After New York missed a chance to tie, Harden missed a 3-pointer with 21.9 seconds left and Afflalo misfired on a long jumper with 10.5 seconds to play before Calderon misfired on a 3-pointer two seconds later.NOTES: Houston F/C Donatas Motiejunas participated at the morning shootaround and is hopeful of returning to the team at some point in the near future.
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Arron Afflalo led the way for the Knicks with 31 points and Kristaps Porzingis added 20 points and 13 rebounds.
Howard added 14 points and Capela had 11 rebounds for the Rockets.
Trevor Ariza hit the tiebreaking 3-pointer with 1:14 left in overtime and Marcus Thornton made two free throws with less than a second left as the Houston Rockets beat the New York Knicks 116-111 on Sunday night.
“We can’t count on him to score 50 points every night and win”, Rockets interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff said before the game. It marked the first time this season that the Rockets have won a game when Harden has scored fewer than 28 points. “Guys had confidence in their shots and knocked them down”.
The Knicks had just collapsed in the fourth quarter, their lead disintegrating amid dysfunction. The Rockets faced a 91-77 deficit with 8:05 remaining but closed regulation with a 24-10 spurt and shot 57 percent during the fourth quarter.
It’s now four straight defeats for the Knicks (8-10), although none were as heartbreaking as Sunday evening.
Harden averaged 27.3 points but shot just 37.2 percent during Houston’s 4-7 start before McHale was sacked November 18, ending a reportedly contentious relationship and leading to McHale’s wife taking jabs at Harden through social media. Only LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Jerry West and Oscar Robertson have averaged 30 points, six assists and six rebounds for a full season. They’ve scored at least 108 points in each win, with three coming in overtime…
The New York Knicks have hit a bit of a tough stretch in recent games, losing three straight to the Miami Heat, Orlando Magic and Heat again. The Knicks have lost 12 of their last 13 to the Rockets.
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Check out our keys to the game for the Knicks when they host the Rockets at Madison Square Garden tonight and look to get back to.500.
