reflections
January 13th, 2007 Battier’s Clutch Play Leads Rockets Past Denver

Shane Battier

On Friday night, the Rockets traveled to Denver to face AI and the Nuggets. Steve Blake made his Nuggets debut in this game, as he was just traded from Milwaukee in a deal for Earl Boykins and Julius Hodge, and did a great job. Neither team in this game played as well as they usually do, but Houston ended up with the 4 point victory, 90-86, due to some clutch plays (especially from Shane Battier).

Allen Iverson started this game off on fire, but wasn’t as effective in the second half, yet he still played a solid game. Iverson ended the game with 28 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals. Marcus Camby hit just 3 of his 10 shot attempts, but he managed to pull down a ridiculous 24 rebounds. Steve Blake, who made his Nuggets debut in this game, played very well. He played under control and he knocked down his shots, as well as set up his teammates nicely. Blake went for 13 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists in his Nuggets debut, on 5-8 shooting, including 3-5 from deep. J.R. Smith and Yakhouba Diawara were ice cold from the floor tonight. Smith shot 4-17, going for 11 points, while Diawara shot 5-14. However, that 5-14 includes 3 of 12 from three point land. Diawara finished with 13 points on horrid shooting, but he did do a good job defensively on Tracy McGrady. Nene shot just 2 of 8, as he ended up with 8 points and 7 rebounds off the bench.

For Houston, Shane Battier was the hero tonight. McGrady shot poorly and Yao obviously wasn’t in action, but Battier really stepped up tonight, especially late in the game. He finished with 25 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals on 7-13 shooting, including 5 of 9 from deep. McGrady shot just 5 of 17, as he really struggled shooting the ball, but he did make some excellent setup plays. He finished with just 12 points, but also 8 rebounds and 11 assists. Dikembe Mutombo had another double digit rebounding effort, as he scored 7 points, grabbed 10 boards, and blocked 4 shots. Juwan Howard had a solid offensive night, as he finished with 12 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists. Rafer Alston had yet another horrible shooting night, shooting just 5 of 15, as he ended the game with 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists. Luther Head hit a few deep shots as well, as he went for 15 points and 3 rebounds off the bench.

Player of the Game: Shane Battier

Shane Battier

25 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 5-9 3FG

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