Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
The Houston Rockets have somehow managed to win back-to-back games over the Oklahoma City Thunder for force a Game Six in Houston today, but are still on the brink of elimination and down three games to one in the first round series.
The Thunder will need to make key adjustments to advance and avoid a game seven, while the Rockets will need to as well or see their season come to an end Friday night.
Scoring hasn’t been a problem for either team in the series, with the Thunder averaging 106.4 points per game and the Rockets scoring an average of 101.2. Oklahoma City will need to step up their defensive intensity, especially on Houston’s perimeter players.
Rockets’ players James Harden, Francisco Garcia and Patrick Beverley were too comfortable shooting the basketball in game five scoring a combined 63 points and knocking down 14 of 26 three pointers collectively, including a 31-point, 7-9 from three performance by Harden.
The Thunder will need to put pressure on them and not allow so many open three pointers. Even without Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City has the perimeter defenders that should be capable of containing Houston’s outside shooters, and they will need to focus more on closing out and rotating to the open man in game six.
For Houston to force a game seven, they will need to continue to make the other Thunder players outside of Kevin Durant beat them. Durant has averaged 33.6 points and six assists in the series, but when the Rockets focused more attention to him and forced someone else to make plays in the last two games the Thunder fell apart down the stretch. Oklahoma City will need for Kevin Martin and Serge Ibaka to be more assertive themselves in game six.
Game six will come down to whether or not the Thunder’s role players can step up in the clutch and lock down defensively, and if the Rockets can keep them contained and continue to knock down open looks. Executing these principals will determine whether or not the Rockets season concludes or if they survive for one more game.
