Recap: Yao, Wafer light up Toyota Center in 93-74 bashing of Cavaliers
by Tom Martin on Feb 26, 2009 9:53 PM CST
in Game Recaps
Email
Print
Shane Battier gave LeBron James hell all night in the Rockets 93-74 win over Cleveland.
(Getty Images/Bill Baptist)
Note: Much thanks to guest recapper Jay Row.
Remember when the Rockets were poised to hand Cleveland their first home loss of the 2008-2009 season, but were hindered by horrendous officiating? That was December 23, 2008. After being taken out of the game by the officials, an angered Yao Ming stated, after the game "I just want to say, see you guys in Houston".
Tonight, we got a fairly officiated game. However, that's not the only difference between tonight's game and the game over two months ago. In fact, quite a bit of things have changed in since the aforementioned first game between these two teams. It seems of little use to name all the differences, as we all know the changes this roster has gone through as of late. I'd like to point out that Tracy McGrady spent 30 worthless minutes on the court throughout the first game, being less productive than Von Wafer was in 19 minutes this time around.
Face it: This team is better without Tracy McGrady. People have been suggesting this theory for a long time, and I finally have given in. Tonight's game was a masterpiece. For the most part, the offense was fluid. We were either running motion offense, or pounding it inside to Yao. The latter frequently resulted in a bucket by Yao or a kick out and series of swing passes, with an easy bucket being the resultant.
Tonight, I am proud to be a Rockets fan. The team played with heart, hustle, and huffert (did I really make a sad attempt at alliteration, while including a Matt Bullard create-a-word?). If I could describe our new-look team in one word, it would be consistency. We are consistently displaying great qualities. Consistent defense, consistent hustle, and consistent offense. Oh yeah, and Luis Scola, Mr. Consistency!
On to the awards, in true BBN fashion...
Four Up:
Yao Ming - Yao was on a mission tonight. Tonight was Yao Ming vengeance night for how he was mistreated in Cleveland on December 23, 2008. Yao shot 13/15 from the field, and for all you who are not fond of math, that's an astounding 86.7%. He was our go-to guy all night on the offensive end. Good work, Yao.
Von Wafer - Barring a few bad decisions during his first few minutes on the court, Von played a terrific game. Instant offense, anyone? In 19 minutes, he chalked up 19 points. He hit some big threes to keep our big lead in the 4th quarter. Big ups to Baron Von Wafer.
Ron Artest/Shane Battier - How can I give an "up" to a combination of players who shot 6/18 from the floor tonight? Because they shut down LeBron James. Whether it was Ron fighting through screens and contesting the shot, or Shane getting in perfect position to draw two offensive fouls, these two players are a great match of defensive talent. Somebody, please come up with a nickname for our new defensive combo. They are just as deserving as Luis Landry.
Luis Scola - Since I couldn't decide who didn't belong here, and I sneaked in an extra player by combining Ron and Shane, I will make this brief. 14/9 night from Mr. Consistency.
Two Down:
Chuck Hayes - Hayes played 9 minutes tonight and really didn't show much except for a couple of missed layups and average defense. It disappoints me to see how he's regressed this year.
Brent Barry - Barry missed some open shots tonight that could've helped us while we were struggling to score in the first half. Tonight reminded me of the beginning of the season for Brent, but I'm sure he'll bounce back.
Hey, I got in six awards. Since we played such a good game, I should be able to move a down to an up, right?
Stats of the Night:
FG %: Rockets 49.3% - Cavs 33.8%
FT %: Rockets 83.3% - Cavs 87.5%
Rebounds: Rockets 39 - Cavs 41
Turnovers: Rockets 11 - Cavs 8
Fouls: Rockets 20 - Cavs 16
Assists: Rockets 25 - Cavs 10
Quote of the Night:
More like quote of the year. From Ron Artest in a pre-game interview:
"Lebron James is like a new and improved Ron Artest."
Next Game: Saturday at Chicago. And some of the Kings.
39 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
AND
I forgot to TiVo. Shoot me. I’ll find a way to watch it later.
"I think girls are probably just better shooters." - Steve Novak
wooo!
