12.28.05 v. Rockets

After an 0-2 road trip to North Country, the 11-15 Hornets return home on Wednesday to host the Houston Rockets, 7:00 p.m., on Cox.

At 10-15 as of Christmas Day, the Rockets are in 5th (last) place in our division, barely behind the 11-15 Hornets. Although presently having lost 2 in a row (Toronto, 81-94; @ Denver, 86-108), Houston has had a good December, 6-4, with wins against Boston, @ Sacramento, @ Portland, @ Golden State, @ Seattle, and @ Lakers, and losses against Memphis, @ Clippers, Toronto and @ Denver.

Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady have been their standout scorers.

Ming hails from China. Don’t worry if you can’t remember his #11 jersey - at 7' 5", you can’t miss him on the floor. In 2004-05, he ranked 3rd in the NBA with a .552 field goal percentage and is a 3 time NBA All Star (2003-2005). This year, he is averaging 19.9 points and 9 rebounds per game. McGrady, #1, 6' 8", is scoring better at 23.6 points and 7.3 rebounds a game. He by-passed college and hails from Mount Zion Christian Academy High School, North Carolina. He ranked 6th in NBA scoring in 2004-05 at 25.7 points per game, and 1st in 2002-03 at 30 ppg, and is a 5 time NBA All Star (2001-2005). For more about either player, go to the NBA Rockets Schedule page and just click on T.McGrady and/or Y.Ming who live in the High Points column more often than not. The link is http://www.nba.com/rockets/schedule/

The Rockets have a Tuesday home game, Utah, before traveling to OKC. If they win that game, the Rockets and Hornets will have identical 11-15 records and be tied for 4th place in the division when they play at the Ford Center on Wednesday. That seems likely for the Rockets since they’ve had a good December and since the 11-16 Jazz are 6-8 on the road and have lost their last 3.

The Hornets have 2 victories over Houston this year, 1 each in pre-and-regular season. But, that was before the Rockets had their good December. After 11/26, the Rockets were 3-11 but, as said above, they are now 10-15.

When in Houston, the Rockets play in the Toyota Center with a capacity of 18,300. Fan support isn’t so hot at 16,072 per game average, 23rd in the NBA.