The facts are the facts:

The Rockets lost to the Celtics 97-93 last night.
It counts just as much as if we lost by 40.
The Rockets are now 15-17.
T-Mac is still out of the lineup.
Rafer Alston still sucks.
Yao Ming is still a badass.

But there are many things to be learned from last night's game.

1. Referees hate Yao Ming. There were back-to-back bullshit calls last night. This follows the worst call I've ever seen from Monday night when the Beard ran into Yao while Yao had the ball and was shooting. And they called a foul on Yao because Baron fell down.

2. If we don't give the other team a 20 point head start, we might actually win a game. I turn on the TV and the next thing I know we are down 40-20. Then Aaron Brooks and Scola come into the game and we start playing much, much better. Coincidence?

3. Rafer Alston should not be taking 16 shots. I do not care if he actually made 8 of them... first time he's shot 50% in forever. But he was 1-5 from 3-ball land. Where we actually needed help.

4. Luther Head should not be playing 33 minutes. Look, I realize there were matchup problems with Boston. I get that. I do. But Aaron Brooks was giving Rondo and the Celtics fits with steals and timely passes. Luther Head, on the other hand, still cannot figure out how to pass the ball to a man who is 7'5". Bill Worrell last night with 1:00 left in the 4th Q:

"Luther just cannot make that pass for the life of him... he has such difficulty with the entry pass to Yao."

(When Bill is taking time away from ripping the referees to announce to the world how much you suck at post-entry passes - that's bad!)

5. Boston is really, really good.

With Golden State and Boston out of the way, the Rockets *should* win their next four - with or without T-Mac. (Magic, Knicks, Wizards, Knicks)

19-17???