Rockets just dominated this game..held cavs to 11 point and 10 point quarters! There defense was ridiculous…they prolly held lebron to one of his worst games ever…first time Bron had no assits in a game, he also only had 1 board…wafer played great, yao played amazing, brooks and lowry played the pg spot good enough…artest was lights out at certain times…he and battier played well vs bron…scola, porlly the most underated player in the game, again played well…watching this game reminded me of the 22 game winning streak they had last year…they looked together as one and are currently on a 6 game winning streak!
Go Rockets!!!
by EveryHoustonTeamRox! on Feb 26, 2009 10:14 PM CST reply actions
also...
another 2 things
A. Damn Violet Palmer!!! She has no business reffing a mans game…she sucks and doesnt know anything about basketball…
B. Charles and Kenny (both former rockets) what u doing bashing the rockets? Saying in the pregame that the rockets are mailing it in with t-mac out for year and trading alston…this only makes the rockets better as u can c…also u said a good offense always beats a good defense? Ask Lebron who won the matchup? ask battier? artest? id say defense wins!!!
by EveryHoustonTeamRox! on Feb 26, 2009 10:27 PM CST up reply actions
A testament to Artest and Battier's work on James:
The Cavaliers were -13 while Lebron was on the court (the 2nd worst on the Cavs). Awesome.
Clutchfans
some rookies at clutchfans would then say… “cavaliers are better without James” :P
by the_hustler on Feb 26, 2009 10:39 PM CST up reply actions
quote
I lol’ed when i heard that…very funny artest…
by EveryHoustonTeamRox! on Feb 26, 2009 10:27 PM CST reply actions
Great fact
Tonight was the only time in 493 NBA games (counting playoffs) that LeBron failed to record an assist.
That’s amazing, and speaks even more volumes to Battitest’s defense. Or is is Arttier?
White Pills?
In fact
You even posted (on your website, which is fantastic, by the way) that on your BQ stat:
50: Shane Battier – extremely white, but he gets points for being multi-racial.
fun fact
I think the number 1 way people reach my site is from searching “Shane Battier ethnicity” and hitting this page.
that's funny
I just hit your profile and saw the first entry.
By the way, you’re absolutely right. CP3 is number 1, but you made some good points about Nelson and Harris arguably being number 2. I always thought D-Will was a clear #2 just like Paul was the clear #1.
That said, it’s crazy to think that Paul is just 23 and Williams is only 24.
Paul is going to be remembered as one of the greatest of all time.
Deron Williams is an excellent player, and will probably be a perennial all-star for a while. But there’s just no comparing the two.
The Jameer Nelson thing really surprised me. I initially only included him in the comparison because I thought it would be good to look at a fourth guy, but I had no idea he had improved that much over the last season. Hopefully he recovers from the labrum injury fully (I know that can be a career-ender for baseball pitchers. Pretty sure it’s not that horrible for basketball players, but I’m no doctor). Harris is going to be crazy good as he develops.
But all four are relatively young. I the NBA really went through a talent dearth for a while, so it’s nice to see such incredible players coming through at the same time.
The thing that the debate really illustrates is the importance of good statistical work. Basketball is ridden with bad statistics – per game stats, per minute stats, and defensive metrics which show a lot of what makes up good defense, but not all of it. If we look at per-possession stats and the emerging defensive stuff out there, we really begin to see the value of certain players. That, of course, is why Morey values Shane, but it also shows us how much better players like Chris Paul are when compared to players like Williams or Harris. And it pisses me off when Jazz fans pull out these awful statistics (or weak arguments) and try to compare Williams to Paul. It’s an insult to statistics and an insult to our intelligence.
Also
Face it: This team is better without Tracy McGrady. People have been suggesting this theory for a long time, and I finally have given in.
Depends on how far back “a long time” is. If you mean this year, then I’d certainly agree. But that wouldn’t be true last year. And, of course, I’ve heard people saying that the Rockets’ were better w/o McGrady last season, which is stupid. Almost as stupid as those who say the Rockets are better w/o Yao.
Well I never!
I’ve never heard anyone say the Rockets are better without Yao since his rookie season when he was adapting and Kelvin Cato was manning the middle for us.
