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With James Harden nursing a foot injury for the third game in a row, it seemed like the Rockets had very little room for another injury at a guard position going into Wednesday night's contest against the Atlanta Hawks. Just four minutes into the game, however, they were dealt a tough blow as Jeremy Lin was lost for the night with a knee contusion. The Rockets were undeterred by the injury, and behind a tremendous performance from the bench, Terrence Jones, and Dwight Howard, they cruised to a 113-84 victory over the Hawks at the Toyota Center.
Aaron Brooks and Francisco Garcia were the story for the Rockets, leading the team with 21 points each, and they helped keep a depleted offense cooking when the starters went to the bench. Garcia played a season-high 33 minutes, and showed a much more aggressive play style than the one we saw earlier this season, regularly attacking the rim and creating offense for himself.
It wasn't just the bench that was doing the work, and Chandler Parsons, Terrence Jones, and Dwight Howard also got in on the action. Parsons assumed a bigger role offensively with Lin and Harden out, and taking 11 shots on his way to 14 points. Howard and Jones partnered well together, scoring easily against an undersized Hawks front line and holding down the paint.
We'll have a full recap later tonight.
