RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
HOUSTON (AP) -- A pair of 3-point shots by Walt Williams to open
the fourth period gave the Houston Rockets a lead they didn't
relinquish.
"Walt Williams had a really good game. He hit those shots in
the fourth period that broke the game open," Houston coach Rudy
Tomjanovich said after the Rockets defeated the Vancouver Grizzlies
85-78 Thursday night. "He started slow, but that didn't bother
him. He got his confidence and hit his shots."
Vancouver coach Sidney Lowe agreed with Tomjanovich's analysis.
"Williams came in and did a good job of hitting the threes.
That turned the game around. You try to find guys to get things
going for you and he did it tonight for them," Lowe said.
Williams scored all 13 of his points in the second half.
"At the start I forced the issue. My first shot was my worst of
the night," Williams explained. "After that I relaxed and got
into the flow of the game. That helped me hit my shots late."
Maurice Taylor led Houston with 21 points, followed by Steve
Francis with 19, Cuttino Mobley with 15 and Williams with 13.
Shareef Abdur-Rahim was the top scorer for Vancouver with 17,
followed by Michael Dickerson with 16, Othella Harrington with 12
and Mike Bibby with 10.
"They made more big plays down the stretch than we did. We
didn't do what we have been doing down the stretch to win games,"
Abdur-Rahim said. "This was a game we could have won, but we'll
have another chance."
A pair of 3-point shots by Williams and four points each by
Francis and Mobley sparked to an 11-6 run for Houston to open the
fourth quarter and gave the Rockets 77-69 lead with 3:51 left.
Vancouver cut its deficit to four, 77-73, with 3:07 left, but
never got closer.
A 3-point shot by Francis with 1:48 remaining made it 82-74 and
allowed Houston to coast to the victory.
Vancouver scored seven straight points, five by Dickerson, to
take a 55-47 lead with 4:31 remaining the third period. Houston
rallied to tie the score 63-63 going into the fourth quarter after
a 3-point shot by Williams and a driving layup at the buzzer by
Francis.
Neither team led by more than four points in the first period.
Vancouver managed a 24-21 lead going into the second quarter behind
seven first-quarter points by Dickerson. Taylor had 10
first-quarter points for Houston.
A pair of 3-point shots by Damon Jones gave the Grizzlies a
30-25 lead with 9:45 left in the second period. Houston pulled
within one, 34-33 with 4:13 left in the half, before Vancouver took
a 40-35 halftime lead.
Game
notes
Francis has led Houston in assists in all six games this
season, recording a game-high six against Vancouver ... Mobley is
the only NBA reserve to lead his team in scoring. He is averaging a
career high 19.3 points per game ... Houston placed Kelvin Cato on
the injured list with a left ankle sprain. The Rockets activated
forward Dan Langhi from the injured list ... Vancouver's 27-point
victory over Dallas Wednesday is the Grizzlies' largest margin of
victory ever. The previous best was a 25-point victory over Chicago
last season.
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NBA Scoreboard
Vancouver Clubhouse
Houston Clubhouse
RECAPS
Seattle 102
Charlotte 94
Detroit 108
New Jersey 94
Philadelphia 84
Minnesota 82
Chicago 95
Orlando 90
Houston 85
Vancouver 78
Phoenix 88
Atlanta 79
Portland 107
Denver 91
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Mike Bibby steals the inbounds pass and drills the outside shot.
avi: 768 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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