I seem to remember
Bill Simmons (yeah, I know) suggesting Yao is an example of his “Ewing Theory” shit. And occasionally you’ll see it posited on ClutchFans (yeah, I know).
Clutchfans
I used to be so naive, thinking it was the only serious Rockets blog out there.
I don’t think the Knicks ever completely ran their offense through Patrick Ewing. Of course, he was the go-to guy, but they had John Starks and Derek Harper early and Allan Houston and Spree later.
The Rockets live and die by Yao, especially now with no T-Mac. With only T-Mac, we can win games. With only Yao, we can win series.
The Rockets live and die by Yao, especially now with no T-Mac. With only T-Mac, we can win games. With only Yao, we can win series.
Of course. Yao’s minutes are much more difficult to replace than McGrady’s. There are much fewer quality centers out there (much less Yao-quality centers) than there are quality swingmen. And so teams have a more difficult time matching up with a Yao-less Rockets team than a McGrady-less Rockets team.
Bill Simmons doesn't need a muzzle...
someone should shove a dirty, smelly, old pair of gym socks down his throat!
Blazer's Edge Ambassador to The Dream Shake Blog
LMA Rocks and B-Rex ROARS!!
RRRRRRROOOOOOOWWWWWRRRRRRSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
by LaMarvelous on Feb 27, 2009 12:54 AM CST up reply actions
Awesome! Awesome Game! Congratulations!
This also helps me feel a little bit better about my Blazers. How they stayed in the game with a team that can do this to LeBron is beyond me.
BTW: What do you think of ShaRon Battest?
(First thing I came up with – if it is weak I am sorry)
Blazer's Edge Ambassador to The Dream Shake Blog
LMA Rocks and B-Rex ROARS!!
RRRRRRROOOOOOOWWWWWRRRRRRSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ShaRon sounds...
way too black for Battier. But maybe Ron’s blackness pulls Shane over to the dark side?
Get it? Dark side? Like Star Wars?
I’ll shut up now.
Name for Artest/Battier
Somebody, please come up with a nickname for our new defensive combo
How about Artiier? Nah that sucks…
Batest? Nah, that sucks even more..
hmm…
How about… Batitest?
If either of those guys are in the game, we’re almost golden lately.
Any way, that’s my vote. Batitest.
Meh.
Look to The Cookie
Ya’ll remember Seinfeld cookie? A little white, a little black; put them together and you get something far greater than you could ever imagine. Want lock down defense? Look to the cookie, Elaine. Look to the cookie. ;)
A great piece on the D battier/Artest played on Lebron
is here..
http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-38-247/The-Houston-Rockets-Beat-the-Odds.html
fabulous analysis.. please post it on the main page.. its worth it :)
Arbatron?
sounds like something scary out of halo.
Better w/o Tracy
It’s been said a million times, but I definitely think we’re better off without Tracy. Keyword there is Tracy, and not T-MAC. We all know what T-MAC brings to the table.
I think this is pretty comparable to the Gilbert Arenas situation with the Wiz. When healthy and on top of his game he’s a monster out on the court, tough to guard, can shoot from anywhere, and you have the utmost confidence in giving him the final shot. When “Frying Pan” is out there (opposed to "Hibachi"), he slows the whole team down essentially using the game and the eventual loss as his personal exhibition time to work on his game.
I have no problem with a guy working his way back into the system and into a groove. But I think we saw the same thing w/McGrady using too many solid minutes in meaningful games trying to convince himself that he’s OK.
Regardless, the Wiz were guaranteed a losing season 3 weeks ago (while playing in the EAST!) but there’s plenty of grumbling here in DC that all this money was paid to Gilbert for pretty much nothing. Thankfully, the Rockets have good enough management and talent on their team make up for Tracy’s presence/absence. Hope he recovers quickly, but his image in Houston might be tarnished beyond repair.
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
In Association With
Ball Don't Lie - NBA - Yahoo! Sport
- Behind the Box Score, where the Lakers absolutely melted down the stretch
- Shaving a picture of Matt Bonner in his head could net a young Spurs fan an in-school suspension
- Greg Oden wants to play for the Miami Heat
- LeBron James and Kobe Bryant on Forbes World’s Most Powerful Celebrities list
- Evan Turner loves getting his butt kicked
