Rockets and Magic both force Game 7
The Houston Rockets have pushed the Lakers to a Game 7 match in Los Angeles despite losing Yao Ming to injury, 95-80. The Rockets could be pulling one of the biggest upsets in the recent years; needless to say, they are playing without Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady. Who has been stepping up? Players like Luis Scola, Von Wafer, Ron Artest, but most of all, Aaron Brooks. Brooks led the Rockets’ charge with 26 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists. He may be one of the smaller players in the league but he’s making up for it with his tenacity on the court. Luis Scola chipped in 24 points and 12 rebounds in trying to fill the void left by Yao Ming. Carl Landry scored 15 points and grabbed 9 rebounds coming off the bench. Artest added 14.
For the Lakers, it was only Kobe who really played well for the team. He scored 32 points. Pau Gasol came second in the team’s scoring with 14 points. He also grabbed 11 rebounds. Kobe could be seen frustrated with his teammates numerous times.
The Rockets started the game roaring and hardly looking back. The Lakers tried to make a late game rally but came up short.
In the Eastern Conference, the Orlando Magic played with their backs against the wall and came up glorious as they beat the Celtics, 83-75. Dwight Howard, who complained about the coaching performance of Van Gundy, proved himself to everyone that he needed the ball in his hands for his team to win. From getting to shoot only 10 times in Game 5 and making 5 of those attempts, Dwight made 9 baskets, one shy of his attempts in the previous game. He took a total of 16 attempts. He scored 23 points and also grabbed 22 rebounds in this game, dominating the painted area. Rashard Lewis contributed 20 points and 6 rebounds.
Rajon Rondo, who is proving to be one of the best players in the playoffs, had another remarkable game with 19 points, 16 rebounds, and 6 assists. Paul Pierce scored 17 and Kendrick Perkins had 15.
The Celtics led by 10 points in the third quarter but the Magic came storming back, taking the lead in the early part of the 4th quarter. The Magic kept pushing and sealed the game with a Turkoglu jumper in the dying moments of the game.
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