LeBron Leads 20-Pt Comeback
HOUSTON March 20, 2008 (AP) -- Despite a 41-point explosion from
Tracy McGrady, the
Cleveland Cavaliers stormed from 20 points behind to force overtime and an eventual victory topping the
Houston Rockets 106-103 at the Toyota Center.
McGrady attacked the Cavaliers defense from the opening tip with a variety of acrobatic layups, dunks, fade-away jumpshots and three-point bombs. Often with
LeBron James guarding him, McGrady seemed determined to make, "The King" earn his namesake. By the 7:21 mark of the third, the Cavaliers found themselves facing a
daunting 20-point deficit when LeBron finally decided he'd had enough.
James flipped a switch and rattled off 8 straight points of his own and dished several crowd-pleasing assists leading Cleveland on an 18-2 run. The Cavaliers defense seemed only to intensify as the clock ran down in the fourth quarter, the margin narrowed to single digits. After missing several easy layups and free-throws and squandering their advantage, the Rockets found themselves trailing 95-94 with 8.3 on the clock.
Yao Ming missed the opportunity to give the lead back to the Rockets after being fouled by
Zydrunas Ilgauskas, hitting only one of two free-throws. In turn, with the scored locked at 95-95,
Drew Gooden missed a final hook shot attempt for the Cavs in regulation, forcing the extra period.
The Rockets looked to be in good position at the start of OT as LeBron
picked up his 6th foul reaching in against McGrady with 4:04 remaining. Furthermore, Houston strung together the next 6 points and seemed to be in the driver's seat; but even without their leader, King James' supporting cast showed their resiliency.
Spurring a run of their own, Cleveland took a 104-103 lead with less than 10 seconds on the OT clock and put the Rockets on their heels. In the ensuing critical possession, the Cav's unsung hero,
Aleksander Pavlovic,
deftly stripped Yao in the low post as he was about to attempt a shot and the ball was quickly recovered by 2nd-year forward,
Rudolf Caswell who was fouled immediately with 4.6 on the clock. Though Caswell would be credited with the steal, Pavlovic's strip which initiated Yao's turnover proved to be the game breaker.
Caswell's clutch free-throws put the nail in Houston's coffin and a satisfied smile on the face of the King. LeBron finished the match with 24 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists while McGrady led Houston with 41 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist and 3 steals.
"Tough loss tonight," said McGrady following the contest. "but Yao's not to blame. As a team, we did a poor job maintaining our composure during their run; this never should've gone OT in the first place."
The Rockets won't have long to reflect on tonight's loss as they prepare to host
Elton Brand and the
Los Angeles Clippers tomorrow night featuring the return of former Rockets,
Luke Ridnour and Rookie of the Year Candidate,
Jafari Cotton, at the Toyota Center.
AROUND THE LEAGUE -
March 20, 2008
DET@SA 107-81
R. Hamilton (DET) 30 pts, 5 reb, 4 ast, 1 stl / T. Duncan (SA) 17 pts, 10 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl, 3 blk
NY@CHA 96-95
M. Stafford (NY) 19 pts, 13 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl, 2 blk / C. Maggette (CHA) 28 pts, 6 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl, 1 blk
PHO@POR 127-104
A. Stoudemire (PHO) 24 pts, 14 reb, 6 ast, 1 stl / Z. Randolf (POR) 34 pts, 11 reb, 7 ast, 5 stl, 3 blk
GS@BOS 103-95
S. Jackson (GS) 29 pts, 9 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl, 1 blk / W. Szczerbiak (BOS) 28 pts, 1 reb, 3 ast
MIA@PHI 80-86
D. Wade (MIA) 29 pts, 5 reb, 7 ast, 1 stl, 1 blk / A. Miller (PHI) 18 pts, 6 reb, 9 ast, 3 stl, 2 blk
(shouldn't they be 4th anyway?)
