarter. Then our mix and matched bench got in the game and broke the game open.

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Second Half:

This game was over by halftime. The closest the Rockets got was 9 points, and each of their runs were met by counter punches from our dudes. There was a significant (a little over 5 minutes) garbage time period where both benches were emptied. I think it is fair to say that the third stingers aren't quite ready right now to do much damage.

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Top Performers:

• Al Jefferson (Center, 26:39 mins): Big Al had 14 points (only 4/12 shooting), but managed to go to the free throw line 7 times, making 6. He played well on offense without the ball, making good cuts and getting fed for dunks. DUNKS! This is the Al I wrote about weeks ago. He also had 16 rebounds (7 in the first quarter), 2 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block. Offensively -- he as doing all right. His defense is still a problem; and the juxtaposition between how he defended the pick and roll compared to how Enes or Derrick did was startling. Like what we saw in the playoffs Al doesn't show much, and manages to put his back to the ball handler while trying to run back to his man. By doing this he 1) makes sure no one is defending the ball handler, and 2) actually in running back to his man creates a moving screen against his own point guard. This resulted in Jeremy Lin getting some good looks and one successful drive to the basket. 14 and 16 is really good though. But his defense continues to be troubling, on both the pick and rolls and in transition (Asik was beating him down the court, just like Emeka Okafor was in the last game).
• Gordon Hayward (Small forward/Shooting guard, 18:38 mins): The precious came off the bench for the second straight game and was a big deal when he got on the court. He had 15 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, but got to the line 5 times and made a three. He led the team in points. Off the bench. And he does it in a variety of ways.
• Randy Foye (Shooting guard, 24:15 mins): Randy does one thing, and that's shoot threes. He's good at it. He went 4/7 from downtown, made two free throws, and finished with 14 points. That said, he went 0/4 on all of his other shots, and didn't bring anything else to the table. James Harden missed a lot of shots, so we should attribute Foye a bit here; however Harden missed his shots after beating Foye. Foye's not a perfect player. But he's performing well at the one thing he's good at.
  
• Marvin Williams (Small forward/Power forward, 24:39 mins): Marvin broke out of his slump going 3/3 from downtown, and finished with 12 points and 4 rebounds, with 1 assist off the bench. He was instrumental in that first quarter.
• Enes Kanter (Center/Power forward, 21:21 mins): The big Turkey had 6 points (60 fg%), 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 blocks tonight. That's really good for your 4th big.
• Jamaal Tinsley (Point guard, 21:05 mins): Jamaal had 11 assists and 3 turn overs (nearly 4:1 ratio), and made his first three pointer of the season, and that was all of his points. he also had 5 rebounds, 1 steal, and countless 'hockey assists'. Great job! We may not see much of him going forward as Earl Watson is sure to start playing starting Friday night, against the Kings.

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Game Changer:

The start of the second quarter had the Jazz with 3 point lead, that ballooned into 16 point lead after a 13-0 run happened. Who was on the floor at that point in time? Omer Asik, Chandler Parsons, James Harden, Tony Douglas and Marcus Morris / Patrick Patterson. That's essentially their starters with Jeremy Lin sitting. For the Jazz we had Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward, Enes Kanter, Jamaal Tinsley, and Marvin Williams / DeMarre Carroll. It wasn't the best offensive lineup, but it was a line up that played muva freaking defense. Tinsley helped the young guys push the pace and had a 4:1 assist to turn over ratio during this stretch of play. The Carroll / Kanter pick and roll crew stopped them in their tracks. They played defense. They made stops. They got the ball back. And they ran. And they blew the game open before Harden called it quits for the night.

Fans would still buy tickets to watch this type of team start.

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Ooooohhhh Moment:

Chandler Parson drive --> Gordon Hayward Block --> Jamaal Tinsley outlet --> DeMarre Carroll pass on the run --> Enes Kanter Alley Oop finish.

Yes, this is what our bench unit looks like with The Precious on it.

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The Good News:

It's good to be home again!

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The Bad News:

The bad news is that DeMarre Carroll sustained an injury, a bruised left heel, and is probable for Friday. He's had a number of good games in a row and adds something to the team with his limited game. (For starters, he knows his limits; and plays within them)

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Going forward:

The Jazz have a nice long Thanksgiving break, then get back to business with two "three games in four nights" sets. The first starts on Friday night: vs Sacramento Kings, @ Sacramento Kings (back to back), a night off, then vs. Denver Nuggets. The second starts next week: @ New Orleans Hornets, a night off, @ Oklahoma City Thunder, then the next night @ Houston Rockets on December 1st. So that's the "payback" game for this night.

Beyond the schedule, looking at how the team is going there are some questions and some answers that we have after the first 12 games of the year. Our defense is getting better. Our three pointers (for the most part) are falling. We've moved a lot of guys around; but, we're still super inconsistent on the road. What else is new?

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Post Game Immediate Reaction Video:

If you missed this somehow . . .