Rockets 116, Pistons 107: Balanced effort gets Houston back in win column

It seems like every game the Houston Rockets have somebody new stepping up to the plate. The team has a lot of promising prospects and players on the rise nearing their prime.

But on Saturday in Detroit, the star was the team itself.

The Rockets snapped a two-game losing streak in a116-107 win over the Detroit Pistons.

All nine players in the Rockets’ rotation scored at least eight points and shined during moments of the game.

Christian Wood, who returned following a two-game absence, scored a team-high 21 against his former team.

Josh Christopher drew his first NBA start in place of the injured Armoni Brooks, and he added seven assists to go with 10 points.

David Nwaba dropped 13 points off the bench, while KJ Martin posted his first double-double this season with 10 points and a career-high 11 rebounds.

There was concern that the Rockets would start slow given the early tipoff time, but that didn’t seem to faze the team, scoring 38 points in the first quarter. Eric Gordon and Garrison Mathews were responsible for the early offense and it was infectious throughout the game.

The Rockets led by double digits by halftime and never relinquished control. The Pistons crawled back in, cutting the deficit to as much as seven, but the Rockets continued to stave them off.

After a difficult two-game stretch in the middle of the week, it was nice to see the Rockets get back to their style of basketball, and hopefully it will persist over the treacherous road schedule the team faces throughout the week.

The Rockets return to the court Monday evening against the Chicago Bulls. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT.