Tracy McGrady said he had never been a part of a game like this
one. Not many NBA players have.
Yao Ming scored 24 points, McGrady added 21 and the Houston
Rockets embarrassed the Philadelphia 76ers 124-74 Sunday night in
one of the most lopsided games in the history of both
franchises.
It was the Rockets' largest road win and the franchise's
second-largest margin of victory, falling just short of a 139-87
win over the New Jersey Nets on Oct. 18, 1978.
Meanwhile, it was the biggest home loss in franchise history for
Philadelphia, and the team's largest margin of defeat since a
149-93 loss at Seattle on March 6, 1993.
Luther Head scored 13 points off the bench for Houston, while
Chuck Hayes finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds, and Yao
grabbed 10 boards as the Rockets set a season high in points.
"I've never been a part of beating a team by 50 points," said
McGrady, who also had eight assists. "Regardless of the score, we
kept playing. There's only a few games left to prepare ourselves
for the playoffs."
Philadelphia had been one of the hottest teams in the NBA in
recent weeks, winning eight of 10 games to move to the fringes of
the Eastern Conference playoff race. But this game was never close
after the opening minutes and the Rockets beat the 76ers just about
every way possible.
Houston had a 54-36 edge on the glass and a 54-8 advantage on
points in the paint. The Rockets enjoyed a 29-10 margin in assists,
and hit 11 3-pointers to four by the Sixers, who shot a season low
34 percent (27-for-80).
"There's not even a whole lot I can say about it," Philadelphia
coach Maurice Cheeks said. "From the start of the game to the end
of the game, they just beat us. From beginning to end, from coaches
to players."
Houston is 6-2 since Yao returned March 5 after missing 32 games
with a fractured right leg. He dominated both ends of the floor
against the Sixers, keeping them from getting anything going
inside.
"They had our attention because of how well they've been playing
lately against quality teams," Houston coach Jeff Van Gundy said.
"We're certainly not 50 points better than anybody."
The game was never in doubt after the Rockets went on a 19-2 run
in the opening minutes to take a 21-6 lead. The 76ers never got any
closer than 11 the rest of the way against the Rockets, who hit
their first four 3-pointers and led 32-15 after the first
quarter.
Houston's final margin came on a layup by Vassilis Spanoulis
with 30.9 seconds left.
(China Daily via AP March 19, 2007)