Rockets fans can almost rejoice. The Houston Rockets are tantalizingly close to a first-round victory over the rival Dallas Mavericks, sitting pretty with a 3-0 series lead. Barring a collapse of historical proportions, Houston will be moving on to the Western Conference Semifinals for just the second time in 18 years.
The Rockets have been taking care of business against a talented yet inferior Mavs team. The coaching staff deserves credit for identifying mismatches and taking advantage accordingly. Throughout the series, Houston has exposed the Mavericks' lack of size and defensive struggles, and it's worked quite well.
In Game 1, Dallas focused on containing James Harden, and role players like Jason Terry and Corey Brewer made the Mavs pay from beyond the arc. The Rockets drained 10 threes to go along with 50 points in the paint thanks to the pick-and-roll. They also forced 11 steals, their bread and butter, which resulted in 29 fast-break points.
In the second game, the teams played evenly until Josh Smith and Dwight Howard put on a dunk contest in the fourth quarter. The Mavs had no answer for the big man pick-and-rol ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NBA
Article written by Jake Lapin
Will 1st-Round Dominance Translate for Houston Rockets?
April 25th, 2015 by Jake Lapin Leave a reply »
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