On February 26, Beijing time, the Rockets played against the Magic, and the first to last pair in the West went to the bottom of the East, and the two bad teams met. It was also a very interesting game, and everyone seemed to want to win. The Rockets led by 14 points, and the result was quickly reversed. And the Magic, after taking the lead, is not willing to open the point difference. In the end, the Rockets lost the game 111-119, 8 points of defeat, but can "laugh to the end". Although Wood scored 21 points and 11 boards, he made 3 of 13 free throws and was still brushing points in the final time, and Green scored 23 points and 5 boards. The Magic's Carter had 24 points and 12 boards, and Okeeki had 26 points and 9 boards. The Rockets managed to get an eight-game losing streak and caught up with the Magic.
Both teams are in a mess, others are impacting the playoffs, they are impacting the draft. Before the game, the Rockets lost 7 consecutive games to get 15 wins and 43 losses, and the Magic were 4 consecutive losses, with 13 wins and 47 losses. The Rockets' record is temporarily better than that of the Magic, so the victory or defeat of this game is crucial. Whether the Rockets can catch up with the magic on the road of the swing depends on how they play in this game. And the two sides staged a "wonderful" swing war, the two sides played each other, forced to let the game play until the last moment, no one dares to win?
The Rockets actually started well, with Wood and Porter Jr. scoring in quick succession to make a 12-2 lead and lead by 10 points. That's not okay! The Rockets quickly replaced Schroeder, and although Green hit a three-pointer, the Rockets widened the point difference at one point. But then the Magic scored consecutive points, and the Rockets didn't defend directly? The Magic kept hitting three-pointers, even 2+1, and quickly chased them back. The Rockets were more vocal in the second quarter and simply became less likely to score, and although Matthews once stopped bleeding by three points, the Magic's firepower was fiercer. After Green's dunk, Wagner Jr. hit a three-pointer, and Okiki hit a three-pointer to overtake the score. The Rockets became unable to score, directly allowing the Magic to successfully reverse the score.
The Rockets scored 18 points in a single quarter and successfully wasted the lead. And seeing the Rockets play like this, the Magic can't fall behind, and the defense was relaxed in the third quarter. Anthony wanted to shoot three points, only to be bumped by teammate Bamba and become a three-pointer, defending himself? There are also such operations. Green counter-attacked and scored, and then Gordon hit a three-pointer. The two teams scored against each other, with Anthony scoring consecutively against each other to help the Magic take the lead. Wood scored five consecutive points, Gordon hit a three-pointer, and then Wood scored 2+1 to reverse the score. This didn't work, Wood rushed to the free throw and the Magic still led by three points to end the first three quarters.
The two teams have to bring suspense into the final quarter, and everyone doesn't want to win? The Magic side is obviously more talented, Matthews hit three-point shots, Okiki responded with three points, Rose and others also scored, and the Magic led by 7 points. Green hit a three-pointer, Hampton broke through the slam and Harris hit a three-pointer. Is the Rockets completely undefended? Fortunately, the Magic did not defend, Green and others quickly scored, and chased only 3 points. Then Wood made 1 of 2 free throws, good guys! Okiki scored four straight points. Gordon threw in the shot and the Magic immediately scored five straight points. Although Wood scored a deduction, he lost the game in the end.
This game is really interesting, although both sides are bad teams, the strength is not very strong, but it is a very fierce look. As an interior shooter, Wood actually had a very low free throw shooting rate and made many mistakes. Matthews on the Rockets side is actually the highest in form, and the result is that he does not have much playing time, while Schroeder gets more playing time. The Magic's Carter and Okeekie work hard, and the efficiency of the two is also very high. But helplessly, others have no intention of exerting their strength, so they cannot open the score difference.